BBC Extends Podcast Trial To Include Hourly News
The BBC is to extend its downloading and podcasting trial to include hourly news bulletins, Woman’s Hour podcasts and audio highlights from BBC Two’s Newsnight.
The latest extension will see almost thirty more radio programmes join the Corporation’s current podcast activity. Expected to see particular interest from the public are hourly news summaries from the BBC World Service and Jeremy Paxman’s first podcasting venture in a weekly, audio-only download featuring interviews from Newsnight.
The strong news line up will also include several BBC Radio 4 programmes, with podcasts to accompany Woman’s Hour, Start the Week, Broadcasting House, Today in Parliament and Front Row launching amongst others.
BBC Radio 1 will also launch new podcast content, including interviews, gossip and chart chat with JK & Joel, news entertainment from the Radio 1 entertainment news team and unsigned music from the Best of Unsigned.
The BBC’s 1Xtra will launch a 100% Homegrown Mix podcast, while Scott Mills and Chris Moyles will present a daily speech-only package.
BBC Radio 3 will contribute a weekly speech highlights package, alongside Discovering Music, while Radio Five Live will provide highlights of football debate throughout the week and daily highlights from Simon Mayo in Daily Mayo.
In BBC Nations and Regions, BBC Radio Cymru will offer the Corporation’s first Welsh-language podcast, while BBC Radio Wales’ All Things Considered will offer a weekly insight into religion and spirituality.
The extended trial will run from this month until June, with the Corporation planning to bring the total number of programmes in the trial to 50 before its completion.
Explaining the trial’s extension, Simon Nelson, controller of BBC Radio & Music Interactive, said: “In extending the trial, we’re offering some of BBC Radio’s most distinctive programming and a broad range of shows to cater to most tastes. The feedback we get from the trial is helping to inform our strategy for ‘audio on demand’, giving listeners the control they are becoming increasingly used to in the digital world.
“Downloading and podcasting are potentially fantastic ways for us to make our on demand programmes as accessible as live radio always has been.”
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