{"id":249855,"date":"2026-01-21T12:19:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-21T12:19:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/249855\/"},"modified":"2026-01-21T12:19:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T12:19:08","slug":"youtube-bbc-confirm-watershed-content-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/249855\/","title":{"rendered":"YouTube & BBC Confirm Watershed Content Deal"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tThe BBC<\/a> has confirmed plans to produce original YouTube<\/a> shows for the first time under a watershed agreement with the Google-owned platform.<\/p>\n

\n\tFirst reported last week<\/a>, the BBC has earmarked pots of money from across its TV and news divisions that will be used to fund \u201cYouTube-first\u201d shows, an important moment for the UK national broadcaster as it aims to meet young audiences where they consume content.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe BBC declined to disclose the funding committed to YouTube originals, but it will begin encouraging producers to pitch ideas for the initiative. YouTube-first shows will also be hosted on iPlayer and BBC Sounds.<\/p>\n

\n\tUnder the agreement, the BBC will grow its number of YouTube channels to 50, which includes those operated by commercial arm, BBC Studios. New specialist channels will include BBC3\u2019s Deepwatch (working title), featuring new and existing documentaries. <\/p>\n

\n\tSeven children\u2019s channels will also be launched, including The Epic Facts channel, which will bring together content from BBC series including Horrible Histories and Deadly 60. The BBC will also showcase \u201cmoments that bring the UK together\u201d like the Winter Olympics.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe BBC will not carry advertising in the UK around new YouTube originals, given that the corporation is funded by the licence fee. The BBC does allow ads on YouTube Shorts and promotional content, but this is a limited income stream. <\/p>\n

\n\tBBC Studios will continue to monetize BBC-branded YouTube channels outside of the UK, while third-party producers can carry ads around BBC content on their channels. For example, The Graham Norton Show, produced by ITV Studios-owned So Television, hosts ads.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe BBC has maintained a presence on YouTube for more than 20 years. BBC Studios content generates 15B annual views every year, according to the corporation, while the BBC\u2019s main account has 15.3M subscribers and 11.9B views.<\/p>\n

\n\tYouTube\u2019s growth as a competitor to traditional television has startled the industry in recent years. In an unprecedented moment, Deadline revealed last week<\/a> that YouTube had overtaken the BBC on a key measurement of audience reach.<\/p>\n

\n\tOther UK networks have been experimenting with YouTube originals. Channel 4 has greenlit films for its Channel 4 Documentaries channel on YouTube, while the network commissioned digital drama\u00a0Beth\u00a0last year.<\/p>\n

\n\tBBC-YouTube Creator Training<\/p>\n

\n\tThe BBC and YouTube have also committed to launching a creator skills and training programme. Led by the National Film and Television School, 150 media professionals will be invited to develop their YouTube skills during a series of workshops and events hosted around the UK.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"BBC<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tBBC director general Tim Davie<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty<\/p>\n

\n\tBBC director-general Tim Davie said: \u201cIt\u2019s essential that everyone gets value from the BBC, and this groundbreaking partnership will help us connect with audiences in new ways. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe\u2019re building from a strong start and this takes us to the next level, with bold homegrown content in formats audiences want on YouTube and an unprecedented training programme to upskill the next generation of YouTube creators from across the UK. Importantly, this partnership also allows new audiences different routes into BBC services like BBC iPlayer and Sounds.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tPedro Pina, VP EMEA YouTube, added: \u201cThis partnership translates the BBC\u2019s world-class content for a digital-first audience, ensuring its cultural impact reaches a younger, more global audience. Beyond the content, our first-of-its-kind training programme represents a deep investment in the UK\u2019s creative pipeline.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe BBC\u2019s partnership with YouTube comes at a time when UK lawmakers are exploring an intervention to address the Google-owned platform\u2019s startling growth.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn a keynote speech at the Royal Television Society\u2019s Cambridge Convention last September,\u00a0culture secretary Lisa Nandy said<\/a>\u00a0the government is prepared to change legislation to ensure that YouTube carries public service content prominently.\u00a0YouTube said this\u00a0would be \u201cpremature\u201d<\/a>\u00a0at a time when it is talking to public service broadcasters about partnerships.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The BBC has confirmed plans to produce original YouTube shows for the first time under a watershed agreement…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":249856,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[1705,146,85,46,411,678],"class_list":{"0":"post-249855","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv","8":"tag-bbc","9":"tag-entertainment","10":"tag-il","11":"tag-israel","12":"tag-tv","13":"tag-youtube"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249855","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=249855"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249855\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/249856"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=249855"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=249855"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=249855"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}