Canwest is beefing up its online offerings this fall, with a host of U.S. series to be made available through the websites of its many channels.

The broadcaster today announced that it will put full episodes of more than 50 series, including hits House, Heroes and The Office, as well as new programs 90210 and Knight Rider on www.globaltv.com and www.eonline.com. The sites will also carry soap operas The Young and the Restless and Days of our Lives, while specialty outlets including www.showcase.ca will stream episodes of Damages, Weeds, The Shield and The L Word.

Canwest content boss Barbara Williams tells Playback Daily there was plenty of uncertainty in the past about how best to exploit the growing demands of online content.

‘Broadcasters and distributors were still unsure as to what the right way is to do this [in terms of] how the rights are to be managed, where was the revenue, how should it be shared,’ Williams explains. ‘The market is changing, and we realize now we have to make [content] available for viewers…It’s a crucial part of being a broadcaster today.’

Williams says the main Global website will undergo an overhaul as part of the process.

‘There’s obviously a whole technical side to this…you have to ensure you have a video player that can handle all the content, and that the quality, speed and functionality are there,’ she notes.

The move is the latest in the online chess match between Canwest and CTVglobemedia. A Canwest spokesperson maintains that in overall volume on its websites — including those complementing both its conventional networks and recently acquired specialties — it offers more downloadable content than its rival. However, CTV has been faster in getting prestige U.S. dramas — including Grey’s Anatomy and Desperate Housewives — up and running on the web than Global.

Other programs will be made available on www.hgtv.ca, www.foodtv.ca and www.slice.ca. A deal with NBC Universal for its shows also includes extras such as blogs, behind-the-scenes footage and specially produced webisodes.