BBC is launching Britflix as a rival to Netflix

The paid-for platform would reportedly take over the channel's current iPlayer service

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The rise of subscription services Netflix and Amazon Prime has seen the distributors become leading forces in the area of film and television production.

Now, in a landmark move, the BBC has been given the green light to start its very own platform to rival those reputable US streaming giants.

According to The Daily Telegraph, the project - named Britflix - could see the channel team up with its British rivals ITV as well as "a number of other production companies."

Culture secretary John Whittingdale suggested the paid-for medium - which is still in the early stages of development - would take over the existing iPlayer service following the Beeb's White Paper requesting "some form of additional subscription services" to provide British residents with a library of varied content.

The planned service would act as a library comprised of old and new BBC content as well as a home for exclusive original series akin to Netflix's House of Cards or Amazon Prime's Transparent.

“We’re moving into a different world where more and more content is going to be made available on demand," said Whittingdale.

"If they want to explore that kind of thing, we’d encourage them. There may come a moment in the future where all television is delivered online, and if you do that it becomes a more realistic practical possibility if you wanted to move towards an element of voluntary subscription."

There is currently no word on when the channel - home to such dramas as Peaky Blinders and Line of Duty - will start work on Britflix.