MUMBAI: The BBC has announced that more than a billion of its radio programmes have been downloaded since the launch of the corporation's podcast service in 2007.
'Daily' podcasts from the World Service tops the chart of most downloaded, while the most popular weekly BBC podcasts include Radio 4 Comedy, Chris Moyles and Mayo & Kermode's Film Reviews. The top daily programme is The Archers, with 35 million total downloads while Scott Mills' Radio 1 show has garnered 31 million.
The 1bn total is made up of monthly, daily and weekly downloads from the BBC's library of more than 300 titles.
BBC Audio & Music spokesman Mark Friend said, BBC Radio's one billionth download shows how audiences value being able to listen to audio when and where they want. Downloadable content draws in new listeners to a wide range of content with nearly a third of people who download podcasts listening to radio programmes they hadn't previously listened to....
To celebrate reaching a billion downloads, the BBC has launched a special podcast called �One Billion Downloads: A Selection Box'. It features different radio show hosts each day introducing their favourite BBC downloads, including Lauren Laverne and Richard Bacon.
Figures from RAJAR, which provides the official breakdown of the the listening habits, show that 8.5 million adults in the UK have downloaded a podcast this year.