The BBC could generate about $200 (110 million GBP) million from global online advertising revenues, according to a new report from Accenture presented to the organization. The report is, as expected, raising hackles among the employees of BBC who do not want ads on the international sites. BBC is still deciding whether to introduce advertising on the international versions of its homepage and news website, to bring in ad revenue from overseas viewers.
The report outlines three possible scenarios: five years after launch “option one” could bring in up to £105m per year, “option two” would net the BBC around £64m, and a “lite” version would make around £48m annually.
Because of the controversy, the story says BBC executives have backed away from large-scale revenue generation plans and instead have focused on pitching in the idea of a “lite” advertising version targeting the “low tens of millions”.
Meanwhile, NYT/IHT reports that some of the critics of the ad plan inside the BBC are redoubling their efforts. Earlier this year, more than 170 BBC Web site employees signed a petition protesting the idea.