ABC News To Distribute BBC Video

Proving that national barriers exist even online, the BBC has recruited ABC News to distribute its broadband and wireless content in North America, the companies announced Monday. Financial terms of the deal were disclosed.

The BBC will offer approximately 40 on-demand news reports per day--each clearly identified as BBC editorial content--for broadband and wireless distribution in North America.

Rather than forge an extensive distribution network in North America, the BBC has chosen to use the one ABC News has already established, according to Michele Grant, the BBC's senior vice president of global news development.

The deal, she said, will allow the BBC to expand its existing relationship with ABC, and also benefit from ABC's relationships with companies like Yahoo! ABC News and BBC have worked together on a content sharing basis since 1994.

Grant insisted that the distribution deal will not weaken the BBC's own brand identity. On the contrary, she said that ABC News will only help the BBC increase U.S. consumer awareness.

"We're not relinquishing our brand," said Grant. "They're merely acting as a distribution agent."

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