Content streaming is big business these days. But due to the tax-paid nature of the BBC, they can’t very well start something like Spotify for themselves. But what if they offered up a service that acted as a sort of ‘operations zone’ for all of your favourite music streaming options?

Tony HallTony Hall, Director General of the BBC

Well that’s what the new BBC Playlister service looks like it can do. Instead of trying to go up against well established streaming apps like YouTube, Spotify and Deezer, the BBC’s Playlister will allow listeners to bookmark songs they here, then open it up in their streaming service of choice, creating a library of their favourite music.

It’s a “wonderful innovation... designed purely with audience needs in mind," said BBC Director General Tony Hall. "We have a proud musical heritage that dates back to the very beginning of the BBC's history and over the years we have found many new ways of bringing fantastic music to our viewers and listeners," added Lord Hall. "Working with partners such as Spotify, YouTube and Deezer, we will once again transform our audiences' relationship with music and the BBC."

So, in real terms, what can you actually do? Well, you can collate all the tracks you hear on the BBC so you don’t forget it. This is mainly so you can find the music you liked again, rather than wait for it to come on again. There will also be recommendations from the corporation’s top DJs. Then, theoretically speaking, users will be able to transfer their playlists to the music streaming service of their choice.

Zane LoweZane Lowe has welcomed the new service

"There's so much to play for here, with Playlister moving forward and a lot of the other changes that were talked about yesterday [in director-general Tony Hall's speech about the BBC]. It's been building for a long time - ever since we realised that the old model, for lack of a better term, is going to be redundant," said Zane Lowe of the new service.

"We can now filter that down as DJs and say, 'Hey, you like that song, make it yours, share it'... hundreds of billions of hours are being watched, but each one of those minutes that you listen to a song is personal to somebody." (Digital Spy)