Terms of Use

Updated June 2025 — please read carefully.

A few rules for you

BBC Archive Products give you access to: BBC programmes, short-form clips and some non-broadcast content and information. You must follow the rules below. If you don’t, we’ll stop your access and you won’t get access to BBC Archive Products again. We take misuse of BBC Archive Products seriously.

  1. Keep your log-in details private. Don’t share or let others use your log-in details. We monitor your access and use of BBC Archive Products and keep records of what you search and export. We do this to check that you’re sticking to these BBC Archive Products Terms of Use and to check on our systems. We may contact you to check you’ve got permission to use what you’ve exported or for administrative purposes.
  2. Use BBC Archive Products only for the work your access has been approved for. So, if you’re given access to do research for a specific BBC commission, you must not use that access for a different BBC commission or for non-BBC projects or for anything else.
  3. Do not misuse BBC Archive Products. This includes sharing your access or log-in, using BBC Archive Products to do anything other than the work your access is approved for, and not stopping your use when your work is complete. Unauthorised re-use or distribution of content is strictly prohibited and may constitute copyright infringement. Such actions will result in your access to BBC Archive Products being revoked and, in more serious cases, may lead to legal action being taken against you.
  4. When your work is complete, you must stop using BBC Archive Products and you must delete content from your devices. This includes any content or personal data you’ve exported from BBC Archive Products and any copies stored locally or in the cloud. If your period of access lasts longer than you take to complete your work, you must still stop using BBC Archive Products when you complete your work.
  5. You are responsible for checking any content used is compliant and cleared for use. You’ll need to do editorial compliance, legal and rights clearance and get any necessary permissions (including the BBC’s) in writing to use anything you access or export from BBC Archive Products, to make sure that it doesn’t infringe anyone’s rights (that includes privacy rights). This includes use of any material from BBC Archive Products to perform text and data mining, computational analysis or to develop or train artificial intelligence. Bear in mind you might have to pay a fee for this. We don’t always own the copyright in what’s in BBC Archive Products. Our content often includes other people’s content. For instance, a TV programme might feature images, performances, video and music that belong to artists, actors, producers and musicians. Or we only have limited rights in a programme, which is owned by an independent production company. So, you may have to ask them if you can re-use content from it.
  6. You must make sure that your use meets the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines, and check all original compliance forms, legal restrictions and rights clearance to help you find out what permissions you’ll need to get. If we ask you, you must provide evidence that you’ve got the permissions you need.
  7. If what you export has personal data in it, the BBC is the data controller. Bear in mind that when you use personal data you must comply with data protection laws (which could include local laws if you are working outside the UK), including keeping data securely and using it only for the purposes of the work for which you’ve been given permission to access BBC Archive Products.
  8. The BBC handles your log-in details (email or BBC staff ID) in line with data protection laws. The BBC, as data controller, is responsible for handling your email address and username (for BBC staff, this will be your BBC staff ID, and for non-BBC staff, the log-in details you were issued with when you registered to access and use BBC Archive Products) in line with data protection laws. We do this to monitor and audit the performance and effectiveness of BBC Archive Products.
  9. We take great care that BBC Archive Products are the best they can be. We’re not liable for anything that happens if:
    • you rely on advice, data, commentary, opinions or any other content
    • there are errors, omissions, interruptions, delays, bugs or viruses
    • we remove content from, or turn off, BBC Archive Products
    • the thing that happens couldn’t reasonably have been foreseen
    • the thing that happens wouldn’t usually result from the mishap
    • you and we hadn’t agreed that this thing would probably happen in the event of a mishap.
  10. Updates. We may update these Terms of Use and when we do the latest version always applies.

You must tick the box to accept these BBC Archive Products Terms of Use before you register for an account.

If you have any questions about these BBC Archive Products Terms of Use, you can contact us at archive.services@bbc.co.uk.