It will feature John Peel's vast record collection, restored Hitchcock films, and a live string quartet performance in helicopters for what should be the most ambitious publicly-funded digital arts programme the UK has seen.
Arts Council England (ACE) and the BBC on Wednesday announced details of The Space, a project that will create hundreds of hours of original arts material between May and October.
Both organisations have high expectations. ACE is investing £3.5m and chief executive Alan Davey said he hoped it would transform the way people experience arts and culture, adding: "We believe it is one of the most significant interventions that the arts council has made in its history."
A total of 53 original commissions were announced, which will be made available to viewers free of charge this summer via a range of platforms. These include computers, smartphones, tablets and televisions. The BBC is providing the technology, mentoring and advice to make it happen.
The Space emerges from a belief that arts organisations can do more to harness the potential of new digital opportunities. ACE received an initial 750 expressions of interest to take part, an "astonishing" number, according to Davey. They were then boiled down to 111 more detailed applications, from which 53 projects got the green light and received "in principle" grants of between £15,000 and £185,000.
The projects announced on Wednesday are all in England, although the BBC said it was in discussions for similar schemes with arts bodies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The successful applicants include the BFI, which will stream The Ring and Champagne, newly restored films by Hitchcock; Faber & Faber with a project called 60 Years in 60 Poems; the Serpentine Gallery, which will broadcast events from its summer pavilion designed by artist Ai Weiwei and architects Herzog and de Meuron; and the Bristol Old Vic which will use techniques pioneered by the BBC natural history unit to replicate the emotional experience of watching live performance.
Birmingham Opera Company will present a live performance of the zany Stockhausen piece in which members of a strong quartet perform in helicopters; and the John Peel Centre for Creative Arts will provide an interactive virtual museum housing an archive. These includes the late Radio 1 DJ's sessions, record collections, personal notes and filmed interviews.
• This article was amended on 24 February 2012. The original said The Space project would include "lost" Hitchcock films The Ring and Champagne. This has been corrected.
