BBC has released a new audio app called BBC Sounds which brings together its live and on-demand radio, music and podcasts into a single place.
Available to download for free from Apple, Google and Amazon app stores, the app is part of the BBC’s efforts to re-invent itself and provide a more personalised experience.
Inside the app users can:
- Scroll the dial (a much-loved feature of the BBC iPlayer Radio app) to listen live to any of the BBC’s 18 national stations (and online-only station CBeebies Radio) or tap All Stations to listen to any of the BBC’s 40 local stations
- Pick up where you left off with ‘Continue Listening’ which surfaces part-listened podcasts and radio shows and next episodes for you
- Enjoy hand-picked collections of podcasts and on demand music shows to match your mood, from Funny Chat to Upgrade Your Life, from Live Sessions to Dance Mixes
- Discover new audio via the ‘Recommended for you’ section, with a dozen great on demand listens picked just for you and constantly refreshed based on your listening
- Browse by category: from Crime to Science & Technology, from Classical to Hip Hop
- Add any individual episode or clip to ‘My List’ to listen to later
- Subscribe to any podcast or programme and get a personalised feed of the latest episodes in ‘My Sounds’
Writing on the BBC blogs, Dan Taylor-Watt, head of BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds, describes the app as “very much a first release – we wanted to get it out as early as possible to start getting feedback to help develop the app.
“There’s a bunch of additional features we’re already busy working on (including downloads, to enable offline listening), and we’ll have lots more to add later in the year.”
