Mashable - The Social Media Guide - Latest Comments in World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

James Murray — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 10:51:54 -0000

Rubbish. Utter bollocks.

Iplayer installation takes 10 seconds, and has no difficult or onerous security to click through. Obviously they have given you a special American version which doesn't work. Which is only right, given that we pay for the Beeb (or "Auntie" as she's known), and you don't.

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Vulpes Vulpes — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 08:57:43 -0000

Think again, it's nothing like the Govt demanding you drive a Honda. That would mean being obliged to belong to a tiny minority - Honda drivers.

Instead, you are being obliged to belong to a MAJORITY - the BBC website hits record that over 80% of people are using XP.

This is COMMON SENSE.

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Daneel — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 03:31:48 -0000

the iplayer utilizes microsoft's DRM to make content expire after 7 days. this DRM (or any other form of DRM for that matter) is incompatible with Linux. for macs, they'd probably have to license apple's FairPlay DRM.

so it's DRM-incompatibility rather than laziness as you assume.

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

djhomeless1 — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 03:27:06 -0000

Yeah as I pointed out to Tim I knew Pop Idol was the first, just wasn't sure if that was a known thing outside of the UK. :)

You bring up a valid point, BBC World Service, some of the lessor channels like CBeebies, HD trials as you say, and their support of Freeview are valid uses of the license money imho. But if you look at the reports, those expenditures pale in comparison to supporting BBC1 & 2. I personally would love to halve the fee and ditch things like EastEnders to ITV.

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Chris W. — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 16:53:56 -0000

I beat Pete by a month with my review! :D

http://thebetatestblog.blog...

Both his and my articles are good (in my humblest of opinions), but we have different screenshots so read both if you want a fuller picture. ;)

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Chris W. — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 16:52:04 -0000

Oops, a little factual inaccuracy there: American Idol was a spinoff from Pop Idol, which was an ITV programme. :) Yes, the BBC do make many awful shows, but they're catering for the mass market due to their brief to inform, educate and entertain. They *have* to produce content which most of the country wants to watch.

The license fee does contribute also towards their online presence, their radio broadcasts, their content origination, their (HUGE) research and development departments, their HD trials, their digital broadcasting and their old-skool TV broadcasting, so it's not just a tax to turn your TV on. I'd rather pay Â£120 for loads of channels with no adverts which I actually ENJOY and listen to/watch than pay Â£350 a year to Murdoch and still be forced to sit through days of advertisements.

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Andy Lewis — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 07:34:50 -0000

I like their terms and conditions (not!) that you are obliged to agree to. If you find a bug in the app and do not report it, you are breaking their Ts & Cs. I am not planning on using it any time soon mainly because of the p2p part of it (i am on a metered broadband tarrif). Also, I don't use IE. Oh well.

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Geoffrey — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 06:45:25 -0000

It's sad to say but in the finals my wife and I voted for Gareth Gates lol! :)

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Geoffrey — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 06:39:00 -0000

@Tim
And your point would be what now? Yes Simon Fuller is English, and yes Pop Idol was an English show. Pop Idol however was shown on commercial TV (ITV) so why does my tax money need to be spent making a clone on the BBC?

My point, which you seem oblivious to: are you happy paying for a tax that produces such shows? The BBC produces shows like Idol, insipid soap operas, and shows that rig premium rate competitions.

@Wil has an excellent comment vis a vis roads. Its the same concept really.

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Pete — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 06:34:42 -0000

Yeah, but Pop Idol was an ITV show. ;)

*ducks flying object*

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Tim Sewell — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 04:22:17 -0000

Idiot abroad is certainly an apt website name for you, Geoffrey. Notwithstanding the supposed iniquities of the License fee, you should be aware that American Idol is, in fact, a take-off of British show, Pop Idol.

Of course, Shakespeare and the Beatles were American, weren't they?

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

djhomeless1 — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 02:11:01 -0000

As a "yank" living in the UK I think I can offer a unique perspective.

Every person living in the UK is obligated to pay a tax (roughly $240 per year) just for the privilege of watching TV. Virtually all of this money goes to the BBC. If your curious, even blind people are obligated to pay this tax (albeit at a reduced rate). The Beeb, is an evil odious group because they pay themselves incredible salaries, create viewer chasing TV programs with little public value (like take offs of American Idol and the like), and do things like this where they ignore standards and build something that ignores a fairly large portion of the population.

Yes they do say an OSX/Linux version is in the works, but if the Windows version is based off of Windows Media Player, why exactly would they have a separate development stream based off another standard?

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Pete — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 22:57:57 -0000

Well, it's in the 7 day listings on iPlayer, so I guess it must be. Seems to be repeats of old shows though.

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Mel Riffe — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 22:04:23 -0000

admittedly i haven't read the entire article - i just have to say: i loved Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps! is it still on? i used to watch it when i would visit Dundee.

ok, i'm reading the article now.

cheers,
mel

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Wil — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 19:41:56 -0000

Am I to gather, then, that you would support the U.S. Government requiring that you drive a Honda in order to use the U.S. Highway System?

That's analogous to the BBC/Windows issue: a system funded by tax dollars requiring (for no technical reason other than laziness) the use of a non-government entity's software - in this case, not even a UK-based company.

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Pete — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 18:56:52 -0000

Magazine? That has something to do with dead trees, right?

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Andy — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 18:52:38 -0000

I remember about reading this in the computer active magazine last year.

Re: World’s First Look at the BBC iPlayer

Greg Lambert — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 18:49:17 -0000

Yeah, leave it to the snivelling whiney masses. We have to "legislate" what a company can and can't do with the products which they own. especially if they have a name like microsoft. too bad they didn't have a name like google. then i would imagine all of you whiney little prisses would be singing how wonderful the project was.

get a frigging life.