BBC Studios & Youku Expand Pact for British Drama

BBC Studios has signed a new drama content deal with Youku that includes extending licensing of all four seasons of Sherlock and an agreement for over 80 hours of BBC Studios drama programming.

The deal includes Good Omens, Sanditon, the latest season of Doctor Who and seasons one through three of Luther. Further, Youku will be the only Chinese video platform to air the entire catalog of the Doctor Who series. The dramas in this new deal are expected to launch on Youku this month.

The agreement also features the HD version of such comedies as Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister. Season five of the award-winning dark comic tale Inside No.9 is already available exclusively in mainland China on Youku.

Xie Ying, Youku TV Series Center general manager, said: “The content produced and distributed by BBC Studios has always been the unrivalled representative of British creativity. We are delighted to introduce these distinctive series to the Chinese market through our ongoing collaboration. Our ambition is to be the number one platform for British drama, and we are committed to delivering the freshest content to Chinese users.”

Phil Hardman, senior VP of commercial operations and strategy for Asia at BBC Studios, said: “It is great to see our relationship with Youku going from strength to strength with this agreement to show more quality British contemporary and classic drama in China. We look forward to contributing to the prosperity of China’s developing television industry through collaboration with local players, while also helping them to explore overseas markets and to tell Chinese stories around the world.”