BBC iPlayer in Apple TV U-Turn

It’s the only way service providers can utilise the new Apple TV’s cross-service voice search system.

The BBC has confirmed it will release an iPlayer app for the new Apple TV “in the coming months”, allowing fans to catch up with their favorite BBC shows via their new set-top box.

The tweet from the BBC doesn’t reveal exactly when the app will arrive on Apple TV, simply saying it will be here in the coming months.

“Available on over 10,000 devices, BBC iPlayer is one of the biggest and best on-demand video services in the world, and has transformed how United Kingdom audiences watch programmes online”, said the BBC’s director-general Tony Hall.

The BBC joins Sky in the list of British broadcasters providing apps for the $149 device.

One reason for the arrival of this new native app is hinted at by the related BBC News piece.

They noted it had taken them less than nine hours to build a working program and urged the BBC to build an official version of its own.

The new Apple TV launches October 30, coinciding with the first deliveries to customers.

“I think it’s very hard for any internet-based video streaming service to launch in the United Kingdom without it now”. There’s a line in the sand now that the fourth generation Apple TV is here, and the older models don’t get to step across. Given the growing popularity of the Apple TV, we’re unsure why the BBC has kept its back turned on the platform (despite offering an actively-developed iPlayer app for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch). There’s no word on whether ITV, Channel 4 or Five will follow suit.