CBBC and BBC Four's demise as broadcast channels could help Aunty Beeb truly embrace the Internet Age – Scotsman comment

The news that CBBC and BBC Four will cease to exist as broadcast channels – with the shows still available online – is a sign of our times.

A 'digital-first' BBC will be better placed to increase the number of viewers all over the world (Picture: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)

In the not-too-distant past, people would sit down to watch a particular channel of an evening and take the entertainment they were given.

But no more. In the internet age, we are much more focussed on individual shows, almost regardless of where they are available.

People will take out a subscription to a streaming service simply to watch a series they particularly like, then cancel it. They watch anything from funny cat videos to serious documentaries on YouTube, binge on history programmes on the BBC iPlayer, or join in the fun that is apparently be had on services like TikTok. Some do so through their televisions, others via laptops and smartphones.

In that kind of environment, where most people can and want to access content on demand, the existence of dedicated channels, slowly broadcasting one show after another, is less important, for all they will be missed by some.

Instead, it is the quality of the programmes that becomes absolutely key, particularly for the BBC. With UK Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries saying she wants a new funding model to replace the licence fee after the current deal expires in 2027, it needs to prepare for revolutionary changes.

But the BBC produces some of the best content in the world and the internet provides a global audience. If the licence fee is scrapped, that would create some serious challenges for the broadcaster, but the opportunities for an Aunty Beeb who truly embraces the internet age are almost boundless.