Leading UK internet service providers are warning they may have to restrict customers? access to the BBC?s new iPlayer service unless the corporation contributes to the cost of streaming videos over the internet.
Internet companies such as Tiscali, BT and Carphone Warehouse have raised concerns that the iPlayer, which allows viewers to watch TV shows over the internet, will put too much strain on their networks if it becomes popular among a mass audience.
Streaming TV shows takes up a lot of bandwidth and could clog up the network, severely slowing internet access speeds at peak times.
?The internet was not set up with a view to distributing video. We have been improving our capacity, but the bandwidth we have is not infinite,? said Mary Turner, chief executive of Tiscali UK. ?If the iPlayer really takes off, consumers accessing the internet will get very slow service and will call their ISPs to complain.?
Source: ft.com
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