Changes to BBC Recordings

[Andy005]

@Hunter2660  The reply given in post 3 suggests that the answer is no from 21st August onwards. If I've understood the change correctly, from 21st August when pressing Record you're simply adding a 'marker' to notify iPlayer that you want to watch a particular programme. If they haven't added it to iPlayer or it's subsequently removed then you won't be able to watch it.

[Midnight_Voice]

@Andy005 @Hunter2660 

Make that ‘pressing Record in IP Mode’.

You may wish to revert to Broadcast Mode, if you are in a position to, before that date.

[Lizzie]

Does this mean that I may just as well buy a recording box, rather than have a subscription?

I currently do not buy extra channels.

[ptrduffy]

@Lizzie the issue (if we can call it such) only applies if you choose to receive channels over IP, and you need a subscription to do so.

But, as I see it, the main advantages of BT/EE TV over competitors are IP delivery of programming and ability to record (and keep recordings as long as you like).  The erosion of recording functionality - first with ITV disallowing ad skipping, and now the BBC disallowing long-term keeping of recordings - to my mind erodes this competitive advantage.

I have a year still to run on my contract, so I think I will switch to aerial mode for the duration and then not renew (unless something significant changes in the next 12 months).

Although, as I type this, I'm starting to think that this change constitutes a significant reduction in functionality. I may decide to ask BT to let me cancel the remainder of my TV contract on the basis of this. Something to ponder over the weekend.

[Hunter2660]

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@Andy005wrote:

@Hunter2660  The reply given in post 3 suggests that the answer is no from 21st August onwards. If I've understood the change correctly, from 21st August when pressing Record you're simply adding a 'marker' to notify iPlayer that you want to watch a particular programme. If they haven't added it to iPlayer or it's subsequently removed then you won't be able to watch it.

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Ah yes, didn't read that properly. Not a problem for me as my pro box is packed ready to be sent back to BT. Just curious really. 

[zulu17]

From what i have read in this thread it does seem that the BBC programme is still recorded  , so presumably using one of the two available simultaenous IP stream and writing to disc  but is not shown as a  (playable) recording on the box but rather the programme tile will default to playing in iplayer (if present) and presumable some Not Available message if not present in iplayer'

This change does seem a strange  and untidy implementation.

[Andy005]

@zulu17 Presumably if it is still recorded than it can only be for reasons of ease of implementation and cost.

I'm struggling to see where EETV (via IP) is going now. Ads can't be skipped on ITV, you can't record BBC and no channels have been added that I know of. I'm only a few months into my current contract but once it ends I'm likely to switch to a provider that offers a full and consistent service. Whilst we're probably heading for all streaming in the long term,  these changes make EETV look as if they have no say with broadcasters whatsoever, presumably due to low subscriber numbers.

[jparnell82]

I don't understand why the recordings are still held on the box and consuming storage of they're not used? Can anyone clarify this please?

[Midnight_Voice]

@jparnell82 

At a guess, because there are probably hundreds of places in the YouView code where assumptions about how the recording process operates are baked in, whereas it is relatively simple and clean to put something in the replay process that diverts the request into being one to play from the iPlayer instead of from the hard disc, at a single place in the code.

So trying to implement the marker idea, while cleaner than making a recording, would be very messy in terms of picking up all the places where assumptions about what the recording process were entailed, and modifying them. And they would likely miss a few.

[jparnell82]

@Midnight_Voice 

Good points. I think the term is 'technical debt'