MUMBAI: BBC Worldwide, which is UK pubcaster the BBC's commercial consumer arm, has signed an agreement with South Korea's largest telephone landline and broadband service providers, Hanarotelecom to supply Internet Protocol Video on Demand (IP Vod) content for its new TV portal platform, Hanaromedia.
Launching next month, the new service will allow Hanarotelecom's pre-existing 3.6 million broadband subscribers to purchase over 120 hours of BBC children's, drama, natural history and lifestyle programming, including titles such as Fimbles, Pride and Prejudice and Tom Jones.
For between $1-2 per month, subscribers can view their chosen BBC programme as often as they like within a 72-hour rental period. In order for video on demand and Internet traffic to be carried to a living room TV, all that’s needed is a DSL modem, a Hanarotelecom tariff and an Internet Protocol Set Top Box.
BBC Worldwide senior TV sales manager, Asia, Linfield Ng said, "New media technology is one of our most exciting and important business areas right now. The strength of the BBC's brand and the depth of its programme portfolio put BBC Worldwide in a really strong position when it comes to leveraging this new technology and sharing our catalogue innovatively with global audiences. I'm delighted that our agreement with Hanarotelecom serves to underline that further."
Hanarotelecom chief strategy officer Chonghoon Park says, "I am very pleased that Hanarotelecom is bringing BBC programmes to Korean audiences, allowing them to view these popular and high-quality titles at a time and in a fashion most convenient for them. We look forward to continuing to work with BBC Worldwide to deliver the best service and the best programming for our customers."
The announcement with Hanarotelecom follows a number of other agreements which BBC Worldwide has secured to provide content for video on demand services to such international VoD providers as T-Online in Germany, Versatel in Holland, Hot Vision in Israel, Ebismedia in Italy and Telefonica in Spain.
