The BBC, which has been looking to land a 24-hour news deal for BBC World, has had growing success in the US with audiences for its news bulletins steadily growing since 2001, spurred by interest in its coverage of the war in Iraq.
At its height, BBC World was attracting audiences of more than a million. Since the war finished, BBC bulletins have continued to be seen by around 900,000 people across 221 public broadcasting stations.
In a statement released today, the BBC said: "Increasing distribution in the US is certainly a priority for us. We have been working with Discovery, a long-term partner of the BBC, to investigate options with major cable operators in the region.
"In the past week, we have held discussions with companies including Comcast, Cox Communications and Time Warner, but can not give further details."
Recent research showed that BBC America, the BBC's US cable network, is now available in more than 40m homes Stateside, according to Nielsen Media Research. The network, which is home to BBC soaps and sitcoms like 'Coupling', 'Little Britain' and 'My Family', has reached almost half of all cable homes, accounting for 37% of all US households, according to the data.
Only last month, the channel announced it was doubling its reach across Germany as the nation's digital TV network was launched, boosting audience figures from 11m to 23m.
Gerry Ritchie, head of network development at BBC World, said: "The channel is fast becoming a digital must-have across Europe -- we have a digital frequency in Berlin, Brandenburg, Italy, Sweden and the Netherlands with more to come."
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