London – BBC Showcase 2008, a four-day trade event hosted by BBC Worldwide at the UK’s Brighton Centre from February 24-27, has gone digital. The event serves to generate programme sales and broker international funding deals for co-productions on behalf of BBC and independent producers. While serving buyers from traditional TV networks, BBC Worldwide is also looking to license content to digital media platforms including mobile TV and VOD services. New to the event will be ‘digibooths’ which offers buyers a customized VOD service to allow instant feedback on programming and to improve sales at the event. The move is part of the company’s wider Global TV Sales strategy to future-proof content and delivery capabilities by digitizing its catalogue. Over 5,000 hours of programming have been digitized, which is five times the quantity in 2007. Over 550 attendees are expected at BBC Showcase 2008, where some 1,000 hours of new British TV output across various genres will be available via daily screening sessions. Sales teams and producers will pitch directly to potential buyers from around the world with co-production propositions, formats and finished programming. Evenings will see onscreen talent join buyers and producers for gala events to launch key titles. BBC Showcase 2008’s highlights will include natural history programmes including David Attenborough’s Life in Cold Blood and co-production Wild China which will air in the run up to the 2008 Olympics. New comedy titles including Never Better and Gavin and Stacey; contemporary dramas Mistresses and Ashes to Ashes will feature alongside period dramas such as Cranford, Lark Rise to Candleford, Jekyll and Oliver Twist; science programmes to be offered include Moonshot, Oceans and Earth, as well as The Power of the Planet. Children’s programming includes In the Night Garden and Animalia. In addition, BBC Worldwide will feature its first in-house format, How Much Is Enough?, BBC2 quiz show Brainbox and BBC3’s model talent search show Find me the Face.