BBC iPlayer to hit European iPads soon

The BBC's iPlayer is set to go live on the iPad for European viewers later in the summer.

Subscribers will pay less than £6 month, and will get access to current favourites such as Doctor Who (pictured), as well as archive material including classic comedies such as Fawlty Towers.

Jane Bennett, president of BBC Worldwide's networks and global iPlayer operations, will tell the Banff Television Festival, now being held in Canada, that the international version of the BBC's online video player will be different from the UK one, which focuses on recent content in a catch-up format.

Bennett's plans include collections of programmes by genre, such as music, comedy and wildlife, and the all-English content is being viewed as 'very much a pilot' for further roll-outs of the service.

There's no firm date as yet for the US launch of the iPlayer, but it's expect that the service will eventually be extended to other devices and the general internet, as it is in the UK.

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Andrew has written about audio and video products for the past 20+ years, and been a consumer journalist for more than 30 years, starting his career on camera magazines. Andrew has contributed to titles including What Hi-Fi?, GramophoneJazzwise and Hi-Fi CriticHi-Fi News & Record Review and Hi-Fi Choice. I’ve also written for a number of non-specialist and overseas magazines.