Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

(Unverified)Mar 24th 2009 1:12PM

Neutral

There is a fundamental difference in the way the iplayer and hulu have been funded. The BBC is funded by the British taxpayer, and I as one of them would feel a little aggrieved if this content was made free and available to those that have not contributed to that funding.

I have no problem with the itv or channel 4 versions of online player being made more widely available, as their primary source of funding is through commercial means, as with hulu. So by all means let advertisers and their viewers fund wider viewing. But the BBC iplayer is an exception.

Dislike

Report

(Unverified)Mar 24th 2009 1:15PM

Neutral

I never said free. While BBC programs are available commercial-free in the UK, I don't see why the BBC couldn't strike a deal with Hulu or other companies to distribute them with commercial interruptions in the US and the rest of the world. The revenue could help fund new programming or reduce the fees paid by UK taxpayers.

Heck, I'd be willing to pay for a subscription-based iPlayer service. But that hasn't happened yet either.

Dislike

Report

(Unverified)Mar 24th 2009 1:26PM

Neutral

I would have no objection to a service such as you describe in your reply, as long as it did indeed result in a reduction to the cost of the tv licence. But somehow I doubt that will happen. Every year sees an increase in cost. I don't ever remember any reduction.

Dislike

Report

Add your comments

Your comments:

Remember me

E-Mail me when someone replies to this comment

Please keep your comments relevant to this blog entry. Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments.

When you enter your name and email address, you'll be sent a link to confirm your comment, and a password. To leave another comment, just use that password.

To create a live link, simply type the URL (including http://) or email address and we will make it a live link for you. You can put up to 3 URLs in your comments. Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br /> tags.