Review of services: New Media 48 Annual Report and Accounts 2002/2003 Annual Report and Accounts 2002/2003 49 BBCi encompasses the BBC’s interactive services across the web, television and mobile devices.With 2 million web pages and 200,000 audio and video clips, BBCi provides a public service resource to enable people to explore topics that interest and entertain them and a forum for dialogue with each other and the BBC. BBCi on the internet BBCi’s online service remained Europe’s most widely visited content site. In 2003 BBCi’s monthly reach rose from 34% to a peak of 43%, equivalent to 8.3 million adults (age 15 and over). BBCi gives people in the UK access to local, national and global information when its suits them and during the war in Iraq set new traffic records when demand took page impressions to 1.182 billion. Education continues to be a priority. BBCi developed the learning home page to offer easier access to all learning opportunities from the BBC and supported extra educational resources for BBC Learning which were used by 2.9 million teachers, parents and pupils during the busy revision period in 2003. BBCi works with partners ranging from the European Space Agency to the Arts Council to ensure users can pursue their interests in depth. BBCi Science and Nature continued to be premier destinations.The award-winning BBCi Religion and Ethics site developed its representation of the major faith communities in the UK further with interactive content on individual faiths, religious news, and debate around ethical issues. The BBC Sport site offered coverage of UK and worldwide sporting events and of minority sporting interests. Sport Academy was launched in July 2002 with the aim of getting young people involved in sport, offering skills guides, video masterclasses, training routines and a range of information. BBCi provided users with many opportunities for creative expression and dialogue, including the BBCi News Talking Point and Have Your Say services and message boards such as The Great Debate and the Today board. Over 50 Where I Live sites now connect communities across the UK and cover a broad spectrum of social, cultural and political discussions. With more than a million messages a month generated by email, text and chat room message boards, BBCi has become a national forum, giving a strong voice to its users and offering a safe and controlled presence on the web. BBCi aims to help shape the new media environment and establish a webliterate UK. A family-friendly search engine was launched in May 2002, providing a protected guide to web exploration. BBCi is one of the UK’s leading centres for digital innovation. New services include the BBC Radio Player, providing audio on demand for internet users to catch up on BBC radio programmes they missed. BBCi on television BBCi’s interactive television services broke new ground in the past year when it became the first broadcaster to provide interactivity across all digital television platforms. Enhanced services gave 8 million viewers greater choice during the BBC’s summer of sport and provided additional video, text and graphics for The Life of Mammals, the Chelsea Flower Show and Fame Academy. Interactive television services were also used to great effect for audience voting during Great Britons and Cracking Crime. Test the Nation showed the value of enabling a mass audience to contribute to a national television experience and The Murder Game saw viewers become interactive detectives to solve a fictional murder. BBCi’s interactive television services will be a key area for development in the next year. Above: Ghosts of Albion, BBCi’s fullyanimated webcast. Far left: Interactive services gave viewers more choice during the BBC’s summer of sport. Monthly BBCi website page impressions March 2002 to March 2003 M F J D N O S A J J M A M 0 200 400 600 800 1,000 1,200 Millions ¦ Other* ¦ Drama and entertainment ¦ Factual & Learning ¦ New Media ¦ Sport ¦ News Source: BBCi server logs Only divisions with over 75 million page impressions at March 2003 are shown * Other includes Radio & Music, CBBC, BBC World Service, Nations & Regions, home page and other BBCi launched 37 interactive TV services in 2002 to give viewers greater choice. Red watch