BBC2 goes mad for broadband

The controller of BBC2 has said he intends to make the channel the first mainstream TV station to broadcast via broadband.

Roly Keating's announcement is very much in keeping with the BBC's broader ethos of a move to emerging forms of broadcasting content – a charge led by Ashley Highfield, a silicon.com Agenda Setter and the Beeb's director of new media and technology.

A pilot of the broadband service, pencilled in for 2006, will run concurrently with further trials of the MyBBCPlayer technology which will enable viewers to download and watch BBC content on demand.

The broadband incarnation of BBC2 looks set to offer a mix of streamed media and downloads.

The BBC website quotes Keating saying: "A broadband channel could of course offer simulcast programming [broadcasting simultaneously on multiple media] and the kind of comprehensive catch-up currently being piloted in the BBC Player tests.

"But there's more to it than that and you'll see our first steps on this journey next year. Whatever the broadband revolution means for audiences and channels in the future, we intend to be there, in the front line."

In related news, the BBC today announced that Radio 1 is to trial Bluetooth broadcasting this weekend for attendees at Chart Show Live at The Shepherds Bush Empire, an event which will feature artists such as Charlotte Church and McFly.

Visitors will be able to download media onto their mobile phones including interviews, backstage photos and video content.

Daniel Heaf, interactive editor of Radio 1, said in a press release: "Radio 1 recognises the increased importance of delivering its content to a young audience on mobile platforms. I see this as one small part of our digital future."