The BBC is reportedly preparing to produce exclusive, youth-focused programmes for YouTube as part of a landmark deal designed to reclaim younger audiences and strengthen its commercial footing.
The BBC is reportedly close to finalising a landmark deal with YouTube that would see the public broadcaster produce original programmes specifically for the video platform.
According to reports first published by the Financial Times and confirmed to Deadline, the agreement would mark the first time the BBC commissions bespoke shows designed primarily for YouTube audiences.
The programmes would be aimed largely at younger viewers and could later migrate to the BBC’s own platforms, including iPlayer and BBC Sounds.
An announcement could come as early as next week, though the BBC has declined to comment publicly.
The supposed move reflects the scale of the challenge posed by YouTube, which has increasingly eclipsed traditional broadcasters in audience reach.
Data from ratings body Barb shows that YouTube reached 51.9 million people in the UK in December, overtaking the BBC’s 50.8 million for the first time in its history.
The gap has persisted across recent months, underlining how younger audiences in particular are choosing online video over linear television.
Under the proposed arrangement, the BBC would not run advertising on YouTube within the UK, in line with its public service remit.
However, overseas monetisation through ads is reportedly being explored as a way to bolster commercial income at a time when licence fee revenues have fallen sharply in real terms.
Over the past decade, the value of the licence fee has dropped by around 30 per cent, while evasion and cancellations have cost the corporation more than £1 billion in the past year alone.
The deal also aligns with guidance from UK watchdog Ofcom, which has urged public service broadcasters to create content natively for platforms like YouTube to avoid losing relevance with younger audiences.
UK broadcaster Channel 4 has already experimented in this space, commissioning documentaries and digital-first dramas for the platform.
Internally, some BBC figures are said to be sceptical about the commercial upside, arguing the strategy is more about reach than profit.
Even so, with YouTube now a dominant force in UK media consumption and government discussions looming over the future of the licence fee after 2027, the reported partnership signals a pragmatic shift in how the BBC plans to meet audiences where they already are.
BBC ‘close to finalising deal with YouTube to make exclusive TV shows’
