There were fears that this may end up a paid service, or be restricted to those only with an Xbox Live Gold subscription, but thankfully it looks like the BBC and Microsoft has come to some sort of agreement to make the popular video service completely free for Silver members as well.

The device was meant to be coming out towards the end of last year, but Microsoft’s demands for the app to be a Gold service only led to the delay, which prior to this had lasted for no fewer than three months. Just like the PS3 BBC iPlayer app, you’ll now be able to watch your favorite BBC TV programmes such as Top Gear, and of course fulfill your secret Eastenders fetish from the comfort of your Xbox 360 console as well.

Just like the collection of other on-demand video services from the UK such as the ITV Player, 4OD and Channel 5 on demand, the BBC iPlayer will only work for UK Xbox 360 owners. This is pretty frustrating if you live outside of the UK like myself, so hopefully, magically, all these great services will be enabled outside of the UK in the future – not getting my hopes up on this though.

If you live in the UK and are looking forward to this, you’ll be able to download it sometime next week according to a Eurogamer report. However, it is still not official news yet though so we’re waiting for a press release from Microsoft. We’re glad that Microsoft has finally come to their senses on this, as charging for the iPlayer would have been a travesty – and they know it.

Are you a fan of the BBC iPlayer?

The two Roku set tops box on offer have now begun shipping, and the company has announced the service will now also offer the BBC iPlayer to UK residents. The neat little boxes will now offer UK consumers a good choice of content with the addition of the BBC iPlayer, and according to an article over at TechRadar is alongside the likes of Netflix, Crackle and a number of other web based content to owners TVs.

As we reported before there are two different set top boxes on offer from the company, which includes the entry level Roku LT that costs only £49.99. This still allows for 720p video content, while for £99.99 you can get the Roku 2 XS. This supports 1080p Full HD and also adds some casual games such as Angry Birds. You also get a motion controlled gaming remote that connects to the main unit via Bluetooth.

The more expensive unit also has a microSD slot for storing extra games, while a USB port will allow users to play music, videos, and view images via a USB drive. General Manager and VP for Roku Europe, Clive Hudson, said the company recognizes the importance of region specific content, and “are excited to announce the addition of BBC iPlayer to our platform”.

He went on to say that the BBC iPlayer is the first of many different partnerships for the company in Europe, and they will be “making additional announcements in the coming weeks”. Users of Roku in the US have access to content providers such as Amazon Instant Video, so users in the UK may get treated to providers such as Lovefilm in the not too distant future.

Have you ordered one of the new boxes from Roku?

It has been officially announced that the BBC iPlayer will finally be available to Sky customers after the two broadcasting operations agreed a deal. This will see the UKs largest video on demand service arrive on the satellite TV service. The iPlayer is already available on a number of platforms such as the likes of Virgin Media according to a report on TechRadar.

A launch date of later this year will be welcome news for around five million Sky subscribers. The service will come via the Anytime+ feature that allows users to download content to their Sky box via the internet. This is where there is more good news for customers, as previously only those subscribing to Sky Broadband could get Anytime+.

Now as part of the deal with the BBC Anytime+ will now be available to anyone who connects their Sky box to their internet connection regardless of what ISP they use. The press release about the news said that this move was “an important development in helping to bring BBC iPlayer to around 5 million new homes in 2012 – at no extra charge“.

The BBC iPlayer has become a global success but was a major service gap on the Sky TV service. Sky’s Jeremy Darroch said the Anytime+ service “will go from strength to strength in 2012”, and added that subscribers can now enjoy BBC content “whenever they want”. It was also confirmed that iTV content was also coming to Sky as well.

Are you pleased to hear that the BBC iPlayer is coming to Sky?

The application is available now from the App Store as a free download, and is compatible with the iPhone 3GS and above. iPod Touch users can also get in on the action as well with iOS 4.3 or later according to PC Advisor. Users will now be able to catch up with all their favorite TV and radio shows that have already been shown by the broadcaster.

If you are listening to the radio you will also be able to complete other tasks while the app runs in the background. David Madden from the BBC said “We want to make it a better and easier experience to catch up on your favorite programmes wherever you are”.

Some of the applications features include a live channel switcher that allows users to easily flick between channels. They can also tap the Live Channels button while watching content to see what is showing on other channels. It is hoped the app will launch globally by the end of the year.

If you have a device that is running iOS 5 or later you can connect your device to a TV via Apple’s AirPlay feature. Users also have the option of streaming content via Wi-Fi or 3G as well. The BBC has also announced that 3G streaming will soon be rolled out to the mobile web version of the iPlayer for all supported devices.

Meanwhile Android users can look forward to get a dedicated app to access the BBC iPlayer as it has been confirmed it is currently being worked on. Currently they are working on improving the video playback experience and adding 3G streaming. The Android version is expected to be released in the New Year.

According to an article over at TechRadar the BBC Trust has relaxed rules where its content can only be shown on demand via its iPlayer. This could well mean that all or some of the BBC’s back catalogue finally getting onto the Sky TV subscription service. Before now Sky have refused to replicate the BBC’s iPlayer onto its catch up service Sky Go.

We may even see BBC content finding its way to other services such as Netflix and LoveFilm as well. in the UK Virgin Media have been offering the iPlayer on its TiVo box, but Sky refused the service as they would have to take all the iPlayer content and display it in an iPlayer style setting. This was instead of it being able to decide what content from the BBC it actually wanted to show.

There are supposed to been talks between the BBC and Sky for a while now, and could have resulted in the BBC relaxing its rules. The new rule basically says that it’s in the interests of license fee payers being able to access BBC content from a variety of platforms and devices.

It continues by saying that iPlayer content should be clearly marked as BBC content, but there are times that special arrangements can be made to change this. If this does happen it will please many consumers who use Sky or Netflix.

Would you like to see the BBC iPlayer on Sky or Netflix?

BBC Worldwide is today beginning the global release of the application by making it available in eleven countries in Western Europe, with Australia, Canada, and the US to get access later this year. The service will allow users to access a limited amount of content free of charge; this will be supported by ads and sponsorship. But according to guardian.co.uk the main plan is to get users to pay subscription fees of €6.99 per month, or €49.99 annually, which is part of a one year pilot.

The European countries getting the iPad app from today are; Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, The Republic of Ireland, Switzerland, and Spain. It will have features that the UK version of the application doesn’t have including the ability to stream content over 3G. There is also a feature where content can be downloaded to the iPad for viewing later.

According to the BBCs Luke Bradley-Jones the new offering is more like a video on demand service, there will be content available from the last month and a “catalogue stretching back 50 to 60 years“. Content can be searched by browsing for specific shows or genres like comedies or drama.

Fans of Doctor Who can view content which is based on things such as The Tennant Years, or episodes which had the Daleks in. But there will be plenty of other content available with a minimum of 1,500 hours promised from day one.

The offline viewing and 3G streaming are seen as key selling points for users by the BBC, and have even got past the feature of the iPad going into hibernation. The company worked closely with Apple so customers can download content overnight. The BBC are still working to get the service available in the US but a few legal obstacles need to addressed first, but it is coming.

Meanwhile Jana Bennett of BBC Worldwide is quoted on the Financial Times, that during the pilot they want to look at how the service is used by consumers. She then added “We think the next phase will be on iPhones and Apple TV”.

The idea of the BBC iPlayer being available on the Apple TV in particular will please many owners of the set top box. This is one feature that owners have been wanting for a long time without having to jailbreak the device.

Would you like the BBC iPlayer be readily available on Apple TV?

Be aware it’s just the twenty four new flat-panel Panasonic 2011 Viera TVs coming out this year that will only be compliant, which is Plasma and LCD models in sizes ranging from 65-inches down to 32-inches. Some older internet ready Viera models will unfortunately not be able to access the BBC iPlayer service, according to Kate Solomon from TechRadar.

With a large amount of set top boxes available there’s no need to worry, having one of these will gain you entry to the iPlayer services. You can also use certain gaming consoles like the PS3, and the Wii from Nintendo will give you access.

Viera Connect, the newly titled Panasonic cloud-based connected TV service will make the iPlayer part of its service. This gives you Twitter apps, Picasa, Skype, and access to YouTube as well as the iPlayer. Could Panasonic adding the iPlayer to 2011 Viera Television give you a reason to invest in a new TV?

As Paul Briden over at knowyourmobile.com recently reported, the BBC iPlayer app will only be available to UK residents, and will offer shows for a week after they originally aired. If you’ve already used the non-app iPlayer, then you will know that it’s pretty much the same.

There appears to have been speculation as to whether or not Android and other operating systems would be getting their own versions, what with the recent announcement of BBC cutbacks. However, it was previously suggested that there would be other versions arriving at some stage.

According to Stuart Dredge on the crave.cnet.co.uk website, Erik Huggers spoke about the upcoming BBC iPlayer app at last year’s Mobile World Congress show and mentioned that Symbian, Android and BlackBerry versions were also on the agenda, although he didn’t say when.

Are you pleased that there is going to be an iPlayer app for iPhone and iPad?

The head of the BBC wants to open up the service to Europeans and North Americans, however this will obviously rocket the running costs, therefore the BBC need a way of generating income to support the service.

There are two options available to the BBC, they can either add ads or charge for the service, obviously ads are annoying, but I would much prefer to be interrupted by ads than pay for the service.

If the BBC decide to charge for the service they may charge for each program/episode individually, if not they will undoubtedly charge a monthly rate.

What would be your preference, ads or a charge for the service?

Source: Engadget

The app is free (here), however it is only for UK residents, to run the app you must be running OS 5.0+ on the 9520, 9550, 9700 or 9800, the download itself is just 11kb in size.

Once installed you should be able to watch BBC TV programs from the last 7 days on your smartphone, however I would make sure that you are connected to a WiFi hotspot beforehand as it could result in a large data charge from your carrier.

I currently have the BlackBerry Bold 9700 and have installed OS 6.0.0.344, at the moment this OS version doesn’t seem to be supported, therefore I will have to wait until developers roll out a newer version of the app which supports the Bold 9700 running this particular OS release.

Have you installed the BBC iPlayer App on your BlackBerry? If so are you impressed?

Source: IntoMobile