By Tim Ferguson, 27 July 2007 12:52
NEWS
The BBC's online, on-demand TV iPlayer was released for public download today following its launch a month ago.
The beta version of the service is available for Windows XP users, less than three months after the service received the green light from the corporation's independent governing body, the BBC Trust.
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The BBC is requesting feedback from early iPlayer users to iron out any issues before a bigger marketing push is made in the autumn.
The fact the iPlayer is only available for Windows XP has caused some controversy with non-Windows users feeling they have been excluded.
The Open Source Consortium met with the BBC Trust earlier this week to discuss concerns about the iPlayer's lack of compatibility with other platforms.
In addition, an e-petition posted on the 10 Downing Street website, asking the prime minister to instruct the BBC to make the iPlayer cross platform, has clocked up almost 12,500 signatures so far.
The beta version of the service can be downloaded by going to the iPlayer website.
Comments
There are 11 comments. Join the discussion
1. anonymous
Not using Win XP so I won't bother with it, got several chanels of poo already to watch, dont need any more!!!
2. anonymous
What a waste of licence payers money
3. DogStar
Followed the links and applied to be a Beta tester. I expected to be given an immediate log on, as is usual. They came back with:
"Thank you for applying to join the BBC iPlayer Beta. If we're able to invite you to join the Beta we'll email you with your log in details and installation instructions shortly."
If we are able? What the hell does that mean. More like if we want to. I'm a bloody license fee payer and I want to be a beta tester. Give me a login so I can see for myself what a pile of crap iPlayer is!!
4. anonymous
Not exactly 'available for download' I filled in the 'application' form on Friday, got the message about 'if we can accept you' but so far nothing else!!
Not impressed BBC!
5. anonymous
Rediculous that it doesnt support Windows Vista. No wonder people are complaining about cross OS support. They need to fix that ASAP. 64 Bit XP and Vista too.
6. anonymous
I find all this bitching by non-XP users very childish.
The BBC has got to start somewhere with developing their iPlayer, it would seem sensible to roll it out starting with the most common OS first.
From all that I have read it appears quite clear that it is the BBC's ulitmate intention make the iPlayer wholly cross platform
7. Graham Coles
I find this lack of understanding about why non-XP users are complaining rather amusing.
(a) The BBC is funded with taxpayers money; if they want to play favourites, drop the licence fee and make them raise the money independently.
(b) If the aim of the project was to be cross-platform, they why did the morons develop it for a single proprietory operating system that is known to be a closed platform.
Most people who work in the software industry recognize that to deliver something it should be in the requirements.
If the requirement was for it to provide cross-platform support, it should not have been developed for XP, as it won't then be supported on other platforms by design.
If the open platform requirement was not specified, then they are lying about their commitment.
I wouldn't like to be the project manager who has to explain this incompetent bungle ...
8. Stillwating
How can an organisation launch a product knowing it to be extremely popular yet make such inadequate technical preparation? Been loading iplayer etc and then downloading etc and performance is xxxxx! Why not wait to launch until you are sure your system can cope technically. It just damages your credibility even if it is a beta version which was not mentioned in BBC news broadcasts.
9. Angry
What a complete waste of taxpayers money on a load of new fangled twoddle. This sort of nincompoop idea didn't happen when I was a lad - what was wrong with the radio - should never have got rid of it.
Bah.
10. JAS1972
If you read the website it does explain a limited number of people will be given logons, ahead of a full launch in Autumn.
11. anonymous
The radio was once "newfangled twaddle" too, try and have some perspective and realise that before you were here technology was evolving and it will continue to evolve once your radio signal is turned off