Brittin Courts Netflix, YouTube Chiefs on BBC Partnerships — SkimNews
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- Matt Brittin told BBC staff on Wednesday he had met with the "global leadership" of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, and YouTube to explore "strategic partnerships" that could help the corporation "transform at this time."
- Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters sat down with Brittin when Peters visited London in recent weeks.
- Brittin wants BBC content to be more "prominent" on Netflix and YouTube, and has previously spoken about making more BBC News output available on those services.
- Before Brittin's arrival, the BBC agreed to produce original shows for YouTube under a first-of-its-kind pact with the Google-owned video service.
- Brittin's streamer outreach aligns with the UK government's plan to compel YouTube to promote public service content — something YouTube has publicly criticized as "forced prominence."
- Separately, the BBC and Channel 4 are scoping a joint venture that could combine BBC Studios' UKTV with Channel 4's advertising operations, channels E4 and Film4, and its streaming service — though Channel 4's main network would be excluded.
- Channel 4 CEO Priya Dogra has warned against the BBC acquiring full control of Channel 4, even as she supports iPlayer hosting Channel 4 shows.
Why it matters: The BBC is leveraging global streamer partnerships to extend its international reach — but YouTube has already publicly pushed back on UK government plans to mandate "forced prominence" for public service content on its platform. A parallel joint venture with Channel 4 combining UKTV, E4, Film4, and streaming operations would redraw the UK's public broadcaster competitive map.
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