Access and Use of Internet Television
The ability to access internet television depends on the internet-streaming speeds. This limits adoption in many countries, as broadband penetration is limited. In the European Union only twenty-five percent of consumers had access to Broadband internet in 2010. Using an Internet service provider, something which is common in many homes in the developed world, the user simply enters their chosen website address. If the user has no select preference of streaming service, the name of a chosen television programme can be inputted into a search engine followed by a phrase such as "online streaming" or "watch on the net". Accessing television on the internet has never been so simple, due to this usability of streaming services has had to be improved to maintain the simplicity of the process. Upon selection of a programme and website, the user may have to wait a few seconds or minutes to allow their desired programme to stream. A process called buffering allows the programme to run in one smooth showing as opposed to stopping and starting to allow the programme to stream.
Control
Controlling content on the Internet presents a challenge for most providers. To ensure that a user is allowed to view content such as programmes with age certificates, providers use methods such as parental controls that allows restrictions to be placed upon the use and access of certificated material. The BBC iPlayer makes use of a parental control system giving parents the option to "lock" content, meaning that a password would have to be used to access it. Flagging systems can be used to warn a user that content may be certified or that it may be post watershed for a programme. Honor systems are also used where users are asked for their dates of birth or age to verify if they are able to view certain content.
Archives
An archive is a collection of information and media much like a library or interactive-storage facility. It is a necessity for an on-demand media service to maintain archives so that users can watch programmes that have already been aired on standard-broadcast television. However, these archives can vary from a few weeks to months to years, depending on the curator and what programme it is.
For example, the BBC iPlayer's programmes are in general available for up to seven days after their original broadcast. This so called "seven-day catch-up" model seems to become an industry standard for internet-television services in many countries around the world. However, some programmes may only be available for shorter periods. Others, such as Panorama are available for an extended period because it is a factual programme and is highly watched and so is worth the extra money needed to host it for longer.
In contrast, 4oD channel 4's on-demand service offers many of its much-older programmes as well that were originally aired years ago. An example of this is the comedy The IT Crowd where users can view the full series on the internet player. The same is true for other hit channel 4 comedies such as The Inbetweeners and Black Books.
Having an extensive archive, however, can bring problems along with benefits. Large archives are expensive to maintain, server farms and mass storage is needed along with ample bandwidth to transmit it all. Vast archives can be hard to catalogue and sort so that it is accessible to users.
The benefits in most cases outweigh these problems. This is because large archives bring in far more users who, in turn, watch more media, leading to a wider audience base and more advertising revenue. Large archives will also mean the user will spend more time on that website rather than a competitors.
For example, the BBC iPlayer's programmes are in general available for up to seven days after their original broadcast. This so called "seven-day catch-up" model seems to become an industry standard for internet-television services in many countries around the world. However, some programmes may only be available for shorter periods. Others, such as Panorama are available for an extended period because it is a factual programme and is highly watched and so is worth the extra money needed to host it for longer.
In contrast, 4oD channel 4's on-demand service offers many of its much-older programmes as well that were originally aired years ago. An example of this is the comedy The IT Crowd where users can view the full series on the internet player. The same is true for other hit channel 4 comedies such as The Inbetweeners and Black Books.
Having an extensive archive, however, can bring problems along with benefits. Large archives are expensive to maintain, server farms and mass storage is needed along with ample bandwidth to transmit it all. Vast archives can be hard to catalogue and sort so that it is accessible to users.
The benefits in most cases outweigh these problems. This is because large archives bring in far more users who, in turn, watch more media, leading to a wider audience base and more advertising revenue. Large archives will also mean the user will spend more time on that website rather than a competitors.