Advanced Television

Catch Up

YouView funding split revealed

The BBC and other broadcast partners are set to drop their annual contribution to the YouView set top box venture by 85 per cent to around £750,000, (€883,000) leaving BT and TalkTalk to plug the funding gap. ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5 and the BBC have been concerned that a platform originally created to give […]

March 27, 2014

iPlayer exceeds 300m requests in February

Following a record-breaking month in January, requests remained strong in February for the BBC’s iplayer catch-up service, with 300 million requests  for the second consecutive month. February saw overall up 15 per cent up year-on-year, with average daily requests reaching 10.7 million, and average weekly requests hitting 70 million, both of which are new records. […]

March 27, 2014

YouView future secured

YouView backers are to sign a £100 million (€117m) deal to secure the future of the online TV service with all seven partners – including the BBC – remaining on board as equal shareholders in the venture. YouView partners – which also include ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, Arqiva, BT and TalkTalk – are set […]

March 26, 2014

iPlayer extending catch-up window

iPlayer chief Dan Taylor has confirmed that the BBC’s streaming service will soon be extending its window for catch-up content from 7 days to 30 days. Taylor also revealed several new features including a Radio 1 video player within iPlayer whilst speaking at TV Connect in London. The new version of iPlayer launched on a limited […]

March 20, 2014

HBO On demand for Tata Sky

Tata Sky subscribers in India with access to HBO channels can now access catch-up programming. HBO will add HBO On Demand to its premium subscription offer on satcaster Tata Sky at no extra cost from March 21st. Shows available at launch include True Detective, Game of Thrones seasons 1-3 and Banshee seasons 1-2. “At Tata […]

March 20, 2014

Piksel supports 4oD Xbox One

Executives at OTT video monetisation software and solutions provider Piksel have revealed the company’s role in helping UK broadcaster Channel 4 to build the 4oD app for Microsoft’s Xbox One games and entertainment console. “Through our close partnership with Channel 4 and Microsoft, Piksel successfully delivered 4oD for Xbox One through intelligent systems integration and […]

March 19, 2014Colin Mann @ TV Connect

Formula E on grid with ITV

All 10 rounds of the 2014/2015 FIA Formula E Championship, the electric single-seater car race series inaugurated by motorsport’s governing body, will be televised live and free-to-air in the UK after series organisers confirmed a broadcast deal with leading UK network ITV. Brokered by international media company MP & Silva, the ITV agreement adds to […]

March 18, 2014By Colin Mann

Panasonic brings Freetime to Smart TVs

Panasonic has announced a landmark deal which will see Freesat’s Freetime service available through new Panasonic VIERA Smart TVs. As a result, Panasonic TV owners will now be able to access the Freetime service for the first time whether they take their TV channels by aerial or satellite. Panasonic’s latest VIERA TVs will enable viewers […]

March 13, 2014By Nik Roseveare

BBC unveils new, simpler iPlayer

The BBC Director-General, Tony Hall, has launched the new iPlayer, the latest version of the BBC’s online catch-up service. Hall commented: “This is an exciting day for us. BBC iPlayer is really popular, and new iPlayer will be even better. You’ll be able to find so many more programmes you might like – and I […]

March 11, 2014

BBC Trust OKs BBC Store proposals

The BBC Trust has approved proposals from the BBC Executive to launch a new online commercial service for audiences to buy and keep BBC programmes. BBC Store will allow users to buy new programmes and a selection of content from the BBC archives, on a download-to-own basis. BBC Worldwide, the BBC’s commercial arm, will establish […]

February 28, 2014By Colin Mann