New box to connect television sets to the internet
By Stephen Hunt, 6th July 2010
Project Canvas is an initiative by a consortium of broadcasters
which may revolutionise the world of television.
It is powered by a set-top box which will receive ordinary TV
channels in the same manner as Freeview, but will crucially also be
connected to the internet, which will enable on-demand content to
be viewed, along with other online material and interactive
features.
The BBC is leading the project in cahoots with all the UK
terrestrial television stations along with BT, internet service
provider Talk Talk and broadcast infrastructure company Arqiva.
The BBC's final involvement with the project has recently been
given final approval and their participation is vital, as they have
contributed much to the technical side of the project, while the
others have primarily supported the idea financially.
The BBC's iPlayer service, which allows users to view or review
past programs whenever they wish and is also available through the
internet, will be accessible from TVs courtesy of the new box.
The service is expected to be made available in 2011 and Richard
Halton, IPTV programme director of the BBC, said that expectations
were that the initial £200 retail price of the box would tumble
shortly after its release.
The new technology may however not be able to be enjoyed by all,
as it has been reported by Halton that at peak TV viewing times, 20
per cent of the population would not be able to 'achieve sufficient
line speeds' to satisfactorily stream content from the internet.
Others at the lower end of the broadband speed spectrum are likely
to experience frustration from choppy streams.
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