I.T. Vibe - BBC To Stream Programs Live Online

While the timing of the announcement to stream a selection of their programs live on the internet has taken many in the industry by surprise, there is something of an inevitable feel to it. The BBC has today confirmed that the BBC3 and BBC News channels will be broadcast live on the internet later this year. Even though the main flagship channels such as BBC1 and BBC2 are not included in the current package it now seems only a matter of time.

Improvements in technology have also persuaded ITV to take a similar route to the BBC and they too have announced plans to stream some of their programs live on the internet. However, many people are questioning how the BBC service will work when you consider that there will still be a need for a TV licence.

Many in the industry do not believe that it is feasible to allow streaming of programs on the internet and also check up to see who is watching and who has a TV licence. The BBC has been a little light on detail with regards to the collecting of licence payer charges for those watching on the internet, with some observers even claiming that this is the end of the TV licence as we know it.

Comment # 1 on 05 June 2008 at 12:47 by Anonymous

The BBC don't want to be able to track who uses the service. This way they can argue that owning a computer with internet access means you can watch TV and hence hassle you for a licence. The same is true of TV use, they don't convict people based on 'detection' and never will as they would have to reveal their 'secret' methods of doing so. It's more lucrative to just to hassle everyone who doesn't have a licence.

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