James Corden, who made his name on BBC3 with one of its biggest hits, Gavin & Stacey, has backed the corporation's decision to axe the youth-oriented TV channel.
The star conceded he was probably "in a public minority" as he said the closure of the channel did not matter because its content would be available online.
Corden said he was satisfied because "there is still a commitment to it as a channel and there's investment in young writers and young performers and young directors, and its programmes are aimed at a new and fresh audience".
He added that in fact online was the best place for the channel to be because "that's how people are consuming their TV now" – particularly "a younger audience, who are going to university with a laptop and maybe not a TV".
The decision to close the 11-year-old BBC3 TV channel next autumn triggered protests from some of its biggest stars, including the writer and comedian Jack Whitehall and Radio 1 DJ Nick Grimshaw.
An online petition to save BBC3 has gathered more than 225,000 signatures. But the BBC says the decision is necessary to save a further £100m a year at a time when the licence fee is frozen until 2017.
Gavin & Stacey launched on BBC3 in 2007, and Corden has since gone on to win further critical acclaim and awards with the lead role in the National Theatre's One Man, Two Guvnors.
The actor's latest series on BBC2, the acclaimed comedy thriller The Wrong Mans, co-written with Mathew Baynton, was co-produced with the US video-on-demand service Hulu. The pair are working on scripts for a second series.
Speaking after appearing at the Ad Week Europe event in London on Wednesday, Corden said: "People say: 'Oh, but would you be happy for your show to go on BBC3 if it was just online?' If I was sat here telling you I had just signed a huge deal with Netflix you'd be going: 'Wow, that's amazing.' You can't see it as 'oh, it's no longer a channel because it's not on TV.'
"Providing they still invest and it's still a commitment to make new and interesting shows, then its audience will find them in the same way you and I enjoy House of Cards [on Netflix]."
He added: "BBC3 even started their biggest shows, like Jack Whitehall's Bad Education, they premiered on the iPlayer a week before it went on TV.
"I think it should always be at the forefront of what is fresh and exciting, and therefore it should be the first channel to exist online."
The BBC's director of television, Danny Cohen, has admitted that the closure of the TV channel is a risk because online services such as the BBC's iPlayer are still only responsible for a fraction of total TV viewing.
The corporation said its hand was forced by the need to make further savings as a result of the 2010 licence fee settlement, with drama on BBC1 made a priority for investment.
The online-only BBC3 service will have a budget of around £30m, similar to BBC4's, but down from a projected budget for 2015-16 of around £75m.
"The truth is I don't know if Gavin & Stacey would be commissioned by BBC3 today," Corden said.
"The channel has changed. It was 2007 that we made that show. It has a much younger outlook [today]. Our show and Nighty Night [another BBC3 show] and things like that, those shows don't tend to be on BBC3 right now. They would probably be on BBC2 or BBC4. It's always changing."
