By Adam Pasick
LONDON (Reuters) - The BBC is planning an ambitious distribution strategy that will let viewers watch its TV programmes over the Internet, but found out this week that cutting-edge technology can cut both ways.
Especially when time-travelling doctors are involved.
The publicly funded broadcaster was forced into damage control mode when one of its most highly anticipated programmes, the first new series of the revered sci-fi drama "Doctor Who" in 16 years, leaked out onto the Internet.
Thousands of fans, unwilling or unable to wait for the scheduled broadcast date in three weeks’ time, downloaded the show using the popular file-trading software BitTorrent and other file-trading networks.
"It shows how much demand there is for Doctor Who," a BBC spokesman said, sounding a positive note. "Years later there is a huge audience desperate for the new series."
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The UK downloads more pirated television than any other country, according to a recent study, especially U.S. shows like "24" and "Desperate Housewives" that are broadcast in Britain after a lag of several months.
Analysts estimate that BitTorrent, which is used to download both legitimate and illicit content, accounts for roughly a third of all Internet traffic. BitTorrent is a peer-to-peer network, meaning that users download from each other instead of from a single source.
The BBC’s iMP relies on a similar peer-to-peer structure. Unlike BitTorrent, the BBC plans to lock up content sent over iMP so that it can control who uses the service.
The broadcaster had previously said it would limit iMP to those who pay the 120 pounds annual licence fee that is levied against all television households.
But Director General Mark Thompson said this week that the BBC was considering offering iMP to non-licence fee payers for a fee, which would drastically broaden the BBC’s global reach without relying on satellite and cable systems for distribution.
"One of the things the teams have been looking at is how to generate money back to the BBC," said a spokesman for BBC Interactive.
"There’s nothing concrete at the moment, but we’re looking at how we could work it so that if overseas users wanted to see some of these programmes, we could generate revenue as part of that."
The BBC has already completed technical tests on iMP and plans to roll it out in a trial of about 4,500 householders later this year. An earlier project, the BBC Radio Player, has already proved a success, with listeners tuning in to 4.2 million hours online.
