Last week the BBC announced Backstage, a developer network where external parties can gain information and access to the BBC’s digital content for use in their online applications. The beta site offers developers and ordinary licence fee payers the opportunity to develop new prototype services that use BBC content.
It is hoped that Backstage will help the creative community including those working in education with business opportunities based on building prototypes which manipulate the way the BBC’s content and services are displayed and used. Quite how this might relate to the BBC’s Digital Curriculum is unclear, but it does indicate that after the Graff report the BBC now seems more willing to engage with external suppliers.
The BBC has announced the sale of BBC Broadcast Limited for £166m to the Creative Broadcast Services consortium led by Australian company Macquarie Capital Alliance Group (MCAG). Described in an announcement to the Australian Stock Exchange as ‘Europe’s leading expert in the distribution and promotion of multimedia content’, it is not clear if this new deal will have any impact on the BBC’s Digital Curriculum project nor whether it will open up new opportunities for UK educational multimedia companies.
BBC Broadcast services include preparing multimedia content for multimedia transmission including via mobile and web-based channels. Both areas are of significant interest to UK content developers in light of the success of up
