BBC web services boom

The BBC's online offerings have boomed in the past year, according to the corporation's annual report.

BBC websites and the on-demand iPlayer service have both seen a significant rise in audience over the last 12 months, according to the report.

"The BBC continued to make excellent progress with non-broadcast services, with the number of iPlayer users doubling to 2.8 million a week and BBC Online use up one-third to 22.2 million per week," the BBC Trust said.

The BBC Trust's chairman praised the corporation's progress while conceding that incidents such as the Russell Brand and Jonathan Ross scandal had tarnished the BBC's image.

Sir Michael Lyons said: "While the policy and political debate around the BBC has intensified over the past year, it is important to step back and acknowledge that the BBC produced some great content and services during 2008/09."

BBC Worldwide, a division of the BBC that sells content to online providers for overseas audiences, said revenues from online activity rose from 2.7 per cent to 4.6 per cent.