Eighty per cent of BBC3 & 4 content is repeated

The content produced by the BBC for its BBC3 and BBC4 digital channels, broadcast via satellite and Freeview, is almost entirely made up of repeats.

It is a surprise that this has not been highlighted before, but as more viewers switch from analogue to digital services provided by satellite and Freeview, a larger audience is more likely to notice this sort of thing.

Research has found that while a third of BBC1 and BBC2 content is repeated in one way or another, digital channels BBC3 and BBC4 show an average of eighty per cent repeats.

The BBC claims that the reason for the high percentage of repeats is because traditionally the digital channels have a much lower budget and viewers enjoy being able to pick and choose when they watch a particular programme.