BBC World Service eyes Urdu channel launch

After the successful launch of its publicly funded BBC Arabic and BBC Persian television services, the corporation is now planning the launch of a full fledged Urdu channel in the Indian subcontinent.

According to BroadcastNow, BBC Urdu will target audiences in India and Pakistan, and sit alongside the corporation’s well-established online and radio offerings in the same language.

The BBC has yet to secure funding or permission for the Urdu service but it is expected the channel would be paid for by UK taxpayers through a Foreign Office grant-in-aid. Both BBC Arabic and BBC Persian are funded by taxpayers, to the tune of �25m and �15m a year respectively.