BBC World News has launched an HD feed for the Asia-Pacific region as the venture prepares to bring together its TV and digital news operations together in a new multimedia newsroom.
The commercial activities are moving into the BBC’s new Broadcasting House facility in central London, where all of its news operations will be cited.
Jim Egan, chief operating officer of the newly created BBC World News Ltd, said the aim of the changes was to unlock new multimedia opportunities by bringing the BBC’s expertise in digital, social media and TV together in one place and running the operation as a single entity focusing on audiences, not platforms.
‘This isn’t simply about running our TV channel and website together. We are entering an age where old definitions of channels and websites are breaking down – this is about the BBC’s commitment to delivering the world’s best quality international journalism, in text and in video, in an integrated way to all the screens our audiences use for their news.”
BBC Global News Ltd will merge the BBC’s commercially-funded bbc.com/news and BBC World News services, which previously operated as separate businesses.
The HD feed to Asia-Pacific went live on August 14, though a similar feed has been available in the US since October 2011.
BBC World News will broadcast live from new state of the art studios in Broadcasting House from the autumn. The studios will include enhanced technology including virtual reality capability, significantly improving the look and feel of BBC World News.