BBC plans to overhaul websites

The BBC is set to overhaul its websites to include more social media features.

Speaking at a conference last night, the BBC’s controller of Vision and Online Anthony Rose said the BBC is aiming to relaunch its portfolio of websites with “next generation” social media tools.

The changes to the homepage and underlying hosting platform are expected to be unveiled next March.

Rose confirmed that the BBC is planning several new innovations – “among them for example, is the plan to enable users to comment on particular moments while watching and see what other users said about the same moment or simply rate moments with ‘Boo!’, ‘Good!’ or ‘Gosh!,” he said.

The BBC is also planning to launch an open version of the iPlayer, which will enable third-party platforms to embed BBC content while it remains on the BBC site.

However, Rose denied claims that an iPlayer application for Facebook is in the pipeline.

The BBC’s overhaul of its websites will also include radical changes to the navigation design of its news sites, highlighting breaking news stories and local content.