Next series of The Voice will be the last on the BBC

Updated

The next series of TV talent show The Voice will be the last to be broadcast on the BBC after the corporation refused to get into a bidding war to keep it.

Mark Linsey, acting director of BBC Television, said that another broadcaster had "poached" the programme, which will begin its fifth series in the new year.

He said: "The BBC is incredibly proud of The Voice, but the fifth series which starts in January will be our last.

"We always said we wouldn't get into a bidding war or pay inflated prices to keep the show, and it's testament to how the BBC has built the programme up - and established it into a mainstay of the Saturday night schedule - that another broadcaster has poached it."

In the UK, The Voice is produced by Wall to Wall, alongside Talpa Media, the Dutch-based production company behind the format. The series was created by John de Mol.

However, ITV acquired Talpa Media in a deal worth approximately £355 million.

ITV has refused to comment on speculation that it has bought the broadcast rights.

The new series will see singers Paloma Faith and Boy George join Will.i.am and Ricky Wilson in the spinning red judges' chairs, with former coach Rita Ora having jumped ship to ITV's The X Factor.

The BBC has previously launched a defence of popular programming like The Voice and The Great British Bake Off, saying that licence fee payers expect the BBC to "deliver entertainment".

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