BBC Three (online)
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Type of site
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Internet television |
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| Owner | BBC |
| Website | www |
| Commercial | No |
| Launched | 16 February 2016 |
BBC Three (stylised as BBC II!) is a British over-the-top internet television service operated by the BBC, which launched on 16 February 2016. It is a replacement for the linear BBC Three television channel, which was discontinued the same day. The service produces and streams television and web series aimed at the demographic of 16–34 year-olds, with a particular focus on comedy and documentary programmes.
The replacement of BBC Three's television service with a digital platform came as the result of budget cuts at the broadcaster, stemming from Director-General Tony Hall's goal to not perform general cuts across the BBC that would compromise the quality of its programme output, and an acknowledgement of a shift in viewing habits among the service's demographic towards online video services as opposed to linear television channels. Likewise, BBC Three staff argued that the service would no longer be bound to the limitations of linear television, enabling producers to have a larger degree of flexibility in the programme content they can create for BBC Three.
BBC Three content is primarily streamed on BBC iPlayer, while the service's other content, including web series and other materials, are also distributed through presences on social networks. All full-length original programming commissioned for BBC Three must eventually be broadcast on the linear BBC One and BBC Two television channels following their online premiere.
In February 2014 at the Oxford Media Conference, BBC Director-General Tony Hall stated that as part of the ongoing "Delivering Quality First" initiative at the corporation (which, as motivated by the government freeze of television license fee costs, aims to reach £700 million in cost-savings across the BBC up to the end of the 2016–17 television season), the BBC was in the process of finalizing plans to make another £100 million in cuts to be announced the following month. Believing that general budget cuts across the entire corporation would compromise the quality of its in-house productions—especially dramas, which he described as being the "essence" of the BBC, Hall stated that these cuts could require "hard decisions" to be made. He explained that the corporation had "reached the point where salami-slicing would affect quality and distinctiveness. Rather than seek to preserve a less good version of our past, we decided to focus on what we do best: from drama to taking iPlayer into the next generation."
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