British Broadcasting Corp. Director-General Tony Hall said the launch of Walt Disney Co. and Apple Inc.'s streaming services will usher in a "second wave of disruption" for the television industry, BBC News reported.
Hall said the new platforms will mainly hit established market players such as Netflix Inc. and Amazon.com Inc.'s Prime Video, whose libraries could shrink as content makers create their own direct-to-consumer offerings.
However, Hall said the disruption is an opportunity for the BBC to improve its services, given its "unique mission and purpose" for both young and old audiences in the U.K. He cited the BBC's range of content across various genres and platforms, such as the revamped online BBC Sounds platform that will replace iPlayer Radio.
British media and telecom regulator Ofcom earlier granted conditional approval to the BBC's plans to expand the catch-up window for shows on its video-on-demand service iPlayer to 12 months from 30 days, with children's content accessible for five years. The public broadcaster also intends to add more box-sets of content on iPlayer.
Apple will debut the Apple TV+ subscription streaming service Nov. 1 in more than 100 countries, while Disney is launching its streaming service Disney+ on Nov. 12 in the U.S., Canada and the Netherlands.
