BBC First is an entertainment subscription television channel featuring comedy, crime, drama and film programming, originating from UK and mostly from the BBC. The channel is wholly owned and operated by BBC Studios. The channel began rolling out internationally in 2014, launching first in Australia. It is supported by extended localised advertising breaks. History In October 2013, BBC announced that in 2014 they would roll out three new brands – BBC Earth, BBC First, and BBC Brit, with BBC First to be dedicated to comedy and drama programming. International roll-out Asia Hong Kong On 1 November 2016, BBC First launched as a Subscription Video-On-Demand (SVOD) service in Hong Kong. The channel replaced BBC On Demand and BBC Entertainment on Now TV. On 14 November 2016, the service was launched on myTV Super OTT platform until 31 January 2023. Indonesia In April 2021, BBC First launched as a Subscription Video-On-Demand (SVOD) service in Indonesia through Catchplay, which also serves as the platform's partner in Taiwan. Malaysia BBC First was launched as a Subscription Video-On-Demand (SVOD) service on HyppTV Channel 812 on 1 October 2016, 10 months after BBC Entertainment was dropped from the provider. The channel's content is also available in the "VOD" tab in the HyppTV Everywhere app for iOS and Android. On mid-October 2021, BBC First will be launched as a SVOD service on Astro, Along with BBC Brit. Singapore BBC First launched a Subscription Video-On-Demand (SVOD) service on StarHub TV Channel 522 on 4 April 2016. On 1 December 2021, BBC First launched a Video-On-Demand (VOD) service on Singtel TV. Taiwan BBC Studios has signed a cooperation agreement with Taiwanese OTT service myVideo to offer its drama content in 2018. Australia On 17 April 2013, it was announced that the BBC had forged a new exclusive deal with Australian subscription television provider Foxtel which would see a new channel launched that would feature comedy and drama content, with programming screening as close to their original UK transmission as possible. It was later announced the new channel would be named BBC First, a new global brand that would roll out in 2014, with Australia being the first location to launch the new channel, on 3 August 2014. Canada In March 2021, Canadian broadcaster Blue Ant Media, which already operated the Canadian version of BBC Earth, announced that its HIFI channel would be rebranded as a Canadian version of BBC