B&B returns to the UK via YouTube deal; soap to offer exclusive special features to UK audience

UK soap fans will finally be able to resume viewing B&B with the added bonus of exclusive UK-oriented special features.

Hot on the heels of the news that CBS' The Bold and the Beautiful has been picked up indefinitely by Australian Network Ten comes news that the international soap has signed a deal to be exclusively broadcast on YouTube for UK audiences.

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Starting today, March 2, B&B will be offering full episodes to UK viewers for free via the show's brand new official UK YouTube channel. Digital Spy reports that the online version will begin with episode 6720, which sees Thorsten Kaye step into the role of Ridge (formerly played by Ronn Moss). Kaye's first episode originally aired in the US in December of 2013, but the B&B YouTube channel will be airing two episodes daily in order to gradually narrow the gap between the UK and US broadcasts of the show.

"We are excited to become the first American soap to air exclusively on YouTube in the UK. Unlike other online VOD services in the territory, YouTube has no pay wall and is used by nearly two-thirds of the UK population," says B&B's executive producer and head writer, Bradley P. Bell. "We plan to release behind-the-scenes and other bonus content created especially for the UK, and also take advantage of the community-building features of YouTube to provide a much richer experience than we could on traditional broadcast television."

B&B has aired previously in the UK on stations like Channel 5, Living, and Diva TV but has recently been unavailable. Says Edward East, founder of Billion Dollar Boy (the video specialists that helped the soap launch the new YouTube channel), "Having an official destination in the UK where fans can watch high quality copies of the show helps solve the supply part of the piracy problem. Recently there has been nowhere for UK fans to watch the show other than to break the law. We're very happy to be able to provide a solution to that. We are also actively targeting full copies on YouTube and other video platforms uploaded illegally."

To check out B&B's official UK YouTube channel, go here.

What do you think of B& B being offered to UK fans via YouTube? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.

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