Aiming to capitalize on the American trend of cord-cutting, British broadcaster BBC is making plans to launch its own over-the-top (OTT) streaming service in the United States in 2016 to compete with the likes of Netflix, Hulu and the upcoming pay TV replacement service that Apple is looking to launch next year.
BBC Director General Tony Hall made the announcement at the RTS Convention in Cambridge on Thursday, Sept.17. He said the service will offer content that has never before been shown in North America. That means popular British shows such as Doctor Who and Top Gear will not be included in the service's lineup, since they are already shown to American audiences through licensing agreements with partners such as AMC Networks.
"We're launching a new OTT video service in America offering BBC fans programs they wouldn't otherwise get, showcasing British actors, our programme-makers and celebrating our culture," Hall said.
No further details have been revealed, but if the BBC plans to model its new service after iPlayer, its popular streaming service in Britain, it could offer a monthly subscription service that charges customers a few dollars in exchange for access to the BBC's 92-year-old archives of television programming. While no shows have been named just yet, notable examples may include Monty Python's Flying Circus, Pride and Prejudice (starring Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle) and Ricky Gervais' The Office.
The decision to take its programming across the pond is deemed a revenue grab for the BBC, as it has recently gone under scrutiny by the British Conservative government, which is considering selling off BBC Worldwide, the broadcaster's commercial arm. As a government-supported entity, the BBC is prohibited by law to earn revenue through advertising while having suffered its first major budget cut during the 2008 recession.
The upcoming service, Hall said, will help BBC increase its revenue to supplement the public license fees it receives from every British household with a TV, while showing the British government the importance of its commercial arm.
"While every major global player is creating a more integrated system, it would make no sense for us to go the other way and break up a system that is delivering returns that are essential to support public service programmes," Hall said.
The BBC's history of launching a global streaming service is marred by failures. In May, the broadcaster decided to shut down its global iPlayer service that had been available to 16 countries, including Canada but not the United States, since 2011. However, since U.S. customers are largely turning to à la carte options instead of paying for an entire bundle of channels they never watch, the BBC could very possibly find a lucrative market in the country.
