BBC to premiere new programming on iPlayer
The BBC is to commence broadcasting programmes online before airing them on TV as it seeks to reposition itself as a leader in the digital market.
It is the first time that content will be streamed on iPlayer in advance of a conventional broadcast and follows a number of experiments in ‘online only’ content – notably last years ‘Impractical Jokers’.
The latest 12 month trial will see the broadcaster premiere 40 hours of programming across a range of genres on iPlayer in a bid to counter the growing appeal of services such as Netflix – which launched its own online only show, House of Cards, this month.
iPlayer has been a major success for the BBC, garnering a record 187m requests for content last month – although this still amounts to just 2% of total BBC viewing figures.