BBC Worldwide brings TV Shows to UK iTunes Store

people, all of you people with macs complaining about the iplayer, at leaste they are making something for you, no one any where is making anything similar for LINUX. Personally I wont use virus infected windows, or style over content macs!!! so I get no service because of companies insisting on having drm, which the linux community doesnt want nor agree with

I cant see what the problem is. Take Spooks for example (and ive just bought the entire 6th series on itunes - mac user too) This would cost roughly the equivalent or maybe even slightly more to buy on dvd. The cost isnt prohibitive at all. We pay our licence fee to see programmes first in our homes. This hasnt changed. Stop complaining!! PS Anyone know when Spooks series 7 will be available on itunes? Im abroad and cant wait!!

Contrary to popular belief, BBC Worldwide is not publicly funded - it is the commercial arm of the BBC.

BBC Worldwide is responsible for selling programming content, magazines and merchandise. They run the BBC Shops (online and brick & mortar). The sell content to other media producers (e.g. through the Motion Gallery), and deliver programmes to other broadcasters - both in the UK and abroad (e.g. UKTV or the Discovery Channel), and they run some of the BBC channels outside the UK (e.g. BBC America).

Sales from BBC Worldwide generate far more revenue than the BBC obtains form the licence fee in the UK. If anything, the money it makes goes to ease the public funding of the BBC.

Also, by the way, BBC Worldwide is also quite distinct from the BBC World Service - which is funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

John: It's torchwood season 2.

I agree on the Doctor Who 'Blink' episode - one of the best bits of TV in a long time, though I've already got a copy of it by somewhat more illicit means ;)

Its not that bad. Easier and cheaper than traipsing to the local DVD emporium (or waiting for it to arrive from someplace else) and forking out for a whole DVD for just a few episodes (then ripping and encoding to watch on Apple TV and iPod).

The trick is; if a whole series (season) is the same price or cheaper than the DVD. If not you're not going to bother if you want the whole. It would also be a better proposition if the same choice were available as that at said emporium e.g. old episodes of Spooks, Doctor Who etc. That would be really rather good. It no different really to when they release the DVD's.

As for the iPlayer (oh the irony using the lowercase 'i' like wot Apple do then shutting out us that use their OS), it would be good if they could port the 'rental' functionality but for free to UK residents with a TV licence. I'd wager it would be less costly in developer time/effort as well (going on the assumption that everyone with a mac has iTunes).

What? No Hotel Babylon? Bollocks.

I think everyone in the UK will welcome this,
but please remember that outside the 7 days broadcast(also available on iPlayer) it becomes property of BBC Worldwide(the commercial arm of the BBC),

i for one think this is a giant leap forward for iTunes in the UK and gives a reason for the Apple TV to be bought here now! I hope that ITV, C4, Five, Sky and Virgin follow suit, this would not only make it easier for customer, but give them an extra profit stream.

Although i do welcome the already announced Kangaroo service from the BBC, ITV and C4 and do hope we will soon see a Kontiki client on the mac(although i fear this has not already appeared due to Microsoft)

anyway, best for the future for British TV on Mac and other platforms!!!!

Mark
xxxx

Y'know, as an American over in Texas, I wouldn't mind paying to see "Doctor Who" or "Torchwood," "Ashes to Ashes" and the associated Confidentials, say... the day after it airs in the UK. With all the original music and odd British idioms that I rarely understand...

£1.89 is just about reasonable for a very good episode of Lost. For something you've already paid for it's horrific gouging and for every TV show it's unjustifiable.

I take a similar position on BBC DVDs but obviously there's manufacturing to take into account there.

Firstly, it's Apple's pricing, so quit moaning that the BBC's overcharging. Secondly, this is entirely different from being able to download shows for seven days after broadcast.

But, here's the question I actually wanted to ask: which series of Torchwood is it? I assume, series one, but it'd be handy to be able to buy episodes of series two, tbh! :)

Here's hoping Doctor Who series three hurries up, I really want to buy the episode 'Blink'.