Why on earth is this important? The much-maligned quarter-billion-dollar iPlayer project has been thus-far Windows only (if you want to download content for the 7 days that it's available) or online-streamed via a Flash player. Astute readers may well also recall that the iPlayer has seen much criticised for its use of Microsoft DRM -- one of the main reasons us Mac citizens lack the ability to download shows from the service.
Quite what the forthcoming release means, in terms of watching the content, remains unclear. Digital Spy reports that the iPlayer will only work over WiFi -- meaning that it may not offer download-and-watch capabilities, choosing streaming or a Flash option like the one currently available. On top of that, this month we're told to expect the iPhone SDK, and that brings up some interesting questions.
Has the BBC signed up with Apple to use the DRM scheme currently found in the movie rentals our American cousins enjoy? Will the playback be done via some form of iPhone app surely not dissimilar to the YouTube app we currently have residing on our iTouches and iPhones, or will those continually-swirling Flash-for-iPhone rumours bring us answers? We'll let you read the tea-leaves, but this is quite an astonishing move from a corporation whose digital effort I had come to disregard in the wake of the initial iPlayer saga.
The iPlayer is, of course, UK-only now [and don't complain, non-British readers: we pays our moneys for the privilege, comprende?] so whatever comes of this, expect it to work only on our fair isle.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
2-20-2008 @ 4:21PM
blinkcowz182 said...
Top Gear...on my iPhone...on demand?! Be still my heart...
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2-20-2008 @ 4:23PM
Mo said...
I have to wonder whether this is a) one of those “we're thinking about it, but haven't actually started doing ANYTHING yet” things they're fond of, b) a proper iPhone/touch app, built using the SDK, or c) a MobileSafari-optimised site that streams H.264 video.
Your guess is as good as… well, anybody else's, really. I'm not getting excited until I see it.
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2-20-2008 @ 8:38PM
Sam Gross said...
I'm going to guess b) because it would be a coup for Apple to have one of the U.K.'s biggest TV companies on board for the launch of the SDK, and also because a safari-based player would open the possibility of an application that could download the shows by pretending to be an iPhone (remember the virtual iPhone coming with the SDK? Thought so).
2-20-2008 @ 4:44PM
Brian said...
As with everything Apple life just gets better and better...
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2-20-2008 @ 4:56PM
tico24 said...
@Mo
I can confirm that the beeb have got past the 'ideas' stage and are planning on implementing it shortly.
I know someone who works for the BBC on the iplayer project. All he's told me so far is that "the client" uses "H.264 streaming via HTTP"
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2-20-2008 @ 5:23PM
Mo said...
H.264 streaming over HTTP?
Basically what the iPlayer _should_ have been from the outset, and would have kept quiet anybody who cares about open standards and a platform-agnostic proposition from the beginning.
2-20-2008 @ 5:40PM
Ed said...
The Register is reporting something similar.
2-20-2008 @ 4:57PM
Michael said...
I wouldn't say the BBC's plans have been maligned. I'd say they've been quite reasonably criticized. That's what happens in open societies. The BBC may well consider that it is above criticism -- it often gives that impression -- but most of us know what to make of such pretensions.
Yes, this service was released for Windows only. Furthermore, I understand that over on Linux they will have to wait even longer before they can take what's being offered by this content provider.
But I don't really care for DRM at all myself, and I shall probably avoid this content on principle. I never touched even iTunes Store content until the iTunes Plus tracks were released, although it's fair to say that the DRM that was in use wasn't particularly onerous.
BTW, you want "... one of the main reasons [we] ... lack the ability ..." not "... one of the main reasons us ... lack the ability ...". I realize the grammar in the final paragraph was meant to be askew, but surely that doesn't apply to the whole post.
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2-20-2008 @ 5:48PM
Bunnygnu said...
"[and don't complain, non-British readers: we pays our moneys for the privilege, comprende?]"
people in some countries abroad (say, Belgium) pay twice the price to get BBC 1 to 4 at their places, and have no possible access to the other BBC channels.
You pay your money, but so do we. If anyone is listening, please give us iPlayer aswell :(
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2-21-2008 @ 9:04AM
Joey said...
We pay a license fee regardless of whether we watch/listen to BBC channels/radio. So in the UK, if you pay your license fee, it's more of a right to receive BBC programmes, not a privilege. In other countries (perhaps, Belgium?) you pay the media company a fee for its services, and the media company then negotiates with various media/programme providers (eg, the BBC) to provide you with content. So if you're asking the BBC to provide the iPlayer for you in Belgium, Auntie will probably turn round and say "sorry, UK-only".
2-20-2008 @ 5:54PM
Matt Radford said...
Come on, it doesn't take much investigation to find out what's going on with iPlayer and the iPhone. There's now full details of the service, which means limited BBC shows through iTunes, and also a full iPlayer client using streaming H.264. I've written up the full details on my blog:
http://www.allaboutiphone.net/2008/02/bbc-programmes-make-it-to-the-iphone/
Cheers
Matt
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2-20-2008 @ 6:36PM
Ant said...
Its about time we get something before the US do :)
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2-21-2008 @ 1:58AM
Allister said...
My heart bleeds for you! iTunes has NO television content anywhere but the UK & US as far as I know. (Maybe Canada?) Oh, and NO movies content - buy or rent.
And to first commenter, no chance of Top Gear outside UK according to what I've read - something to do with music licensing. Still, I am not that fussed about that. I've already seen series 10.
BTW, I'm in New Zealand - last English speaking country in the world to get an ITMS and will probably never see (1st gen) iPhones legitimately here either.
2-20-2008 @ 7:05PM
moo083 said...
And for people who don't pay a dime, imagine if BBC offered the service for a small fee to us in the US and elsewhere. They make money, we get content, everybody's happy.
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2-20-2008 @ 7:15PM
Mr Lizard said...
Isn't this favouring the iPod/iPhone over rival devices, such as mobile phones?
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2-21-2008 @ 2:00AM
Allister said...
Quick! Somebody prepare a lawsuit! Reason or logic be damned, we want our money!
2-21-2008 @ 6:57AM
Mr Lizard said...
Joking aside, there was outcry when the BBC made iPlayer Windows-only, because the BBC has a legally-binding obligation to be commercially unbiased, and by making iPlayer for one platform they were breaking this remit.
I was one of those who complained to the BBC Trust, as I didn't think it was right that I should pay the same licence fee as a Windows user yet not be allowed the same privileges. After all, the licence fee I pay goes toward the iPlayer service, so why shouldn't I be allowed access to it?
I'm quite happy that the iPlayer is coming to the iPhone, but I can't help but think owners of other mobile devices might not be happy that they can't use the service because their mobile phone of choice isn't made by Apple.
2-21-2008 @ 4:00AM
Håkan said...
Well, we Swedes pay for our public service TV as well, but that didn't stop us from threatening to tear down all of SVT's transmitter masts if they made their online content restricted to swedish IP adresses. I don't know how well it worked out though, but since I'm living abroad I want to be able to use it. After all, I still have to pay for the TV back home...
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2-21-2008 @ 6:23AM
Ben Murray said...
Surely, as its being encoded to work with iTunes, the BBC just streams the iTunes flavour version for free on iPlayer for the 7 days then it flicks over to iTunes for the same thing at cost
I still don't understand why studios - both tV and Film - pick so carefully. Surely the more access points the more money they can make. If I owned a movie studio i'd make my movies available on every outlet going. The movie is already made and it spells nothing but profit.
Mind you, if I had a movie studio I would also make a sequel to 'The Goonies'. So what do I know.
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2-21-2008 @ 7:43AM
STrRedWolf said...
"and don't complain, non-British readers: we pays our moneys for the privilege, comprende?"
And we US users want to pay too, because frankly put, US TV sucks.
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