Now its BBC 4 and CBBC going 'online only' ....

[RayW2]

It seems that the BBC are planning to move BBC 4 and CBBC channels online only ...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-61591674

[roy247]

It also say's they will available on iPlayer so will be available on the 360.

[jem101]

Possibly, give it a couple of years until the highly paid consultants have moved on and another lot are engaged who will advise that they both be linear channels again.

Always nice to see that licence fee payers money is being well spent.

[japitts]

To be fair, distribution isn't the big cost with these channels or any linear channel. It's content production that's the expensive bit. Going online-only probably won't be as big a saving as most people think.

BBC4 has been an archive channel in all but name for quite a while now, not sure about CBBC. There was an article in the Guardian media section about this a few weeks back - that's usually a good source for this sort of thing.

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2022/apr/27/bbc-cut-number-programmes-tim-davie-director-general 

[Graham_A]

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@japitts wrote:

To be fair, distribution isn't the big cost with these channels or any linear channel. It's content production that's the expensive bit. Going online-only probably won't be as big a saving as most people think.

BBC4 has been an archive channel in all but name for quite a while now, not sure about CBBC. There was an article in the Guardian media section about this a few weeks back - that's usually a good source for this sort of thing.

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2022/apr/27/bbc-cut-number-programmes-tim-davie-director-general 

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That is one thing that makes it attractive to a lot of elderly folk. Many of whom do not have a broadband feed into their homes and therefore have no access to iPlayer content.

[jamesofmerton]

'That is one thing that makes it attractive to a lot of elderly folk. Many of whom do not have a broadband feed into their homes and therefore have no access to iPlayer content'

at what point do we not use the 'my elderly relative does not use the internet' argument though. i've been on the net for over 25 years now. one of my relatives is in his early 20's. they have only known the internet. there comes a point when a whole generation from birth to death have grown up having the internet.

to argue against my own point, there will always be those that don't use the internet. i know someone who is 34. point blank refuses to have a smart phone, gets the right hump with her bank who 'force' her to set up online banking which she refuses.

there will come a point where it is internet or nothing. companies will not continue to maintain physical/no online presence just to satisfy the few regardless of age.

[Graham_A]

I have some sympathy with that as the shut down of the current analogue telephone system will force every one into the digital age. 

If the BBC4 broadcast switch off doesn't happen until 2025 then it will not be the biggest issue for my 95 year old friend who currently watches a lot on BBC4.

[MrHalfAsleep]

TV over internet based connections (IP/HTTPS/apps etc) is already facing problems in Russia, where servers are attacked and programme listings are changed.  Human beings being prone to failure in such tech based organisations are gonna face huge problems running live programming if they are DDoSed.  Basically the Beeb becomes a giant MediaCenter PC...

Imagine being the person uploading an episode of EastEnders only to find it contains a video of a blank screen with "EastEnders is rubbish, watch ITV instead!"...

I'm gearing up for a post internet age...

[jamesofmerton]

'I'm gearing up for a post internet age'

much like graham's friend who couldn't deal with having the internet, i'm not sure if the world could cope without it. rellance is heavy now and we would go back to the dark ages due to that reliance. though at least i would be able to have a face to face meeting with my bank manager and order milk from the milkman as he writes it down in his little book. every cloud....

[MrHalfAsleep]

LOL it's already happening... not quite a DDoS but an incompetent person in charge of something they shouldn't be.  All the customer can do is watch as their brand is trashed... one mistake ends up being 4 million as it ends up on everyone's screen.  See the newsreader's expression in the thumbnail.😉