Advertising on BBC Podcasts Outside the UK
The BBC has introduced advertising on podcasts for its international audience. See below for more info.
Why is the BBC featuring advertising on podcasts?
Inserting advertising into BBC podcasts outside the UK is part of the BBC’s wider strategy to commercialise audio and radio content made available to non-licence fee paying international audiences.
Will advertising appear in all podcasts?
Most of our English language podcasts will include advertising. The only excluded podcasts will be those for which rights or editorial content mean that advertising should be excluded.
How much advertising will there be?
There will be one pre-roll advertisement at the start, up to 30 seconds in length, and a second 30 second post-roll advertisement at the end of the podcast.
Will the BBC be introducing advertising breaks in the middle of podcasts?
No. Most of our podcasts are not designed to accommodate “mid-roll” breaks at the moment, and while it’s something we might consider in the future, at this stage we are only going to include advertising at the start and end of podcasts.
Will UK listeners hear advertising?
No. UK listeners will continue to hear podcasts without advertising as they currently do. We will use the same geo-blocking technology currently used by the BBC to limit services such as iPlayer to UK residents. However, it is possible that a UK resident who travels outside the UK and downloads a podcast locally will hear advertising, just as they would if they visit the BBC News site from abroad. As podcasts are downloaded onto a particular device, they will still hear the advertising after they return to the UK.
Will podcast advertising be heard on all platforms?
Yes, as long as the listener is hearing a podcast. This includes all major podcasting apps including Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, Podcast Addict and many more. Podcasts are delivered to listeners via an RSS feed, and as long as the platform is using that feed, it will include the advertising.
Listeners who stream directly on the BBC’s website may not hear advertising, since many of those streams are served using a different technology.
How will we make sure that advertisements are appropriate?
All advertising will be complied by colleagues at BBC Global News Limited (GNL), who will monitor all advertising and ensure that it meets the BBC’s stringent Advertising and Sponsorship Guidelines for BBC Commercial Services. GNL already carry out this service with other advertising on BBC services including display advertising on BBC.com outside the UK. This includes making sure certain categories of advertising are not carried.
What will happen in the event of a major news story? Will we serve advertisements then?
The BBC will remain fully in control of podcast advertising. As with current editorial needs, were a major crisis to unfold, the BBC is able to pull all advertising from all podcasts as necessary, just as it can currently pull advertising from BBC.com pages.
Lots of American podcasts have presenters reading their own ads. Is this something the BBC is going to do?
No. We’re only going to include pre-roll and post-roll advertising, i.e. advertising at the start and the finish. We will not be asking presenters or on-air talent to record any kind of commercial messaging. Indeed rules regarding the delineation of editorial and advertising prevent this.
I downloaded an old podcast but heard a current advertisement. What’s happening?
We are using “dynamic ad insertion”, which means that a current ad is injected into a podcast at the time the podcast is requested. This means that even if you listen to a programme that might be several years old, the advertisement will be contemporaneous to the time that the podcast was downloaded.
Who should I forward any complaints I receive to?
We will be monitoring listener reaction to the advertising, and all comments and complaints should be forwarded to [email protected].
