BBC Three and Their New Logo
by
Tom Stables
With BBC Three’s transition from television to web channel looming, they have unveiled a new brand identity and it’s fair to say there’s been something of a furore on social media about it.
In amongst the criticism, humour and vitriol are some more notable tweets:
New BBC3 logo still trying to appeal to the cool kids. 'Hey we're now online but don't tell your parents!' pic.twitter.com/mq7h0eqmU3
— Tiernan Douieb (@TiernanDouieb) January 4, 2016
graphic design OCD kicked in. It's not better (probably much worse), but at least it balances pic.twitter.com/34Nw6yJdsD
— Mike Bithell (@mikeBithell) January 4, 2016
I've just been made aware of the new BBC Three logo. Did someone rush that out before Christmas eve on the train back home, in 30 seconds?
— cwiss (@cwiss) January 4, 2016
Whether or not you like the new identity, there ought to be a degree of kudos lent to this move; Nikki Carr, Head of Marketing for BBC Three said in a blog post:
“The visual identity brings new BBC Three together – a new logo, new idents, new animations and new on screen presentation, all with a new colour pallete. This visual identity will underpin what we do in the future.
What is most striking is the new logo and the fact it doesn’t actually say three. It’s easy to belittle the importance a logo has in supporting a brand, and I’m sure the usual critics will have their say – “It looks like Adidas”, “it looks like a “hamburger menu icon,” “it doesn’t even say three”, “are they Roman numerals” – but If I’m being honest I’m not worried. Some people are resistant to change and we wanted to be bold and create something that looks forward and will be around for years to come.”
So putting aside the end product, the rationale here is sound; decisions and reasoning behind a process is something often overlooked in favour of a self pleasing aesthetic. And the rationale for the new identity? The three lines represent the three principles of BBC Three: to make people think, to make people laugh and to give people a voice. Bringing the end product back into the equation, and it would appear that BBC Three have created something that is memorable (though perhaps for the wrong reasons) and that has stimulated debate. We’ll be following the discussion closely to see how reception and reactions unfold from here!
