MUMBAI: UK pubcaster The BBC has lined up plans for next year?s Commonwealth Games. BBC audiences throughout Scotland and the UK will be kept in the picture with live streams from the Commonwealth Games venues.

BBC Scotland director Ken MacQuarrie, speaking at an industry event has pledged that programming of, and around, the Games will be second to none.

Delivering the Royal Television Society?s Campbell Swinton Lecture in Glasgow, he said that the broadcaster will be taking up the baton from the coverage of last year?s Olympic Games in London.

"In many ways, the Games came of age in a digital world, defined to large extent by the BBC?s approach to coverage. We will adopt a similar approach to the Commonwealth Games, during which 15 separate streams will be beamed from 17 locations around Scotland.

"In this endeavour, we will work closely with colleagues in Salford and London and with BBC teams and other broadcasters across the Commonwealth to ensure that the programming of, and around, the Games will be second to none."

He added that 2014 is a particularly important year for the broadcaster. "It is the year in which we will commemorate the outbreak of the Great War, we will cover the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and, of course, we will report on every twist and turn of the debate surrounding the Independence referendum."

Turning to the referendum, MacQuarrie reiterated that the BBC will not take any stance on what broadcasting could look like under independence.

He said, "Broadcasting will feature as a topic for debate within the discussions which will take place between now and September 2014: for the BBC to take - or to be seen to take - any kind of stance on a constitutional issue would potentially damage our reputation for impartial and unbiased reporting, particularly given the fact that the referendum and the issues it will involve will be comprehensively covered across out output."

He also highlighted how the BBC can help audiences maximise the benefits of digital access. Recent research by the Carnegie Trust, he said, revealed the existence of a worrying digital divide, particularly in Glasgow, where internet access among skilled manual workers is 47 per cent while the UK average is 72 per cent. Furthermore, 40 per cent of householders interviewed were not online in their homes, and of those nearly half have no wish to be so in future.

"For those of us for whom universality of access is an important principle, who aspire to helping audiences to derive the greatest benefit from engagement with emerging media, these are worrying statistics.

"Connectedness, inevitably, is about people, much more than it is about technology and clearly there is a sizeable minority, and no more so than in this city, who have yet to accept the economic and social benefits that digital interconnectedness can bring.

"I think it is fair to say that open and unfettered access to the digital space can unlock many riches - but only if you know how to navigate that space.

"And that, for me, points to two important roles the BBC must play going forward - that of curator, helping to organise and make available the fantastic content that lies deep within its archive; and that of navigator, helping audiences steer their ways through the terabytes of information to find what they need and what is of particular value to them," he added.

MUMBAI: International television sports broadcast experts Sunset+Vine and Global Television has been awarded the host broadcaster contract for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.

The winning bid brings together two independent television production companies who, in their first joint venture as SVGTV, will capture the excitement and thrills of the Games for a potential worldwide audience of more than one billion people.

In addition, the appointment of SVGTV as the Games? Host Broadcaster will bring a boost to Scotland?s creative sector, creating up to 1000 job opportunities as well as providing world-class training for a new generation of young broadcast specialists.

Sunset+Vine and Global Television are both internationally renowned for delivering complex technical broadcast requirements for major international events. Sunset+Vine?s current list of live broadcasts includes some of the world?s best-known sporting events, such as the World Athletics Championships and the Grand National.

Glasgow 2014 will be Global Television?s third consecutive Commonwealth Games. The Australian-based company facilitates more than 2000 hours of television each year including live sport and entertainment, as well the legendary Australian soap Neighbours.

SVGTV, who will open an office in Glasgow, will be responsible for the delivery of comprehensive High Definition multi-camera sports coverage as well as full coverage of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies. The design, installation and operation of the International Broadcast Centre will also be managed by SVGTV.

The company will recruit a team of more than 1,000 production and technical experts to deliver the television and radio coverage of the Games for audiences around the world.

The Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games will take place between July 23 and August 4. Athletes, officials and visitors from 71 Commonwealth Games Federation member countries are expected to attend.