Judging from the activity on the floor at February's BBC Worldwide Showcase in Liverpool, England, television is most definitely not dead. Over 700 buyers and distributors descended on the BT Convention Centre to investigate what was new ("The Game," "The Musketeers") and what was returning from the world's second-largest content provider behind the United States. The BBC is a recognizable brand, but that doesn't mean the British broadcaster isn't facing challenges as it continues its expansion around the globe.
Last April, the BBC's global strategy took a turn when its reporting lines switched to a regional model, signaling a new emphasis on global markets as quasi-independent entities. That policy has been honed even more, with a broader focus on brands such as BBC Earth (the umbrella for its natural-history programming), flagship series such as "Sherlock" and "Doctor Who" and channels BBC Knowledge, BBC Entertainment and CBeebies among others.
"Strategies only work if you've ... looked organically in the market in the country and you marry the two," explains BBC Worldwide's president of global markets, Paul Dempsey. "I think it's naive to say we have an 'Asia strategy.' That implies India is the same as Japan as Indonesia."