30 Days of Who meme, day 9: a Who-related photo that makes you angry/sad

[nonelvis]

A screenshot, not a photo, but close enough:



Dear BBC: since you started airing the new series of Doctor Who, I have been sitting here, wallet open with cash ready to hand to you -- cash I suspect you could use right about now. I get that your charter mandates you have to make things available to the license-paying British public before anyone else, and I have no problems with that. But goddamn, why can't I pay you for a subscription to the iPlayer so I can see things an hour after they've aired? Or even just to watch Matt and Karen goofing around on your website?

Any number of other sites have figured out how to work a subscription model online -- why can't you?


Day 01 - Your Favorite Quote
Day 02 – Your Favorite Classic Series Episode
Day 03 – Your Favorite New Series Episode
Day 04 – Your Favorite Doctor
Day 05 – Your Favorite Companion
Day 06 – Whatever Tickles Your Fancy
Day 07 – Your Favorite Piece of Music
Day 08 – A Who-Related Photo That Makes You Happy
Day 09 – A Who-Related Photo That Makes You Angry/Sad
Day 10 – A Who-Related Photo That You Took
Day 11 – Your Favorite Season (Classic or New)
Day 12 – Whatever Tickles Your Fancy
Day 13 – Your Favorite Villain
Day 14 – The Villain Who Scared You the Most
Day 15 – Favorite Who-Related Tumblr
Day 16 – Your Favorite Who-Related FanFic
Day 17 – A Piece of Who-Related FanArt
Day 18 – Whatever Tickles Your Fancy
Day 20 – The Character Who Is Most Like You
Day 21 – Your Doctor Who OTP
Day 22 – A Who-Related Fan-Site
Day 23 – A Who-Related YouTube Video
Day 24 – Whatever Tickles Your Fancy
Day 25 – Favorite Who Actor
Day 26 – Favorite Who Actress
Day 27 – An Episode You Wish Hadn’t Been Made
Day 28 – An Episode Idea You Created Yourself
Day 29 – Who You Think Should Be the Next Doctor
Day 30 – Whatever Tickles Your Fancy

Comments

[syzygy-lj.livejournal.com]

Oooo, good one. I didn't even think of this, because I have stopped bothering with the official Doctor Who site for just this reason.

It makes no sense, in a day and age when companies are trying to prevent illegal downloads, that they would continue to block people from seeing their content. Especially since people like you and me would be willing to pay to see it.

[nonelvis]

It's particularly pointless to lock off these bonus videos on the site, because that's not where the Beeb makes its money from overseas viewing. Before the iPlayer, they used to deliver lower-quality video for overseas people watching bonus features on the DW website; with the newer tools available nowadays, they could do the same thing with zero additional effort, but no, it all goes through the iPlayer.

And the one time I heard anyone from the Beeb talk about potentially setting up an online video site accessible to overseas audiences, it was some tool from BBC Worldwide crowing about how he could figured people would pay $10/episode for Torchwood. NO ONE is charging that amount of money for an episode of anything. I'm sure someone somewhere at the Beeb is thinking seriously about the overseas video market, but it isn't this guy.

[biichan.livejournal.com]

This is why god invented proxy servers and made it possible for people to pay ten bucks a month to fool the iPlayer into thinking you're British.

[nonelvis]

Yup, and I've gone the free route there -- but the problem is that the BBC keeps a blacklist of proxy servers, and I don't trust them not to start blacklisting a service I pay for.

[ms-prue.livejournal.com]

I absolutely agree. I'd pay to subscribe to iPlayer, too. But as it is, I'm stuck 2 weeks behind the rest of fandom because I refuse to download except legally.

[nonelvis]

I'd feel guiltier about how I acquire the episodes if I didn't also throw money at the BBC for DVDs and other merchandise, almost always imported from the UK. But I'd much rather pay them for access to their site, if only they'd let me.

[bewarethespork.livejournal.com]

That annoys me too. I would happily pay a subscription to see their videos, but no - it seems that I, like everyone else outside the UK, must wait for some kind soul to upload them on YouTube. :(

[nonelvis]

SO IRRITATING. So pointlessly, needlessly irritating.