BBC Prime launched
with localised subtitles
in Poland and the Czech Republic.
New channel BBC Food was an immediate hit
in Southern Africa on Multichoice, reaching
more than 843,000 subscribers, and breaking
even in its first year. The channel launches
in Scandinavia in 2003.
UKTV, the joint venture between BBC Worldwide
and Flextech Television, is the second-largest
non-terrestrial broadcaster in the UK, attracting
19 million viewers each month on average.
During the year, UKTV made an overall profit
and launched the first-ever campaign for its
corporate brand. Two further channels were
introduced:
UK Bright Ideas, a lifestyle channel featuring
original programming, and UK History, which
reached more than nine million homes by the
end |
of the year. The
UK Food website – www.ukfood.tv –
was also launched and is now the UK’s
second biggest TV food website after the BBC.
BBC Worldwide’s joint venture channels
with Discovery continued their expansion:
Animal Planet is now available in more than
188 million homes worldwide. With 13.5 million
subscribers, People + Arts is available throughout
the Spanish and Portuguese-speaking world.
In Australia, joint venture channel UKTV made
an overall profit and distribution increased
by 24% following an expansion by partner Foxtel.
In December 2002, international news channel
BBC World was incorporated as a separate commercial
company.
It now forms part of the BBC’s global
news division.
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