BBC iPlayer made available to Virgin Media subscribers

by Daniel Farey-Jones, Brand Republic 30-Apr-08, 10:30

LONDON - The BBC iPlayer has moved onto television and Virgin Media's 3.5m subscribers will be able to watch the service for free from today.

Virgin's cable platform gives viewers the ability to access the BBC's seven-day catch-up service and watch full screen pictures at full screen quality, without the need to download, according to Virgin Media.

The service will not be accessible through the EPG until the summer, but is already accessible by pressing the red button on any BBC channel.

Programmes currently showing on the BBC iPlayer include 'EastEnders', 'Gavin and Stacey' and 'The Apprentice'.

Ashley Highfield, the BBC's director of future media and technology, said the deal with Virgin takes the iPlayer towards being a multi-platform offering.

He said: "We have always envisaged BBC iPlayer on a TV platform and in the living room and are delighted that by working with Virgin Media, this ambition has today been realised."

Virgin Media's existing on-demand service is regularly used by 47% of its 3.5m TV customers. In the last three months of 2007 99m programmes were viewed.

In contrast, iPlayer statistics show that around 42m programmes were viewed in the three months since its Christmas launch.

The path cut out by iPlayer may be followed by Kangaroo, the commercial on-demand service planned by BBC Worldwide, ITV and Channel 4 to aggregate their content. Highfield is moving to Kangaroo as chief executive.

Complaints over Kangaroo's impact on competition in the video on-demand sector were recently made to the Office of Fair Trading, which is considering whether to investigate.