BBC to strike content deal with YouTube, FT reports

The BBC plans to produce programmes for Google’s YouTube for the first time, the Financial Times reported on Friday, as the British public broadcaster looks to generate more money as many viewers turn to streaming platforms.

The BBC will begin making tailored shows for YouTube that will subsequently be shown on the BBC’s iPlayer and Sounds platforms, the FT said, citing sources.

It said the deal could be announced as early as next week.

The BBC declined to comment, while Google did not respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours.

The BBC is largely funded by a licence fee paid by all television-watching households in Britain, which allows its British services, including everything on its iPlayer, to remain free of advertisements.

The FT said the deal with YouTube, focusing on younger audiences, would allow the BBC to generate more money by showing advertising when these programmes are shown outside Britain.

A limited selection of older series may also be made available on YouTube, although this will not be the main focus of the deal, according to the FT.

YouTube reached 51.9 million British viewers in December, narrowly surpassing the BBC’s 50.8 million, according to Barb Audiences, the official measurement body for television and video metrics.

U.S. President Donald Trump is suing the BBC for at least $10 billion in damages over the editing of clips from a speech that made it appear that he had directed supporters to storm the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.

The BBC apologised for the edit and the affair led to the resignations of its two most senior bosses. Nevertheless, it has pledged to defend the case and is seeking to have the suit dismissed.