News Broadcasting
BBC on-demand service for archive programmes set for trial early next year
MUMBAI: A limited consumer trial of the BBC Archive in the UK is set to begin early next year, and is expected to last up to six months.
The BBC Archive is the BBC’s proposed service that would make parts of its repository of previously broadcast TV and radio content – an estimated one million hours of TV and radio programmes – available, on a public service basis, to licence fee payers on-demand via bbc.co.uk.
The trial for the BBC Archive is being undertaken in order to gather evidence about consumer demand for free archive content and its ability to create public value. It will make available 1,000 hours of content drawn from a mix of genres to a closed user environment of 20,000 triallists.
A limited amount of content – 50 hours – of both TV and radio programmes will be available in an open environment for general access. The results of the trial will inform the BBC’s future proposition for a public service archive service on bbc.co.uk, which will require approval from the BBC Trust.
BBC director of Future Media and Technology Ashley Highfield says, “As part of our commitment to making our public service content more personal, more convenient and more relevant for all our audiences, we are developing a portfolio of services to offer licence payers access to the BBC’s archive. To this end, we are planning a limited trial of the BBC Archive early next year to learn more about interaction with the BBC’s archive content on-demand via bbc.co.uk, and the public value that it delivers. Our goal is to turn the BBC into an open cultural and creative resource for the nation.”
The BBC’s future proposition for an archive service on bbc.co.uk will also encompass the BBC’s Creative Archive, which has already completed a successful 18-month pilot, which concluded in September.
The Creative Archive pilot released selected BBC television and radio content in five successive national campaigns and four regionally-based campaigns. It generated a significant level of engagement from licence fee payers with nearly 100,000 regular users, and a Bafta award for technical innovation.
The Creative Archive pilot enabled people to re-edit, use and share appropriately cleared content for their own, non-commercial creative purposes within the terms of the Creative Archive Licence Scheme in partnership with other organisations (ITN Source; British Film Institute; Channel 4; Open University; Museum, Libraries and Archive Council; Teachers’ TV; and Community Channel).
The intention would be to make selected BBC content available under the scheme within the proposed BBC Archive service, across bbc.co.uk and also within a third party web portal with partner organisations.
The BBC Archive would be an extension of the BBC’s seven-day catch-up on-demand proposals (including BBC iPlayer) which are currently undergoing a Public Value Test.
Subject to the licence fee settlement, the public service archive proposition will be further developed in light of the trials before being submitted for approval to the BBC Trust in the second half of 2007.
The trial of the BBC Archive is specifically designed to test audience demand for public service archive content and how they want to access it.
News Broadcasting
Rising Bharat Summit 2026 spotlights India’s global ascent
PM Modi keynotes two-day event with ministers, diplomats and icons in New Delhi.
MUMBAI: India didn’t just host a summit, it threw a coming-out party for a nation ready to own the global stage. The News18 Rising Bharat Summit 2026, held on 27–28 February in New Delhi, emerged as a high-octane platform for ideas, vision and strategic dialogue, uniting national leadership, global policymakers, industry titans, defence strategists and cultural icons under the theme “Strength Within”.
Prime minister Narendra Modi set the tone with a keynote that framed India’s resurgence as a reclaiming of lost potential built over generations. “In previous industrial revolutions, India and the Global South were merely followers,” he said. “But in the era of Artificial Intelligence, India is a partner in decisions and shaping them.” He highlighted the country’s thriving AI startup ecosystem and the recent AI Impact Summit attended by over 100 nations.
Union minister Piyush Goyal (Commerce & Industry) stressed India’s readiness to scale exports and deepen manufacturing, while Ashwini Vaishnaw (Railways, I&B, Electronics & IT) positioned technology and infrastructure as twin engines of growth, especially in AI and digital trust. Jyotiraditya Scindia (Communications & North East Development) revealed India’s ambition to lead in 6G through the Bharat 6G Alliance and partnerships with over 30 countries.
Global voices added depth: former Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo called India’s development “self-sustaining” and strategically vital; ex-UK Chief of Defence Staff General Sir Nick Carter asserted India deserves a seat at the great powers’ table; and former US Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez joined ambassadors from Norway, Germany and Sweden in discussions on geopolitical realignment, sustainability and defence preparedness.
Other speakers included veteran investor Ramesh Damani, World Gold Council CEO David Tait, Vianai Systems founder Dr Vishal Sikka, DeepTech Bharat Foundation co-founder Shashi Shekhar Vempati, defence experts Rajesh Kumar Singh, Sunil Ambekar, Patrick McGee, Tom Cooper and Adrian Fontanellaz, plus cultural and sporting icons Kangana Ranaut, Saina Nehwal, PR Sreejesh, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mithali Raj, Anil Kapoor and Yami Gautam.
The summit was supported by Jio Financial Services (Presenting Partner), Phonepe and DS Group (Co-Presenting Partners), Pernod Ricard India and Kia Seltos (Powered By & Driven By), state governments of Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand (State Partners), and associate partners including NSE, M3M Foundation and Reliance Industries.
Broadcast live across News18 Network, CNBC-TV18 and CNBC Awaaz, the event reinforced India’s image as a confident democracy and emerging global power proving that when strength comes from within, the world can’t help but watch.
