The BBC could soon make programmes for YouTube, after being put under pressure to produce more content on the increasingly dominant digital platform.

The corporation would begin making some content released first on the platform under proposals that could be announced as soon as next week as it seeks to reach younger viewers, who are the heaviest users of YouTube.

The BBC has come under pressure from politicians and the regulator Ofcom to put more content on YouTube, which has been growing rapidly as people use it for watching TV, content creators, short-form video and podcasts.

Public service broadcasters including the BBC have been demanding that, in return, YouTube gives their content more guaranteed prominence on the platform. It is not yet known whether YouTube has agreed to do this as part of the deal.

The plans, first reported by the Financial Times, could mean shows made for YouTube are subsequently placed on the BBC iPlayer and Sounds platforms, which have been growing fast. The BBC could potentially benefit from advertising attached to the new programmes shown outside the UK.

However, the details of the deal are already raising questions about whether the content made for YouTube will be paid for using the licence fee. Any suggestion that other BBC services are being cut to pay for content that may not need a licence fee to watch could cause criticism.

Stephen Price, an industry expert on viewing habits, said the deal raised questions about the licence fee and demonstrated the speed of change in media consumption. “Partly, there’s a sense of inevitability about this, accelerated perhaps by the arrival of smart TVs meaning it became available to view YouTube on the main TV in living rooms – sort of mainstreamed it,” he said.

“I wonder what it means for the license fee, as well. YouTube won’t pay a licence fee, obviously, but they’ll gain a great deal. So what is the licence fee now for? It may also impinge on commercial broadcasters.

“This relates to overseas viewers, but there are plenty of commercial advertisers around the world who are on YouTube – and now they find the BBC, paid for by the British public, is muscling in.”

Price added: “The accelerator is full on the floor now and the media industry is changing dramatically. It’s turned out to be YouTube that has driven change.”

The move follows data that shows the huge audience reach YouTube has, outstripping the BBC in terms of the number of people watching content across TV and digital devices for at least three consecutive minutes.

Under that measure, YouTube had a reach of 51.9 millions UK viewers in December, more than a million more than the BBC. It has resulted in content creators such as the Sidemen, Mr Beast and Chicken Shop Date rise to prominence.

However, the BBC remains millions ahead of YouTube in terms of how many viewers tuned in for 15 minutes or more. While YouTube viewing on televisions has grown rapidly, the BBC remains significantly ahead on that measure as well.

A debate has been going on for months within the BBC about the extent it should put its content on YouTube. Some have been wary of placing too much there, concerned that many viewers do not realise they are watching a BBC show when they view it on the platform.

There have also been concerns that it simply entrenches the huge power that US tech companies have over media consumption. YouTube, which is owned by Google’s parent company Alphabet, made about $36bn (£27bn) in revenue in 2024.

Patricia Hidalgo, the director of children and education at the BBC, has made the case for putting more children’s programming on YouTube. However, she said the platform diverted children in the UK on to US-based content, rather than “nourishing” British programming that helps cement their cultural identity.

The draw of YouTube has been prompting big media names in the US to go it alone and recreate their own channels. A similar trend is beginning to form in the UK. This week, the presenter Amol Rajan said he was leaving BBC Radio 4’s Today programme to set up his own content-creator company.

The BBC and YouTube were both contacted for comment.