End of get_iplayer is nigh?

[Mark Goodge]

On 15/02/2024 12:27, Jim web wrote:
> 
> Is the idea/aim that *only* a 'BBC app' will work? If so, why impose that
> on License Fee payers? Some of whom may simply not have a 'device'. (I
> don't.)

It's currently the case that only a BBC app is supported. Web downloads 
aren't raw mp4 files, they're handled by the offline iPlayer software 
supplied for Windows and OSX. You have to have that installed to 
download programmes via the web, you can't just save them to your device 
as normal files.

What's happening is that they're ending support for the Windows and OSX 
offline software. The stated reason is that usage is too low to justify 
the cost of maintaining them. Which I think is probably true. Offline 
viewing will, in future, only be supported on Android and iOS.

Streaming (as opposed to downloading) will still work via the web on any 
platform, as well as the Android and iOS apps.

As others have said, I don't think this will affect get_iplayer. Gip has 
always used the streams, not the downloads, as the source, and the 
streams will remain available.

(FWIW, I suspect that, behind the scenes, the official download apps are 
doing exactly what gip is doing, and converting the stream source into 
offline files. It would be unnecessary duplication storing everything 
twice, once as a stream and once as a download, when you can easily 
convert on the fly between them).

Mark