Clem_Dye
Distinguished Member
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- May 8, 2006
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As some AVforum members might have noticed, I've been pretty vocal about the rubbish video and audio quality provided by the BBC's iPlayer app., the service that we as licence payers, are expected to fund. To that end I've been exchanging my gripes with the BBC via a series of issue reports. I'd thought that I'd share the latest response that I have, as it's quite telling.
----- begin -----
Thank you for getting back in touch with BBC iPlayer Support, and I'm sorry for the delay in getting back to you.
Regarding HD playback, we did enable 1080p on a subset of devices before the pandemic hit. Due to concerns at the time about excessive bandwidth usage while people are working from home and also the increased distribution cost to the BBC, the decision was taken to stop serving 1080p. This decision is expected to continue until early next year, at the earliest.
We do share your frustration that we are not currently able to make the most of the BBC's content visually.
With regards to 5.1 audio, we do not have any plans to add that functionality in the short term. This is still quite a niche set-up in homes and does not currently justify the cost of implementing, especially as the BBC is currently under pressure to make savings.
We build our service on audience feedback so I've added your comments to our BBC iPlayer Feedback Report. This is read by senior management each morning and it's used to help develop the service we offer.
I hope you find this response helpful and it helps explain the current situation. Obviously this situation will likely change at some point in the future. Meanwhile, I hope you're still able to enjoy BBC programmes.
Kind regards,
Heather Moore
BBC iPlayer & BBC Sounds Support Team
----- end -----
It's the first response hat I've had that actually tells me something. The uplift, albeit temporary, to 1080p, was something that I was totally unaware of. Did anyone else here on AVF know anything about it? The other comment, that 5.1 audio is considered niche, is frankly lame. If 5.1 audio was so unimportant, why are the BBC HD linear TV channels now carrying more stuff with a 5.1 audio stream? Films have been so treated for years, but recent/current shows such as Roadkill, Industry and Battlestar Galactica are cases in point.
I've gone back to the BBC again asking when the 1080p service might actually become a permanent fixture, and highlighted the disparity in audio quality (yet again) between iPlayer and the BBC's HD TV channels.
If the BBC needs to save some cash, then why not stop paying 'talent' like Gary Lineker, obscene amounts of money, or cull little-used services like BBC News or BBC Parliament? I really don't believe that the additional development costs for improving iPlayer are that significant. To me, it's totally unacceptable for the BBC to continually push a sub-standard streaming service on we licence payers. 2021 is fast approaching, and we're still being expected to accept quality levels that looked OK sometime last century!
I know that a lot of people aren't that bothered, and find iPlayer OK. If so, fine. Just try watching iPlayer on a large 4K TV for any period of time. It will soon get pretty annoying!
If iPlayer's picture and audio quality do grate chez vous, please complain to the BBC. If enough of us do, perhaps they'll finally get the message!
----- begin -----
Thank you for getting back in touch with BBC iPlayer Support, and I'm sorry for the delay in getting back to you.
Regarding HD playback, we did enable 1080p on a subset of devices before the pandemic hit. Due to concerns at the time about excessive bandwidth usage while people are working from home and also the increased distribution cost to the BBC, the decision was taken to stop serving 1080p. This decision is expected to continue until early next year, at the earliest.
We do share your frustration that we are not currently able to make the most of the BBC's content visually.
With regards to 5.1 audio, we do not have any plans to add that functionality in the short term. This is still quite a niche set-up in homes and does not currently justify the cost of implementing, especially as the BBC is currently under pressure to make savings.
We build our service on audience feedback so I've added your comments to our BBC iPlayer Feedback Report. This is read by senior management each morning and it's used to help develop the service we offer.
I hope you find this response helpful and it helps explain the current situation. Obviously this situation will likely change at some point in the future. Meanwhile, I hope you're still able to enjoy BBC programmes.
Kind regards,
Heather Moore
BBC iPlayer & BBC Sounds Support Team
----- end -----
It's the first response hat I've had that actually tells me something. The uplift, albeit temporary, to 1080p, was something that I was totally unaware of. Did anyone else here on AVF know anything about it? The other comment, that 5.1 audio is considered niche, is frankly lame. If 5.1 audio was so unimportant, why are the BBC HD linear TV channels now carrying more stuff with a 5.1 audio stream? Films have been so treated for years, but recent/current shows such as Roadkill, Industry and Battlestar Galactica are cases in point.
I've gone back to the BBC again asking when the 1080p service might actually become a permanent fixture, and highlighted the disparity in audio quality (yet again) between iPlayer and the BBC's HD TV channels.
If the BBC needs to save some cash, then why not stop paying 'talent' like Gary Lineker, obscene amounts of money, or cull little-used services like BBC News or BBC Parliament? I really don't believe that the additional development costs for improving iPlayer are that significant. To me, it's totally unacceptable for the BBC to continually push a sub-standard streaming service on we licence payers. 2021 is fast approaching, and we're still being expected to accept quality levels that looked OK sometime last century!
I know that a lot of people aren't that bothered, and find iPlayer OK. If so, fine. Just try watching iPlayer on a large 4K TV for any period of time. It will soon get pretty annoying!
If iPlayer's picture and audio quality do grate chez vous, please complain to the BBC. If enough of us do, perhaps they'll finally get the message!