News Broadcasting
BBC Worldwide to distribute Canadian drama ‘The Session’ globally
MUMBAI: BBC Worldwide has succeeded in picking the international distribution rights to highly anticipated Canadian drama, The Session.
The deal sees BBC Worldwide as the exclusive international sales partner for the drama which is being produced by one of Canada’s leading production houses, Temple Street Productions.
Scheduled for the 2008-2009 season on CBC, The Session stars Erin Karpluk and Michael Riley and tells the story of Erica Strange, who is given the incredible opportunity to see her life from a different perspective when a mysterious therapist gives her the chance to go back in time and relive moments from her past.
BBC Worldwide’s director of independents Helen Jackson who was responsible for brokering the deal with Temple Street said, “The Session is a fantastic concept, with a truly universal appeal. Who doesn’t sometimes look back on their life and think about what they might have done differently?
“Given the subject matter and Temple Street’s pedigree for producing high quality shows, we know that it is a series that will play well with international audiences, and we’re really happy to have this opportunity to show Ivan and David what BBC Worldwide can do.”
David Fortier and Ivan Schneeberg, both co-presidents of Temple Street Productions and Executive Producers on the series said, “We’re really proud of The Session. It has a fantastic cast and a great story to tell which transcends geographic borders and cultures.
Having BBC Worldwide on board as our international distribution partner is a real coup for us and will help ensure that The Session is seen by audiences around the world.”
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:Â 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.
