Done and Done plus I think I was pretty quick off the mark but forgot to report back to HQ and give debriefing...sorry I dropped the ball
Petition of Interest Page 2
Done
Done and Done
I'm perilously close to having signed it. Just waiting for the confirmation email thing to come through.
Would this be a bad time to try and tout my Jossy's Giants DVD release petition, by the way? Thought so:
Wow that's quite a few signatures you've got there Esty, very impressive - well done! We're seeing all kinds of 'obscure' shows getting a release now so it probably won't be long before someone like Network DVD pick it up!
Quote: Mark @ April 11, 2007, 12:53 AMWow that's quite a few signatures you've got there Esty, very impressive - well done! We're seeing all kinds of 'obscure' shows getting a release now so it probably won't be long before someone like Network DVD pick it up!
Thanks Mark! Yes, Network would seem like the best bet for getting it out there, especially since they've released similar classic kids' series, such as Rentaghost and Press Gang, in the past.
But they also seem to have pretty much only been doing ITV shows too.
Just to provide an update on this petition. As I suspected, it is indeed a bit redundant as the BBC have been quietly working on the project for a while. They're making the big announcement later in the week apparently...
The BBC is to put nearly one million hours of material on the internet for viewers to watch, listen to and download and has already begun the long process of retrieving and transferring programmes. A trial involving 20,000 users will begin next month, and the service could be available nationally in a year's time. Ashley Highfield will announce details of the scheme in a speech this week.
There are 'issues' though...
The corporation is currently trying to clear the material so it can place it online, although the negotiations are proving more complicated than expected. Although it owns the copyright to most shows, it does not have the right to repeat many of them. Actors, agents, composers and presenters have to be contacted and the process is proving time-consuming.
So watch this space for more info later in the week!
Just Signed.
Quote: Mark @ April 16, 2007, 8:42 PMJust to provide an update on this petition. As I suspected, it is indeed a bit redundant as the BBC have been quietly working on the project for a while. They're making the big announcement later in the week apparently...
...
So watch this space for more info later in the week!
But there's a big difference between actually making something properly available (i.e. DVD) and just sticking it online.
(And that's assuming that the stuff we want to see is actually made available at any point soon-ish!)
Quote: Mark @ April 16, 2007, 8:42 PMSo watch this space for more info later in the week!
OK the speech has now been made. It's pretty significant really - all radio and TV fans should benefit from the BBC's plans. Their eventual aim is to make every single BBC programme, no matter how trivial, available to download. Most of it for free! Personally, I'm dead excited - there's so much stuff in the archive I want to see!
For a fairly comprehensive write-up with lots more details see our news story
Woot! I've just brought a HDD-DVD thingy and I was looking for stuff to fill it with 
I'm drooling over the idea of all those BBC2 comedies I've grown up on in the 90's. Which I'm too tight to buy on DVD, when I'm not that interested in extras.
Speaking of Extras, what about shows like Extras that are also made by HBO(I think) and other shows like it? I'm guessing this will be the premium sections.
Well Leevil, when they refer to downloading, it's HIGHLY unlikely that they mean the ability to download and store on your hard drive to keep. Some shows will have to be streamed 'live' over the Internet with every watch, and others will be downloadable, but will have an expiry date after which they will become unwatchable (and your computer may automatically delete them).
What would be truly brilliant would be for a proper download-to-keep service. Preferably free of course, but I'd be more than happy to pay a small subscription fee in order to access those unreleased classics.
Morecambe & Wise, here I come.
It will be a great shame if you can't store them. A small subscription fee wouldn't hurt for the service. They'll be able to keep it small as well because I'm sure it'll be very popular world wide.
I hope it's not streaming as I barely have the patients to watch small clips on Youtube, never mind a whole series.
But whatever happens, its a great thing and I can't wait.
I don't have any patients. And I don't have much patience to watch clips on the Web either. I'm sure someone will work out a way to save the video it sends.