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Thanks to all who have registered an interest in joining iPlayer Beta. Although we are keen to bring people onto the service as quickly as possible, we also need to manage the increase in numbers. Up till now we have had a user base of 15,000 of whom roughly a third have been regular users. We need to test the complex infrastructure around our peer to peer delivery system gradually, to ensure that users get a decent experience.
We also need to model the kind of traffic BBC iPlayer is likely to generate and if necessary share this with ISPs in the UK so that they can plan appropriately as user numbers increase. We also need to be able to provide the best help we can to new users who may have technical issues. Finally, we need to learn what kind of demand the release of BBC iPlayer drives on our systems and processes.
All this means that, as with other services in beta, we need to ramp up numbers gradually. In these early days we will need to be particularly cautious as we need to ensure we maintain our high standards of service. As our confidence builds in the coming days we will accelerate the rate of activations. We will take a range of factors into consideration each day which will allow us to balance the demand (registrations) and supply (activations). We have chosen initially not to market or publish widely the availability of the service as we wanted to see what the initial demand would be - and interest so far has been extremely strong. We will of course begin by activating those users who registered their interest first. We have begun this activation process already.
The necessity to be cautious initially means that not everybody will be able to be admitted to the system straightaway. We understand their eagerness but hope they will be patient.
Jonathan -
Thanks for your reply Jon. I'm happy to know that I might get connected soon , having registred early last night. I can now get off the computer and stop praying for an e-mail lol.
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Thanks for the info Jonathan, hopefully i'm in an early batch!! Fingers crossed!!!
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I think people can appreciate the technical issues.
It's your project managers who have failed here because they haven't been able to manage the widely reported impression that today was the day people would have general access to this software.This is a reply to this message.
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Thanks everyone for the feedback, as I said, we do appreciate the eagerness for people to get onto BBC iPlayer Beta.
Tokyoredflower, I'm afraid that while we can inform relevant sectors what is to happen (and we have repeatedly), there is so only so much control we have. However, I hope that if you get onto the service you do enjoy it.
JonathanThis is a reply to this message.
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Quote "We will of course begin by activating those users who registered their interest first. We have begun this activation process already"
You could have said this in the BBC launches iplayer con I seem to have joined. I gave you my email address thinking I was (like many many others) gonna be part of it. Seems you had enough numbers already, sounds like the telephone comps fiasco.This is a reply to this message.
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Hello rebusuber,
Not quite sure what you find a con, you should hopefully be part of it, as the post explains, but we have several factors to consider in activating registrants.
I hope you can bear with us and that you will start to enjoy BBC iPlayer Beta soon.
JonathanThis is a reply to this message.
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Well that's fine but why all the fanfare and misleading news articles that have been around for weeks advertising July 27th as launch date. If you where not ready to launch you should have kept your lips tight instead of misleading the general public. Nothing new as been launched today apart from some extra bods being allowed into the closed program which as been going on for months anyway.
By the way I registered months ago and have heard nothing will those who registered before today be first in the queue for the extra beta trails launched today ?This is a reply to this message.
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"we have several factors to consider in activating registrants"
Out of curiosity, what factors do you consider, given that all you ask is a name and email?
I guess you can get browser, ip address and OS versions when a user submits the signup page.
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what time did signups open at cause i signed up at about 12:15am last night and havn't recieved a confirmation yet
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"We have chosen initially not to market or publish widely the availability of the service as we wanted to see what the initial demand would be - and interest so far has been extremely strong."
Um ... Auntie has been spinning iPlayer heavily for some time now, and upped the ante again last month (27th). It's really not possible to claim that it's not been doing a lot to "market or publish widely"
Looking forward to getting an email some time
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Rgds,
Niall.This is a reply to this message.
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(2nd time posting - hope it gets through this time :D)
"We have chosen initially not to market or publish widely the availability of the service as we wanted to see what the initial demand would be - and interest so far has been extremely strong."
I disagree - Auntie has been shouting about iPlayer for some time, and announced on 27th June that it would be launched today (albeit, in retrospect, that the press release didn't say it would be "available" today!)
I can't see how it could be claimed that the beeb choose "not to market or publish widely the availability of the service".
Not getting at you specifically Jon, but it really is very poor !This is a reply to this message.
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You have probably had a lot of applications due to an article in The Telegraph yesterday. I am looking forward to my iPlayer when available.
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I am very surprised that with all the resource the BBC have, they still lag a considerable way behind Channel 4 and Sky who have been running this service for some time, maybe to save money you could ask them for help. To announce this service quite openly on the News then not be able to deliver, is a very good example of how badly the BBC is being operated
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Hi Jonathan,
Thanks very much for the information. I'm very much looking forward to the launch of iPlayer - it's something worth being patient for.
I don't envy your job though! Good luck with the roll-out.
Craig
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A couple of things come to mind. Jon says that those who registered first etc. My question would be, when was registering first allowed ? and to anyone that registered on launchday, where on the scale are they ?
When I first read that the service would be available to a "few" at first, I thought "that's those with both XP and version 10 of real player", rather than every windows system etc. But does it mean a select few of those with the required requirements?.
If we are to expect long delays, I'me wondering how long, I am now 67 yrs old and time is precious.This is a reply to this message.
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Can you tell us how many people have been given the accepted e-mail so far??
What time did these people register (I presume you're going on a first come , first serve basis) This would help us know where we are in a queue , thus not spending all day in front of the PC awaiting an e-mailThis is a reply to this message.
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I have to say also that I don't think this has been very professionally handled.
There has been much noise made about the "launch date" - now it seems to be a Beta - and judging from the comments, there seems no indication when it will be available to those of us who have signed up.
As some seem to have found at midnight last night - those of us who only found at start of work probably have little chance of enjoying the launch date.This is a reply to this message.
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BBC boasted that the service would launch on Friday, 27 July, after long period of beta testing.
It now appears to be only a selected few will be allowed to join after registration, which said 'we will email you shortly with username etc' I have still not received anything, accepting or rejecting application, nearly 24 hours later.
Come on BBC, you have a hot idea, let the public get at it.This is a reply to this message.
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Sorry, but that is a stunningly disingenuous comment. The relevant sectors have probably been mislead by the BBC press release <www.bbc.co.uk/presso...> entitled “BBC iPlayer to launch on 27 July” ,quoting Ashley Highfield "BBC iPlayer is a free catch-up service for UK licence fee payers” and Janna Bennet "This is a significant moment, as it heralds a new era when viewers will have the freedom to watch programmes from the BBC's linear TV channels when they want.”
I don’t see how this fits in with Jonathan’s comment in this thread you’ve decided not to publish the launch widely. Is it that you don’t think that BBC press releases are widely read (and reported on) or do you just think that they are not believed?
There is nothing in the press release that suggests that the “significant moment” is an extension of the on-going beta testing.
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