Channels 4 are one of the first TV channels in the UK to provide pay per download TV.

The downloads are in a Digital Rights Managed (DRM) windows media format.

The 4od user interface for browsing content is one of the worst user interfaces I have ever seen.

A typical TV show download is .99pence. This appears to be the going rate for paid content.
You can have the file for up to one month but once you start watching it you only have 48 hours to view the clip before it expires.

The video quality is passable but not great.

The speed of the download is pretty impressive, a 45 minute of ER would download is 30mins or less on a fast 8mb internet connection.

Conclusion

Channel 4 should be commended for getting into this market.

However paying for content that you can get just by turning on your TV is never going to be popular.

Clearly ad-supported free content will eventually win out. Channel 4 did the same with Film4 a channel they used to charge £6 a month for last year that is now free.

I can’t wait until the BBC launches their own demand service; I saw a demo of it last year and it is very slick. The content should also be free (as license fee payers).

Link: http://www.channel4.com/4od/

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 24th, 2007 at 10:01 pm and is filed under Consumer Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.