BBC Worldwide's iPlayer - niche for now

"BBC Worldwide's new global iPlayer app, allowing European iPad owners to subscribe to a specially curated 'Best of British' video service, is likely to remain niche for now, given the relatively small number of iPad users in the region (around 8 million by the end of 2011), the relatively high price (€6.99 per month), and the apparently limited access to the current shows that dominate viewing on the UK version of the iPlayer. But with a US rollout in the pipeline, this is a great opportunity for BBC Worldwide to find out how to build a successful premium service for non-UK audiences," says Thomas.

Needed: A way make these services work

He says that tablet devices such as the iPad are generally seen as ideal devices for consuming high quality video but no major video aggregator has yet built a premium service targeted solely at iPad users. The industry needs to find a way of making such services work: Tablet manufacturers need strong video services to showcase the capabilities of their devices, while content providers need to find new app-based revenue streams.

"This feels like a soft launch of the global iPlayer, with the bigger long-term opportunities for BBC Worldwide lying in the US market. It remains to be seen what appetite there is for a service based largely around on-demand archive content, however high the quality, since most online catch-up TV services closely reflect linear TV schedules, but in the meantime the BBC's record of innovation in content distribution continues," he concludes.