BBC Channels to launch in Myanmar

BBC Worldwide Asia today announced a deal with CANAL+ Myanmar FG Ltd that sees four of its channels launch on new pay TV platform, CANAL+ : international news and current affairs channel, BBC World News, premium factual brand, BBC Earth, pre-school channel, CBeebies and BBC Lifestyle, with BBC Lifestyle making its debut appearance in the country.

CANAL+ Group, in collaboration with Myanmarese media group FOREVER Group launched the new pay TV platform on 29 January 2018. It offers local and international services.

“We are very pleased to partner Canal+ to be part of Myanmar’s rapid economic growth,” said Myleeta Aga, SVP, South and SouthEast Asia, BBC Worldwide. “We are confident that our channels will inform, inspire, educate, and resonate with viewers in the country.”

Viewers of BBC Earth, home of the latest iconic ratings buster, Blue Planet II, will be able to watch natural history documentaries and factual programmes including Dara & Ed’s Road to Mandalay, in which British comedians Dara Ó Briain and Ed Byrne take to the road, travelling over 3000 miles from Kuala Lumpur, through Thailand, and on to Myanmar; Where The Wild Men Are with Ben Fogle, where adventurer Ben Fogle travels the planet meeting people who have set up home in some of the most isolated locations on Earth; and Snow Bears, a unique glimpse of two newborn polar bear cubs in their natural habitat, narrated by Kate Winslet.

BBC Lifestyle viewers will be able to watch well-loved British programmes such as The Great British Bake Off, a BAFTA-winning baking competition that sees passionate amateur bakers use every crumb of their creativity to impress the judges in each week’s challenges; and The Graham Norton Show, a comedy chat show full of celebrities and gossip, presented by award-winning Irish television personality, Graham Norton.

CBeebies, aimed at pre-schoolers aged six years and under, encourages children to learn through play. Young viewers can look forward to programmes like Hey Duggee, the award-winning animated series aimed at two to five year olds in which Duggee, a big lovable dog, runs a club for pre-schoolers, that encourages children to have fun while discovering new things about the world around them; Go Jetters, an action-packed geographical adventure show that follows the adventures of four plucky international heroes Xuli, Kyan, Lars and Foz, as they travel the world with their teacher, mentor and friend Ubercorn, a funky disco-grooving unicorn; and Sarah & Duck, the multiple award-winning, 2D animated, pre-school series, which follows the curious adventures of seven-year-old Sarah and her loud, quacky friend Duck, as they explore the world around them in unexpected ways.

BBC World News is the BBC’s award-winning, 24-hour global news channel offering world-class international news and feature programmes from an unrivalled network of journalists. Bringing audiences agenda-setting programmes such as HARDtalk and Our World, and projects including 100 Women, BBC World News offers impartial and in-depth analysis of the news that matters most around the globe. With journalists in more places than any other international news broadcaster, BBC World News reports global breaking news whenever and wherever it happens and is the world’s most trusted international news broadcaster.

The BBC has also expanded the reach of its Burmese-language output in Myanmar. Top ten news headlines from bbc.com/Burmese are now published on the Yangon-based website Frontier Myanmar every day, allowing users to click through to full BBC stories in Burmese.

-Ends-

For more information, please contact:

Jeanne Leong
BBC Worldwide
Tel: +65 6849 5292
Email: Jeanne.Leong@bbc.com

Jessie Lim
BBC Worldwide
Tel: +65 6849 5295
Email: Jessie.Lim@bbc.com

NOTES TO EDITORS

About BBC Worldwide
BBC Worldwide is the main commercial arm and a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Its vision is to build the BBC’s brands, audiences, commercial returns and reputation across the world. This is achieved through investing in, commercialising and showcasing content from the BBC around the world, in a way that is consistent with BBC standards and values. The business also champions British creativity globally.

In 2016/17 BBC Worldwide generated headline profits of £157.3m and headline sales of £1,059.9m and returned £210.5m to the BBC.

For more detailed performance information please see our Annual Review webpage: bbcworldwide.com/annual-review/

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