News Broadcasting
BBC World News announces raft of on demand programming
MUMBAI: BBC World News has announced a brand new suite of video on demand (VOD) content, meaning that its international distribution partners can now offer their customers a raft of the channel’s award-winning and top quality programmes wherever and whenever they want it.
The package, which is available now, includes over 120 hours of the channel’s best-known long-form content strands, including HARDtalk, Click, The Travel Show and Our World each year. The package may also include specials and thematically grouped content, all of which is specifically commissioned for international audiences.
BBC Global News director of distribution Colin Lawrence said, “The fact that we have award-winning long form content that sits alongside our world class news and current affairs has always been one of the things that makes BBC World News stand out against our competitors. We know from the quantity and quality of our social media engagement that these programme brands are widely recognised and appreciated around the world. As consumers increasingly demand content on their own terms, we’re pleased that we can now offer our partners a suite of programmes of this quality and range to serve their needs.”
File delivery means the content is available in both SD and HD, further super-serving the time-shifted audience.
Programmes included in the package are:
Click
Click explores the latest developments in the world of technology. Spencer Kelly and the team review the latest gadgets and provide a comprehensive guide to all the latest websites, games and computer industry news.
HARDtalk
HARDtalk asks the tough questions to the world’s biggest newsmakers, uncovering the full stories behind the big headlines. Stephen Sackur talks to famous names from all walks of life about the highs and lows in their lives, focusing on in-depth interviews with hard-hitting questions.
The Travel Show
The Travel Show launched in February, building on the success of the BBC’s Fast:Track, which has long been a trusted source of expertise, information and advice for travellers across the globe. It showcases the very best in consumer and travel journalism, with each show focussing on the current issues and trends that are influencing global travel choices.
One Square Mile
One Square Mile takes the lid off a neighbourhood. BBC reporters explore part of a town or city and talk to the people they meet to find out what their everyday concerns are. The programme aims to discover what life is really like for residents of the neighbourhoods in the chosen ‘one square mile.’
Our World
Our World is an award-winning flagship documentary strand which shows compelling stories from correspondents around the globe on the key issues of our time.
Working Lives
Working Lives takes a handful of working people from a wide cross-section of the workforce and looks at where they work, what they earn, how skilled they are and what their overall ‘working life chances’ are.
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI: Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
