BBC Sounds - is it going away internationally?

I think I've hit on the BBC's strategy.

https://james.cridland.net/blog/2024/bbc-sounds-the-strategy/

Episode Transcript

James Cridland (00:00):
Hello, I'm James Cridland, the radio futurologist.
And every week or so I write anewsletter all about
international radio trends andall of that. And this is an
article I've just written onNovember the 27th called BBC
Sounds, a Muddled Strategy. BBCsounds.

Clip (00:17):
BBC Sounds

James Cridland (00:18):
is a bit of a puzzle, though you wouldn't know
from visiting the BBC Soundswebsite. BBC Sounds is also an
app for your phone and intendedto be, I think the primary place
you find BBC audio content.That's music...

Clip (00:31):
radio... podcasts.

James Cridland (00:31):
More than 90% of podcasts listen to
on a mobile phone. So it'scurious that links to download
the app aren't front and centreon the BBC Sounds website. Try
listening to the In Our Timepodcast from the BBC on a third
party app...

Clip (00:47):
This is In Our Time from BBC Radio Four

James Cridland (00:49):
And you'll discover it's time delayed by
four weeks in order to make you"enjoy it first, directly from
the BBC". Watch BBC News, however -a commercial television channel
here in Australia, but withcopious unsold ad breaks - and the
filler promos for the GlobalNews podcast tell you to listen
wherever you

Clip (01:09):
Get your BBC podcasts.

James Cridland (01:11):
No promotion of BBC Sounds on the BBC's most
watched global televisionchannel. We greatly value off
platform listener consumption tohelp us find new audiences for
BBC content, says Mary Hough,Head of Growth and Discovery for
BBC Sounds in a blog post thatsimultaneously announces more

(01:32):
restrictions to curtail offplatform listener consumption.
There are plenty of shows nowbeing time delayed, including the
biggest shows from thebroadcaster. News programmes
which "serve a strong publicservice purpose" aren't time-delayed,
although Moneybox, builled as"the latest news from the World
of personal finance", is. Everynew podcast promoted by the BBC

(01:56):
is only ever promoted on pressreleases as being on BBC Sounds,
so I can't even tell you whethera new podcast I'm mentioning is
going to be available on apodcast app without going back
and asking a PR person who'drather that off-platform apps
didn't exist. Yet we're alsoencouraged to listen on off
platform apps. BBC Podcasts hasa paid podcast subscription on

(02:20):
Apple Podcasts, launched at$2.99 a month in US money, but
which has quietly changed to$4.99 a month, I notice. But why
pay that when many of the sameshows are available for free
with no ads on BBC Sounds, whichis a free download in the Apple
App Store? BBC Studios has inkeda new deal with Triton Digital

(02:41):
for podcast monetization, so theBBC stands to benefit from
podcast listeners, which are all...

Clip (02:47):
Supported by ads outside the UK.

James Cridland (02:49):
Yet the BBC Sounds app has no advertising in
it, and the possibilities toearn more revenue from
advertising are hobbled by theBBC time delaying some of its
biggest shows. And BBC Soundsisn't just BBC content. It now
has two shows from Goalhanger whichare ad supported elsewhere, but

the BBC gets these shows ad free: but this time, after a time (03:11):
undefined
delay of its own within BBCSounds. I'm really unclear why
the licence fee payer is payingfor the BBC to play these shows
and strip the ads out when theycan get these shows elsewhere.
And it's a bit of a crapshoot asto what works globally too. BBC

(03:33):
Radio One Dance, an online onlystream, is available globally on
the BBC Sounds app, yet outsidethe UK, BBC Radio 3 Unwind is not
visible on the app, but isvisible on the website where it
kicks up a "Not available inyour location" error if you try
to play it. Radio three Unwind'sMusic mixes are confusingly

(03:54):
available globally, with a logofor a station we can't see. The
opportunity to download...

Clip (04:00):
Download or subscribe to your favourite music shows on
the BBC Sounds app...

James Cridland (04:05):
..is promoted in the front of every Radio six
music mix. Yet the downloadbutton isn't available for music
mixes or catch up radio outsidethe UK. Audio of the latest BBC
news headlines is prominentlypromoted on the front page but
doesn't work. It can only beplayed within the UK, says the
app. Yet every other item in thenews playlist is playable. The

(04:28):
front page item Discover morefrom the BBC takes us to a page
promoting lots of lovely linksto the iPlayer that no, we don't
get. I'm sure there's a strategyhere somewhere. But, to me, here's
a guess. Like BBC iPlayer, BBCSounds is run by the domestic
BBC, as evidenced by the factthat the website address doesn't

(04:50):
change from bbc.co.uk to BBC.comwhen you go there outside
the UK, and there are no adswithin the app or on the website.
And because it's a domesticservice, it isn't really for the
likes of you and me any more wholive outside the UK. So I guess
that like BBC iPlayer, BBCSounds will also not be

(05:11):
available internationally. We'llbe left with the BBC World
Service, possibly within themain BBC app and the podcast
output wherever we get our...

Clip (05:20):
BBC podcasts.

James Cridland (05:22):
Available everywhere with ads and without
time delays. And that might bewhy the BBC is trying to carry
ads on podcasts within the UK onthird party platforms, since it
enables them to do this cleanlyeverywhere. When we lose access
to BBC Sounds we'll also, by andlarge, lose access to the BBC's

(05:42):
domestic radio stations. Thoseonly exist internationally
because they've always beenavailable that way, but they
cost money to stream overseasand the music rights amnesty
that they enjoy goes away assoon as the BBC starts
commercializing the streams. Now,I can't imagine this going down
very well, but it does seem themost sensible strategy. And at

(06:04):
least I have one, which is morethan, to this overseas observer,
the BBC appear to. You can readmore from me at my website.
james.cridland.net/blogAnd until next time, keep
listening.