Angus Kidman24 July 2008, 8:58 AM
ABC's sexy new TV streaming service could suck up Aussie ISPs' download caps, but the national broadcaster is hoping ISPs will make it quota free.
ABC iView, launched yesterday after a year-long development period, allows viewers to watch programs they've missed across six channels, including Catchup (recent broadcasts), news, Kazam (kids), arts Docs (documentaries). The final channel links to the recently-launched ABC Shop downloads service.The content is going to grow and there will be more channels," head of TV Kim Dalton said at the launch.
Developed internally by ABC Innovation staff, iView works on any browser which supports Flash, making it available on Windows, Macs and Linux machines. (The most obvious gap is the iPhone, due to Apple's bewildering insistence on not offering Flash.) There's no direct DRM involved, and the ABC's developers accept that unauthorised software designed to save the streaming broadcasts will inevitably emerge.
While the ABC has made many individual programs available as downloads or streaming broadcasts before, iView differs in offering a much wider range of content in full-screen mode. The length of time each show remains available varies, though a week is typical for regularly broadcast shows.
iView is designed to work with an ADSL2 connection; a speed test on login helps viewers determine if they can effectively view video on the service. While there's no charge for accessing iView, there is a potential hidden cost: exceeding your download cap.
Information for each program includes a rough estimate of how much data is required; 100MB or more for a half-hour show is typical. For customers on entry-level broadband plans, a handful of shows could send them over the limit, slowing their connection or incurring extra charges.
The long-term solution to that problem, the ABC hopes, will be partnerships with ISPs to exclude iView from download caps. iiNet has already agreed not to include iView in download totals for its users, mirroring its similar deal for content purchased through the iTunes store. "Being able to provide great content through ABC iView completely quota-free means our customers can now get more value out of their monthly quota," iiNet chief technology officer Greg Bader said.
ABC executives said similar deals will follow with other providers. "We are negotiating actively with ISPs to exclude ABC iView from their download caps," said Abigail Thomas, head of strategic development at ABC Innovation. Scoring a deal with Telstra is likely to be difficult, given its promotion of its own BigPond TV service.
The ABC has "geoblocked" iView so that it can't be accessed from outside Australia. That was a key requirement in order to satisfy overseas content providers such as the BBC (which supplies Doctor Who) and ITV (The Bill) that contractual obligations were being met.
Local producers have been easier to deal with, though Dalton said that the ABC didn't want to make access via iView a blanket requirement in all contracts. "Producers have a right to expect to make a return from their content," he told APC. "At the same time, the model of a show being broadcast just once at 9pm is over."
Some shows have rights issues which make them virtually impossible to broadcast via iView. The popular quiz Spicks and Specks, for instance, hasn't been made available because the music rights negotiations were too difficult.
The BBC's similar iPlayer service has been a source of considerable controversy in the UK because of the major increase in traffic it has created, with some ISPs calling for the BBC to contribute to the cost of backhaul transmission. In the long term, the ABC is hoping that the creation of the National Broadband Network will offer a cost-effective solution allowing more people to access the service. ABC managing director Mark Scott estimates that iPlayer cost more than 150 times as much to develop as iPlayer, a project which took five years to complete.