Ocean Networks Canada’s international profile has been given a boost—potentially reaching billions of people across the planet—as ONC video and audio highlights are featured as part of “Blue Planet II,” the British Broadcasting Corp.’s new natural history TV series, and in the lead-up to the show’s start on Sunday.
ONC provided underwater video of the Endeavour hydrothermal vents for the second episode (“The Deep”) of “Blue Planet II” via ONC’s SeaTube video player that let BBC producers search and watch ONC’s archive of deep-sea videos. The TV series starts in Britain on Oct. 29, with the second episode on Nov. 5. The show will appear in Canada on BBC Earth in early 2018.
“Hydrothermal vents are a key part of the story of ‘The Deep’—the grand finale to the episode in fact—and to show their magnificence, we have told a story of their diversity using video of different vent fields and their extraordinary creatures, including Endeavour in all its glory,” says BBC episode producer Orla Doherty. “Over the last few years, ONC has been a wonderful and inspiring partner as we have explored these exciting and innovative ways to work together. We have learned a great deal and look forward to continuing to try and break new ground in the future.”
The BBC is the world's oldest national broadcasting organization, as well as the world’s largest broadcaster. Worldwide, BBC’s audience/reach metrics are:
- 1.8 billion page views per month.
- 434 million TV households.
Earlier this week, ONC president/CEO Kate Moran appeared alongside ONC underwater audio highlights on BBC Radio 4’s “Today” early morning news/current affairs program on Oct. 23 as part of the program’s special show on oceans (Moran interview/ONC audio begins at 2:56:24) to mark the TV new series.
“Today” is the most popular program on Radio 4 and one of the BBC's most popular across its radio networks, with approximately 7 million listeners per week.
Also this month, ONC received national coverage in Maclean’s annual university guide and rankings magazine and on CBC News Network’s “Power & Politics” TV program, reaching millions more people across the country and around the world.
ONC monitors Canada’s west, east and Arctic coasts to continuously deliver real-time data for scientific research that helps communities, government and industry make informed decisions about our future. Using cabled ocean observatories, remote control systems, interactive sensors and big-data management, ONC enables evidence-based decision-making on ocean management, disaster mitigation and environmental protection.
Established in 2007, ONC is a University of Victoria initiative funded by the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the Government of Canada, the Government of British Columbia, CANARIE and IBM Canada.
