The iPlayer currently only allows viewers to watch programmes broadcast in the past week, which means people who watch an episode part-way through a series have no means of catching up with the show from the beginning.
But from 13 September, the BBC will start offering "series stacking" on a select number of shows, such as BBC One's Tess Of The D'Urbervilles and BBC Two's History of Climate Change.
There are limits
to the series stacking service, however. Only 15% of the BBC's output is allowed to be offered for series stacking, as part of the BBC Trust's measures to prevent the service from harming commercial rivals. Channel 4's on-demand service, for example, offers every episode of a wide range of its shows - including popular comedies such as Drop The Dead Donkey and Spaced - for free.
The BBC's series stacking service will only initially be available for streaming - which offers poorer picture quality than the full download service because of its limited bit-rate. That said, the BBC is beginning to offer "high quality" 800kb/sec streams using the H.264 format on certain programmes.
Series stacking will be extended to full downloads and TV platforms (such as Virgin Media) "in due course".
"Series stacking marks a key development in our strategy to let audiences view our programmes whenever and wherever they want," claims BBC Vision's controller of multiplatform and portfolio, Simon Nelson.
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Coolies, i hate 4OD -cry it doesn't work on my computer.. like sucks to be me.. and i hate it when they charge chu but ehy woopwoop
i hate 4OD -cry it doesn't work on my computer.. like sucks to be me.. and i hate it when they charge chu
but ehy woopwoop
I greet this news with great pleasure, though I hope that the series I watch will be stacked and not just some shit in the corner.
It lags for me. It's also a rip off for 4oD. I have both, and I prefer Channel 4's version.
I have both, they both work fine for me =\
Fingers crossed for Doctor Who!
we'll find out if a series of DR who will be on it in 2010.
the 'gap year'
I wonder if programs I actually watch will be series stacked.