Travel technology platform Travlr will extend its media partnerships to include BBC Global News after securing $6.7 million of new capital.

Pre-Series B backers are Antony Catalano and Alex Waislitz’s Australian Community Media, Tony Gandel and executive chairman of Straight 6 Group, Matt Berriman.

The BBC deal follows partnerships with Australia’s Network Ten –launched a co-branded travel marketplace in 2019 – and independent New Zealand publisher Stuff.co.nz which presents as Stuff Travel.

Founder and chief executive Simon te Hennepe (pictured) says the move comes in the context of the “one of the most significant structural changes” in the travel industry in a century, paving the way for new and innovative offerings.

“Our raise and launch of new partnerships with the likes of BBC Global News are evidence that the market sees the value for Travlr’s unique offering,” he said.

Berriman sees the global opportunity for Travlr as huge. “I see this having similar enterprise media tech characteristics as Unlockd – without the dependency on Google – which will enable us to reach and support tens of millions of travel-hungry consumers.”

BBC Global News is launching a travel platform, Discover Beyond, initially in Australia and New Zealand.

Alistair McEwan, BBC Global News senior vice president for commercial development, Asia and ANZ said harnessing Travlr’s travel technology and eco-system to establish the Discover Beyond’ travel marketplace “opens up new and exciting opportunities for our audience, providing them with unrivalled access to unique cultural adventures”.

“This is an exciting next step for us to bring this to life for our audience where they can enjoy specially curated itineraries inspired by the stories themselves.”

Te Hennepe says Travlr is currently in discussions with media companies to launch platforms in open markets such as the US and UK. “Through these outstanding partners and our unprecedented audience access, our focus will be on providing global audiences with unique and unforgettable travel experiences.”