The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) announced plans Monday to make 12 more shows available by podcast on a regular basis, starting April 2. CBC Radio’s flagship newscast The World at Six, shorter hourly newscasts and political roundup The House will soon be available by podcast.

It also plans to make national network shows As It Happens, The Current and Sounds Like Canada available daily, instead of updating the podcasts just once a week.

The public broadcaster began podcasting as a pilot project in 2005 and greatly expanded its offerings in May 2006 with selections of Dispatches, Outfront and As It Happens. Downloads now average more than one million per month with CBC Radio 3, Ideas and Quirks & Quarks among the top podcasts in Canada.

New podcasts available to download starting April 2 include:

• CBC Radio News: Hourly newscasts.
• The World at Six: Half-hour evening newscast.
• Best of Sunday Edition: Highlights from the weekly show.
• Tapestry: Weekly examination of spirituality hosted by Mary Hynes.
• The House: Weekly political round-up hosted by Kathleen Petty.
• Writers & Company: Eleanor Wachtel’s weekly look at writers and writing.
• Comedy Factory: A variety of comedy features.
• And the Winner Is: A program featuring prize-winning documentaries.
• C’est La Vie: A weekly look at life in French-speaking Canada.
• Listener’s Choice: A weekly podcast selection requested by listeners.
• Special Delivery: A weekly podcast with highlights from CBC Radio specials.
• Rewind: Selections from the CBC Radio archives.

With the addition of these shows, CBC will be offering 40 podcasts.