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Revision as of 07:48, 9 February 2009
TVCatchup is a free online service for viewing certain digital terrestrial channels live without the use of a television, available only to users residing within the UK and who also have a valid UK television licence.
History
2007-2008
Launched in late 2007, the site was initially conceived as an online PVR service, where users could select shows from one of 12 free-to-air channels to record up to one week in advance of their broadcast[1]. These online recordings could not be downloaded by the user, merely viewed online, but they could be temporarily 'lent' to other users who had not recorded the show, for a period of up to 60 days after their broadcast, when they were then removed from the site. The site differed from broadcaster-services such as the BBC iPlayer, 4OD and DemandFive in that content was not instantly available to users, but had to be recorded in advance or requested. Just like a physical PVR, users were also able to create a series-link so that all future broadcasts of their favourite soap or documentary for example, would automatically be recorded.
Following concerns from broadcasters about the functionality of the site itself, TVCatchup voluntarily temporarily suspended its services on February 14 2008, and visitors to the site were presented with a message to this effect[2][3].
2008-
The site remained offline until October 10 2008 when it relaunched in a beta status. The site currently offers users the ability to watch one of the majority of Freeview channels live and lacks the PVR functionality that the older site had. It also operates an open source API policy to encourage development of third party applications, such as recording shows, transcoding to allow storage/viewing on mobile applications and PVR like functions on the user's PC.
The website has been confirmed as being lawful by prominent copyright experts Hamlins LLP of London and Judge Robert Engleheart QC of Blackstone Chambers, considered to be the current leading authority in UK copyright law. Broadcasters have further participated in assessing the website prior to launch, and have been reported as having identified no legal cause to oppose the service.
The service makes it abundantly clear that users should be in possession of a UK TV licence to watch television as it is being broadcast and has introduced strict geographical blocking and encryption measures to ensure against direct access by those not entitled to use the service. Whilst it is of course possible to circumvent these measures by use of a VPN and thus fool the security of the website into thinking the viewer is situated within the UK, the website has in place stringent IP monitoring facilities that can detect and block multiple accesses from the same IP.
Current channels
TVCatchup allows users to watch from a choice of eighteen Freeview channels, though according to the site, more are planned as the site moves out of its beta stage. The channels are streamed via Adobe Flash using H.264 encoded streaming and custom modified encoding algorithm resulting in a higher quality video
See also
References
- ^ Sweney, Mark (2007). "TVCatchup faces legal battle". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-11-21.
- ^ Kiss, Jemima (2008). "TVCatchup suspended after complaints". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-11-21.
- ^ Kiss, Jemima (2008). "TVCatchup - filling the gaps left by broadcasters?". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-11-21.