BBC iPlayer: bad, good, then bad again?

Thursday, December 11th, 2008

You may remember that we at PC Pro were none too impressed with the BBC iPlayer when it was first released. Our preview of the beta software lamented the way the iPlayer was raggedly ripped in two (a website for selecting shows, a separate desktop app for viewing them), the appalling user interface and the limited selection of shows. “It’s produced a bug-ridden, slow and ultimately disappointing product… and worst of all, the Beeb’s done it with your money,” the preview concluded.

Since the dark days of November 2007, I’m pleased to say the iPlayer has improved almost beyond recognition. The website interface is now much cleaner and finding the particular episode of a series that you want to watch is no longer a case of randomly clicking on identical boxes and hoping for the best. Shows can now be streamed in either standard or “high-quality” versions if you can’t be bothered to wait for the download (although downloads still offers much greater picture quality), and devices such as media players, games consoles and phones are now well supported with dedicated downloads.   

If the truth be told, the BBC has turned what was looking like a multi-million lame duck into one of the most popular internet services this country has ever seen – and deserves credit for doing so.

Which makes it all the more galling that the next evolution of the iPlayer looks set to undo much of the good work.

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