International rights licensing is the bane of the lives of those of us eager to see online video reach its full potential. This means that Hulu isn’t available to watch outside the U.S., and the BBC iPlayer is, adversely, not available to watch outside the U.K. At least for now.
BBC iPlayer
The BBC iPlayer is a fantastic service, and its popularity has grown massively since its launch three years ago this December. At its core is the ability to freely and easily watch BBC programming from the past seven days, but there is a lot more to it than that.
The latest version of the UI, iPlayer 3.0, puts social networking at the core, and it brings another element to bear. The BBC iPlayer is a must for all Brits to use. Any that don’t aren’t taking advantage of the fact they’re paying for the service through the license fee. Those that pay it, of course.
Global iPlayer Expansion
There have long been rumors that the iPlayer will one day go global. The most recent, before this week, was last October when BBC Worldwide (the BBC’s commercial arm) spelled out its aims and ambitions for such an expansion.
During his MacTaggart Lecture to the MediaGuardian Edinburgh International Television Festival, which was considered newsworthy thanks to the baiting of BSkyB and its chairman James Murdoch, the Director-General of the BBC Mark Thompson once again floated the idea.
According to PaidContent, he said, “Within a year, we wish to launch an international commercial version of the iPlayer.”
That’s the first indication of a timeline from anyone at the BBC, and suggests the project is already underway. Unfortunately there was no indication of pricing but you can be assured the iPlayer won’t be free outside the U.K.
That is, unless it’s being watched by British residents abroad, as Thompson also said people such as servicemen should be able “to use a UK version of the iPlayer wherever they are in the world”.
Conclusions
I’d like to see the BBC iPlayer offered abroad, as that would be a good first step towards breaking down the copyright barriers still in place across the Web.
However, the BBC will surely have to charge for access by non-license fee payers, and that could limit the number of people interested in the service.
