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BBC Trust approves download plans BBC's download plans get backing
(40 minutes later)
TV shows like Doctor Who are expected to be available for download later this year after the BBC Trust gave initial approval to the BBC's on-demand plans.TV shows like Doctor Who are expected to be available for download later this year after the BBC Trust gave initial approval to the BBC's on-demand plans.
Under the proposals, viewers will be able to watch popular programmes online or download them for viewing up to 30 days after they are first broadcast.Under the proposals, viewers will be able to watch popular programmes online or download them for viewing up to 30 days after they are first broadcast.
But the Trust imposed tough conditions on classical music, which could stop a repeat of the BBC's Beethoven podcasts.But the Trust imposed tough conditions on classical music, which could stop a repeat of the BBC's Beethoven podcasts.
Full approval of the on-demand plans will follow a two month consultation.Full approval of the on-demand plans will follow a two month consultation.
After that, the BBC will be able to launch its long-awaited iPlayer, a computer application which allows audiences to watch or download any programme from the last seven days.
Market impact
Programmes like Planet Earth could be available for longerThe BBC Trust, an independent body which replaced the corporation's governors at the beginning of 2007, said the on-demand plans - which also cover cable TV - were "likely to deliver significant public value".
But it agreed with broadcasting watchdog Ofcom, which said earlier this month that the iPlayer could have a "negative effect" on commercial rivals.
As a result, the trust has imposed several conditions on the BBC.
It wants the corporation to scale back plans to offer "catch-up" episodes for 13 weeks, suggesting that 30 days is enough for programmes such as EastEnders and Top Gear.
Some content could be available beyond the 30-day window - and trustees suggested "landmark" series "with a beginning and end", such as Planet Earth or Doctor Who as examples.
Chris Woolard, head of finance, economics and strategy at the trust, defended the decision to cut the storage time, saying that when people record a programme at home "if they don't look at it within 48 days, they don't look at it at all".
Parental controls
1.4m people downloaded Beethoven's symphonies from the BBCThe trust also asked the BBC to explore ways of introducing parental controls to its on-demand services, as it is worried at the "heightened risk of children being exposed to post-watershed material".
Podcasts also came under scrutiny, with the trust recommending that audio books and classical music be excluded from the BBC's download services.
"There is a potential negative market impact if the BBC allows listeners to build an extensive library of classical music that will serve as a close substitute for commercially available downloads or CDs," it said.
The news will be a disappointment to the one million people who downloaded Beethoven's symphonies in a Radio 3 trial last year.
But trustee Diane Coyle admitted the board "could still change its mind if there was a public outcry and it was backed up by evidence".
Licence-fee payers can now have their say on the BBC's plans, and the trust's conditions, in a two-month public consultation.
The trust said it expects to publish its final approval by 2 May.