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One of the features of this little spat is that iPlayer is designed (actually, bought in from Verisign...) as a P2P application, so most of the data shifted will not originate from the BBC in the first place. So this is really an attempt by ISPs to charge the BBC for data that is actually moving between ISP's end users.

Interestingly, both Tiscali and BT (cited as participants in this by El Reg) have their own video-over-IP services (Homechoice http://www.homechoice.co.uk/ rebranded as Tiscali TV and BT Vision http://www.bt.com/vision) and it's probably not a surprise they'd like to disadvantage the BBC in that marketplace.

I tend to the view that iPlayer is a broken means of distributing TV-on-demand, but it's broken partly because the ISPs don't seem interested in developing better mechanisms. It's certainly not going to get fixed by ISPs whingeing that consumers want what they've been sold at the cost they were promised. But since a recent survey (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/08/line_rent al_cost_discouraging/) revealed that consumers are very resistant to broadband price hikes, it does seem like the ISPs have dug themselves a hole that can only get deeper.

I've been using TVoIP for a year an a half now.

I get Video on Demand, Radio, Broadcast TV and Internet over the ADSL with 2Mbps Internet while watching TV and 5Mbp while it's off (8Mbps is possible on the best lines right now)

All this and free off-peak and weekend calls and lower line rental from http://www.homechoice.co.uk/

But it's not that popular yet - the monopolistic Murdoch satellite provider we're stuck with wont flog the channels people want to Homechoice so the channels we can get are fairly limited. The only reason I have it is because I'd have to pay £220 for the first year and £80 a year after that for the priviledge of renting a satellite feed as I'm in a condo and cable haven't gone down our road yet.

IPTV is frightening Sky so they're buying into it big time right now.

This is really about Microsoft staking its claim in an emerging market. It doesn't mean they're going to strike oil. WebTV hasn't really led to a rush to adopt a Microsoft-dominated media/PC convergence model. And neither has Windows MCE. Microsoft's ventures outside its traditional Windows and Office franchises have not been particularly successful.

Nobody would think of phoning people through their PC if there wasn't temporarily a tariff anomaly - that's simply not going to persist in the long term.

The kind of thing that will persist is a rather different kind of innovative integration that delivers services that can be used on familiar devices (phones, televisions, etc) as well as PCs - an example of which might be HomeChoice.

Homechoice (which is a TV + Internet over ADSL service in London) offers soemthing like this. The BBC channels and ITV1 offer some (but by no means all) programmes from the last 7 days on a video on demad service.

One of the things that struck me while watching the promise.tv demo at OpenTech was how pointless it seems having such a device in every household, when centralized servers could provide the service instead.

I get some selected series' for a period of time (months) on a special on-demand channel. And some channels have a Repeat feature for some programs. For example I can watch TopGear when I want.

They also have films on-demand too, in a pay-per-view style, but without the porn. (At least, I've not found any yet. Then again, I have the internet, so I haven't looked too hard.) Films cost £3.50 for 24 hour hire, about the same as a video rental, but I don't have to go rent the video, watch trailers, or rewind the tape.

It all comes down the same wire as my 1Mbps DSL. And I have no idea how they cope with the bandwidth, or even what bandwidth they use for the TV side. But I like it.

The BBC is planning to offer a TV on demand service over the internet blogcritics.org article.

They are working to introduce a service where the last 7 days of shows are available for download in a similar fasion to their online radio player.

Additionally they are hoping to introduce a service where archive content is also available for download, featuring old shows that no longer have the same broadcast restrictions as recent content.

TV on demand is already available through networks such as HomeChoice which offer both recent archive (spaced, black books etc..) content and some of the shows broadcast in the last 7 days (from EastEnders to 'The Sky At Night'), all provided over a ADSL/LLU network.

To me, all this suggest that the BBC is looking to embrace the new delivery technologies now available. I wouldn't be surpried if they found articles like this Guardian piece to be encouraging, in indiating the public's desire to adopt more flexible viewing choices.

As well as normal TV, they also give you movies on demand and the ability to watch any TV program that was on in the past week (only on a select few channels, though). If you subscibe to the music channels they even let you set-up a playlist of the videos that you want. All this and they even throw in a 512kB broadband package and free phone calls with the service too.

Slick user interface and minimal (almost zero?) wait times make suprnova/TiVo's (to catch that program you missed) a thing of the past...

If you live in London, I'd definitely recommend you to get it.

There goes my Karma. First time I don't use the Preview button, and look what happens. I'm tired, obviously.

Homechoice.

That's certainly what it's used for in parts of London - check out HomeChoice.

Yes, I was a bit too simplistic in my summary. LLU is starting to take off, and is available from several companies now, but still only in a very limited number of places. (By which I mean not where I live, of course!) The deal with Cable and Wireless buying Bulldog to roll it out further affield looks quite promising.

I have been frequently checking the Homechoice website to see when I can get unbundled broadband with video on demand but it's still only in London. :-(

A similar service has been available in London (not sure about the rest of the uk) for several years http://www.homechoice.co.uk/ homechoice offers TV, movies etc on demand as well as 512 or 1mb broadband for about £20-30/month - us$30-45 month. It also offers movies and sport from the UKs biggest satellite tv network Sky.

In the UK there is a company called Homechoice which has been providing Video on Demand services for close on five years now, all be in it in a fairly limited area at the begining. Currently it's available in most of the UK, as far as I can tell.

I've been using it since it's inception as Video Networks. They offer a huge variety of TV Shows, Films, Music Videos, News Programs etc. all on-demand with different fees applying depending what you watch (for example you can subscribe to various 'channels' like drama or comedy for TV shows, either per-month or just for a 24 hour period) and have a range of rates on different films - at pretty much the same prices you'd be paying at a video store, or for premium channels on cable. They also provide 1Mbs internet access at a rate which is fairly comparable to any ADSL provider.

It works by them having a very fast fibre-optic network to various exchanges from their streaming servers (which, by-the-way run Linux :) :) :) ) and then a 2.4Mbs connection to their set-top box. They stream the video as a MPEG-2 stream which is decompressed at the set-top box. They also run the internet connection along the same cable, with out the two distrupting each other.

I've been using it for a pretty long time now and I'd have to say that its a decent service. Its only downfall is not having enough big films when it started - but I think this problem has been reduced now. For what I could tell they had problems with licencing the films to be streamed.

There is however one very large problem with the assumption the article makes though. Its going to be a pretty long time before everyone has fast broadband (2Mbs up) straight into their homes....

I used to have HomeChoice at home, and it was excellent. The only reason I stopped using their service was because I moved out of the area they cover, and I miss them very much.

They use a DSL line with a set-top box which splits the signal into two parts: one for video on demand, and the other to plug your computer (or network) into. The video service has an archive of TV programmes in all kinds of genres, as well as music videos and the most recent news bulletins from a variety of sources.

Plus you can also 'rent' movies from them, just by clicking a few buttons. You get to play it as much as you like for 24 hours and the cost is comparable to (if not better than) the Blockbuster round the corner. You can pause, fast-forward, rewind, no problem. It works great.

It's fast, very usable, convenient, cheap and it works. I have seen the future and it is video on demand. And no they're not paying me to say this. :-)

I've already got a VOD service - homechoice - delivered over ADSL and no way is it going to replace DVD. For a start, it doesn't support widescreen tvs, the compression method they use means the video doesn't look anywhere near as good, they don't have all the extra features you get on dvd and most of all you only get the film for 24 hours. Even if they changed over to mpeg 4 and started supporting widescreen tvs it still wouldn't replace DVD's - at least with a DVD I can play it whenever I want and I don't have to worry about the film not being on thier server in 6 months time. However, homechoice also comes with a selection of tv programmes and music videos that come 'free' with the service, which is nice when the Tivo hasn't got much on it.

What VOD is usefull for is that it helps to eliminate any need for going to video rental shops - the back catalogue on homechoice is cheap and if I really want to see a film right now I can. With that and Blockbuster UK's dvd rental by post I need never darken the doorway of my local video shop again.

I think DVD's will be around for a long time - or at least 5cm shiny discs holding video will be around a long time. My bet is that some 'superDVD' will come out at some point to support High Definition (though the apperent lack of take up of HD in most of the world will probably slow down it's arrival), and after that another super-superDVD for super definition TV when that eventually comes out.

Tk

Tivo like functionality is easily done with FttH, without upsetting network operators (delayed TV in effect - all programming stored on a giant server for several days - watch it when you want).

http://www.homechoice.co.uk/ Been going a couple of years, but not seen any adverts for it recently. Website still seems active however.

They - www.homechoice.co.uk - include on the support pages everything you need to connect your linux-box... /etc/ppp/options, /etc/ppp/ip-up etc, even some basic ipchains(8) based firewall script. With masqurade(!)

Check it out here: http://www.homechoice.co.uk/fi/support/script.html

Hmmm... this if a *lot* more than one would expect from some isp in AD 2002...

They've offered Video on demand via ADSL for years. Its with a company called Homechoice (used to be Video-Net). I've had it since it was in beta for about three or four years now. It works very very well, good quality streaming, real 'on demand', you can just pick a film from their collection and watch it. Basicly they run an f/o to your local exchange and you get 2.4mbs ADSL connection which holds the video with a standard ADSL splitter/modem. This then goes to a set-top box. They also offer an internet service with it, but only at 115kbs since most of the bandwidth is reserved for the video. For more info check here.

Personally i think that this kind of setup is the future. Here in the UK one company HomeChoice&l t;/a> is already offering STBs that do VoD using the BT ADSL technologies. The STBs also have a serial port providing net access (albeit at a rather limited speed).

There are already many VoIP technologies in place and some standards, the VoIP revolution is progressing quickly.

Of course the cost of supply individual houses with fiber would be very high, using ADSL or other DSL technologies over plain copper with only fiber at the exchange would be a much cheaper solution.

How much bandwidth would an MPEG2 stream use? Unbundling of the local loop and the increase in competition with provision of ADSL services needs to improve to be able to provide complete solutions but the technology is available.

VOD is here and now in the UK, not a pilot scheme. It's up and running and has been for a year or more.

HomeChoice also offer this type of service, after all this is what ADSL was designed for not the Internet. BT have been trialing ADSL for VOD technology for over ten years but there's a rule in their privatization regulation that forbids them carrying TV content, this actually expired January last, so expect a Phone/ADSL/TV package from BT to compete with the cable companies. With the BT chairman also being the chairman of the BBC, it helps.

There's a company here the UK, recently launched, called Homechoice that does VoD, based on BT's ADSL network. According to their FAQ, "[y]ou can pause, rewind, or fast forward it and even watch it as many times as you want over your 24-hour rental period."

A friend of mine has it - apparently one month they got their on-demand charges to over £100 because of the sheer convenience of clicking a button to get a movie they (more or less) wanted to watched streamed to them instantly.

The biggest problem with HomeChoice, from what I hear, is their range of content. And this comes down to business issues, rather than technical. I believe a lot of the TV channels they have show older re-runs than you would expect to get on a normal cable/satellite/digital terrestrial service.

No idea what HomeChoice's back-end looks like. I pressume the infrastructure costs have come down significantly since the Time-Warner (?) trials in Florida in the early '90s - the trials that get quoted so often as to how VoD will never catch on (and I guess that's the what Wired was talking about in the above comment).

Homechoice also does a bearable always-on 'net connection, although with some pretty significant limitations (128k, NAT, etc) - but I imagine it's quite attractive to your ma-and-pa style home users. ADSL Guide probably talks about their net services. You'll probably have to dig around their message forums to find some users of the service.

As far as Blockbuster goes, I thought I read something recently about them doing a JV in the UK to provide VoD-style services. Can't find a link to that story, but here's something about them doing a JV with DirecTV in the States. Blockbuster thinks, probably correctly, that their brand is worth something in the PPV/VoD market.