Appletell

BBC America TV shows have just been added to the US iTunes Store. There are only three shows at this point in time, but expect more to be on their way:

• Torchwood (Series 1 and 2)
• Little Britain (Series 3 only)
• Robin Hood (Series 2 only)

This small collection of shows is available for the usual $1.99 per show - buying entire seasons can vary in cost, but is usually slightly cheaper than buying episode-after-episode. This is still very limited, and what I would call not worth paying for. But I guess if you don’t have access to the BBC World channel, or you want it on your computer/iPod/iPhone - then this is the way to go. If you’re in the UK, you’ll have a much wider variety of choice; including the BBC’s own iPlayer - which lets you catch-up on shows every 7 days. This service is also available for streaming on iPhones and iPod Touches in the UK.

Via [TUAW]

The earlier leaks are now confirmed to be true by the BBC themselves, who have launched a special version of the iPlayer website for the iPhone and iPod Touch. As of today, users on an iPod Touch or iPhone can browse to bbc.co.uk/iplayer through Safari, and view specifically-encoded videos for the iPhone/iPod Touch. Right now there are only a limited number of shows that will work on this mobile version, but shows are being added constantly. The video is encoded at 400Kbps H.264 video, with a 116Kbps AAC soundtrack. Because of this relatively large file size, the iPhone can only access content through Wi-Fi, as EDGE speeds will be too slow.

I tried this out on my iPod Touch, and I was impressed by the video and audio quality streams. Of course, I was using Wi-Fi, but there was very little time between buffering and starting the video stream. Make sure you turn the screen orientation to landscape, or else the video will play portrait in a 4:3 format.

Via [MacNN]

We know they’re coming, but just not when. The UK iTunes store is finally catching up with the USA store with the amount of content on it. We now have Music Videos and (a few) TV Shows - but still no movie purchases - let alone rentals. Currently, you can buy hit series like South Park, LOST, Ugly Betty and more. But you won’t find any BBC series on there. Rumor has it that the BBC is going to bring TV shows to the iTunes store - as soon as this week.

“A TV industry source claims BBC Worldwide will on Tuesday detail plans to set up shop at Apple’s online media mall. Our source says BBC Worldwide’s digital media director Simon Danker has contacted the BBC’s third party production partners to inform them of the new distribution channel,”

This is great news for iTunes users in the UK, who are already enjoying the downloadable content from other networks. This means shows like Top Gear will be available to download, most likely in HD versions as well as standard-definition versions, but still wrapped with DRM for “security”. Apple hasn’t made the move to DRM-free videos yet, but I’m sure that’s next on their list of things to do in the iTunes Store. Bringing BBC content to the Apple TV seems like a no-brainer, too; It could just be what kicks off the Apple TV here in the UK. I can’t wait for the BBC shows to come into the store - even though the content is free on television - iTunes allows me to take it on an iPod without the hassle of converting it.

Via [MacDailyNews]

After many online petitions, including one on the government’s website, the BBC did say they would bring out a version of their iPlayer software on Linux and Mac. Their main reason for keeping it on Windows is because it uses Windows Media’s DRM technology - which isn’t that great anyway. Mac users can already go to the BBC’s iPlayer website and view videos via Flash, in a similar way to Hulu in the USA - but the quality is limited and you can only stream it. BBC’s Mark Thompson responds to some of the controversy over the current Windows-only status of the iPlayer software. Mark explains that it is due the digital rights management (DRM) issue. He says that a Mac version of the iPlayer software will be released in 2008 - no specific date was given.

On another interesting note, the possibility was raised by Ashley Highfield of adding iPlayer’s content to the Apple TV. ”...we can look to getting BBC iPlayer onto [the Apple TV] too, as we should be able to use the rental functionality to allow our programmes to be downloaded, free, but retained for a time window, and then erased, as our rightsholders currently insist.” This could be one explanation for the Apple TV’s software update being delayed. Of course, this is aimed at UK users; but there is the possibility of BBC World content on US Apple TVs.

Via [MacRumors]