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BBC Worldwide Channels to launch on Cyfrowy Polsat platform in Poland
MUMBAI: BBC Worldwide Channels may have decided to retreat two of its channels, CBeebies and BBC Entertainment, from India but in Poland it is expanding the distribution of these channels.
The BBC channel portfolio consisting of BBC Entertainment, BBC Lifestyle, BBC Knowledge and CBeebies will be available on DTH platform Cyfrowy Polsat in Poland later this month.
The inclusion of the BBC channels on the Cyfrowy Polsat platform will mean that the BBC‘s thematic channels are available on all major DTH platforms, cable and IPTV providers in Poland, growing the reach of the channel portfolio to an increasing number of Polish households.
The exact date of launch and package for the SD channels will be revealed in due course. They will join BBC HD which has been available on the platform in the Extra HD package since 1 February 2012.
As part of this new agreement, the responsibility for advertising sales for the BBC channel portfolio will also move to Polsat Media sales from 1 January 2013.
BBC Worldwide Channels senior VP, GM Europe, Middle East and Africa Ian McDonough said, “I am thrilled to announce our new agreement with Cyfrowy Polsat which will see the launch of our full channel portfolio to the platform. With the opening of a local office in Warsaw and a dedicated team on the ground lead by Jacek Koskowski, we are confident that we can provide the very best exclusive and original programming from the UK and are uniquely positioned to provide global TV moments to our growing Polish audience. I am also pleased to announce our partnership with Polsat Media who will represent us in selling advertising on our channels to the Polish market.”
Cyfrowy Polsat president Dominik Libicki said, “I look forward to each new opportunity to enrich our offering and provide our subscribers with attractive television content. The four themed channels will be accompanied by BBC HD which our subscribers have had access to since February this year. I believe that the audience will appreciate the content from a World renowned broadcaster such as the BBC”
Highlights for the channels over the coming months include:
Top Gear‘s Richard Hammond returns to BBC Knowledge in November with the exclusive second series of Crash Course where the presenter exits the driver‘s seat and leaves his comfort zone, trading monstrous machines for the most daring and distinctive jobs. Richard will also host Top Gear: 50 Years of James Bond Cars featuring cars from the iconic series of British films this November, exclusively to the channel.
On BBC Entertainment, the hit global TV format Come Dine With Me returns with even more drama, cookery mishaps and conflict as contestants battle it out to be crowned the UK‘s ultimate dinner party host. There are more tears of joy and dramatic home transformations as Ty Pennington and his team of experts change homes and lives in Extreme Makeover Home Edition.
UK Chef Nigella Lawson comes to BBC Lifestyle in the New Year with Nigellissima – a new series inspired by her love of Italy and Italian cuisine, and 10 Years Younger New Zealand transforms and revives people who look somewhat older than their years through an extensive makeover process.
Little learners can also look forward to a new series of ‘Baby Jake‘ as he sets off once more to enchanting imaginary worlds and more musical treats from Zingzillas on CBeebies.
The BBC thematic channels are also available in Poland via n and Cyfra + platforms in addition to UPC Polska, Vectra and other cable operators.
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Inshorts Group chief Deepit Purkayastha joins IAB video council for Southeast Asia and India
The co-founder and chief executive of the short-form content platform has been inducted into the IAB SEA+India Video Council, giving India a stronger voice in shaping digital video frameworks
NOIDA: India has long been the world’s most chaotic, multilingual and mobile-first digital market. Now, one of its most prominent short-video executives is getting a seat at the table where the rules are written.
Deepit Purkayastha, co-founder and chief executive of Inshorts Group, has been selected as a member of the IAB SEA+India Video Council for 2026. Run by the Interactive Advertising Bureau, the council brings together senior leaders from Southeast Asia and India to shape standards, best practices and measurement frameworks for the fast-evolving video and digital advertising ecosystem.
The timing is pointed. According to the IAMAI-Kantar Internet in India Report 2025, over 588 million Indians are now consuming short-video content, with growth increasingly driven by rural and non-metro audiences. India’s active internet user base has crossed 950 million, with 57 per cent of users now coming from rural markets. Yet the frameworks that govern how video consumption is measured and monetised were largely designed for single-language, Western markets and have struggled to keep pace with the scale, diversity and complexity of India’s digital landscape.
Purkayastha is no stranger to these debates. He already serves on the AI Council at Marketing and Media Alliance India and as co-chair of the Digital Entertainment Committee at the Internet and Mobile Association of India. His induction into the IAB SEA+India Video Council extends that influence into the global video standards arena.
Inshorts Group sits squarely at the intersection of these forces. Its flagship product, Inshorts, India’s highest-rated short news app, reaches 12 million active users with 60-word news summaries. Its sister platform, Public App, reaches 80 million monthly active users across more than 700 districts and 12 languages, serving communities that most global platforms barely register.
Purkayastha said the opportunity was about building something more representative. “India today sits at the centre of the global video ecosystem, but the frameworks that define how value is created and measured have not always kept pace with the realities of our market,” he said. “Being part of the IAB SEA+India Video Council is an opportunity to contribute to a more representative and future-ready approach, one that accounts for diversity in language, context, and user intent.”
As a council member, Purkayastha will contribute to shaping regional standards across video advertising, measurement and platform governance, with a focus on frameworks that are native to India’s multilingual, mobile-first ecosystem rather than imported from global benchmarks designed elsewhere.
For years, India has been content to play by rules written for other markets. Purkayastha’s induction is a signal that it is done waiting to be consulted and ready to start writing them.
