THE BBC’S commercial arm is planning an expansion of its international activities, which could lead to it starting as many as six channels in countries such as the United States and India.

It believes that it can boost last year’s trading profits of £89.4 million by selling British television, magazines and new media to the world, providing a top-up to its £2.9 billion licence-fee income.

John Smith, the chief executive of BBC Worldwide, the commercial business, said that there was scope for “five BBC branded channels, in addition to news in any major market” offering a mix of content from the BBC and other British broadcasters.

The idea represents a change of strategy in the BBC’s commercial arm, which has spent the past couple of years restructuring, cutting losses in children’s merchandising, and selling off its books and education businesses to boost profits.

It is likely to generate controversy overseas because, although BBC Worldwide is a free-standing operation, it relies on the BBC brand and use of BBC properties, which have been funded by the licence fee.

The new channels will be funded by advertising and will initially be in English. But the BBC is interested in offering foreign language channels — an echo of the World Service’s planned Arab news service — because, insiders say, “that will help to bring the service closer to the local market”.

The BBC does provide news services internationally, through BBC World, and a patchwork of other channels mostly through joint-ventures. However, the progress of these ventures has been mixed.

It runs a children’s channel in Canada, which is ranked number four among the under-11s in that market, and a food channel across Europe, although this is due for a relaunch with the intention of broadening its appeal.

Its most successful non-news service to date is BBC America, which is available in 45 million homes and transmits entertainment from all British broadcasters, including ITV and Channel 4, ranging from Little Britain to the Benny Hill Show. Footballers’ Wives, which was on ITV, is a cult hit.

The new thinking, however, is to try to develop a portfolio of channels in key markets.

Mr Smith said that he wanted to introduce channels covering general entertainment, pre-school children, lifestyle — meaning “cookery, gardening and car programmes” — and knowledge, offering documentaries and science programmes.

The fifth service would be in high-definition, offering a mix of programming in the crystal-clear format. The BBC is desperate to secure the transmission of a children’s channel in the United States, but Mr Smith said that he “hopes to get something done this year”.

He conceded that it was difficult to secure distribution arrangements in the US, because there was so much choice available in the country. That is likely to leave the BBC looking elsewhere.

Already it is active in India, a country in which the World Service has been operating for 75 years. Last year the corporation, in partnership with Mid Day Multimedia, won seven FM radio licences in cities including Delhi, Bombay and Bangalore.

Mr Smith said that India was “looking interesting” but added that there were “three or four parts of the world where we are putting our focus”.

He named Argentina and Brazil, countries where the BBC has had little presence, but it is also likely to look at Japan and, if it can overcome draconian regulation, China. However, the extra activity is unlikely to help to hold down the level of the licence fee. Last year the BBC’s international channels arm earned £6.9 million on sales of £165.4 million. If that sum was used to reduce the cost of the licence fee it would reduce the annual cost of £126.50 by 28p.

Times Recommends

• C&G axed - 1,660 jobs to be lost
• UK house prices rise 1.1% as buyers return
• Mixed reaction to US banks repaying bailouts