BBC Commercial increased EBITDA by 17% to £267 million ($357.1 million) in the 2025/26 financial year, returning £377 million ($504.2 million) to the BBC as direct-to-consumer services and products, led by “Bluey”, drove growth despite a challenging market.

Revenue was flat at £2.2 billion ($2.94 billion), with growth in some areas offsetting declines in others. Statutory profit after tax rose 9% to £71 million ($95 million). The £377 million ($504.2 million) in returns (up from £391 million ($523 million) a year earlier) included dividends of £197 million ($263.5 million), up from £161 million ($215.3 million), and content investment of £154 million ($206 million), up from £200 million ($267.5 million). The company remains on track to meet its five-year target of £1.5bn ($2.01bn) in returns to the BBC.

Tom Fussell, chief executive of BBC Commercial, said: “2025/26 has been a strong year for BBC Commercial. We have grown profits and delivered significant returns to the BBC despite continued market pressures, while continuing to deliver globally recognized creative excellence. Our diversified portfolio continues to position us well, with growth in some areas helping to offset weaker performance in others, underpinning our overall resilience.”

BBC Studios, the company’s largest subsidiary, generated revenue of £2.13 billion ($2.85 billion) and EBITDA growth of 17% to £263 million ($351.8 million), helped by a combination of higher margin sales and cost savings thanks to a comprehensive new cost review. The content studio posted stable revenue and EBITDA growth of 42% to £165 million ($220.7 million), with growth driven largely by partnerships and merchandise deals with “Bluey.”

Storytelling and production work at BBC Studios garnered 91 awards from 361 nominations in scripted and non-scripted categories. “Death Valley” generated the UK’s highest overnight audience for a new scripted comedy in five years and has sold into more than 100 markets internationally.

In the United States, “Dancing with the Stars” drew its largest audience among adults ages 18 to 34 for any broadcast entertainment series since the end of “Friends” in 2004, with the show’s finale earning a 53% share in that demographic. “Bluey” was the most streamed title in the United States for the second consecutive year, recording more than 45 billion minutes watched on Disney+, and remained the leading preschool toy brand in the US market. Other key titles included “The Americas,” “The Ballad of Wallis Island,” “Crookhaven” and the natural history series “Kingdom” and “Prehistoric Planet: Ice Age.” Social video revenue increased 23% year-on-year as watch time on YouTube almost doubled to 14.7 billion annual views, ahead of global streamers and UK broadcasters.

BBC Studios’ media and streaming division reported EBITDA of £104 million ($139.1 million), up 3%, supported by continued momentum in business and direct-to-consumer news. BritBox’s North American revenue grew 20%, while BBC Select’s revenue rose 61%. In the UK, UKTV achieved record viewing share and grew its U streaming platform, supported by a new multi-year streaming deal with Channel 4. BBC.com expanded to 149 million monthly users outside the UK and launched a paid subscription tier in the US. The company’s FAST channel portfolio now spans 30 channel brands and more than 300 feeds worldwide.

BBC Studios also published its annual Pay Gap Report, revealing data on deaf and neurodivergent employees alongside existing disability figures for the first time. The average gender pay gap fell 1.4 percentage points to 9.3%, the ethnicity pay gap narrowed to 5% and the LGBTQ+ pay gap narrowed to 7.8%. At the individual career band level, 94% of employees in a given band showed a gender pay gap of less than 3%, or one in favor of women, while each career band recorded an ethnicity pay gap of less than 1.5%.

Fussell said: “The figures in today’s report are encouraging, but there is still work to do. We continue to roll out a number of initiatives to address areas of imbalance in our representation, including signing the ‘We Are Doc’ Women’s Gender Pledge; working with TV Access Projects Spaces & Places Workstream; and engaging with the TV Foundations’ Class Confident initiative to help address the under-representation of people from working-class backgrounds in the wider television industry.”

BBC Commercial pointed to consolidation among industry players, reduced commissioning by traditional broadcasters and the ongoing shift from linear television to on-demand viewing as continuing pressures, and said a supportive regulatory framework, as raised in the BBC’s response to the government’s Charter Review Green Paper, would be key to scaling further growth.

Upcoming titles include a new season of “Blue Planet,” along with “Sherwood,” “Deadpoint,” “Break Clause,” “Honey” and “Pride & Prejudice.”