BBC iPlayer Beams Out 42 Million Shows April 10, 2008

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BBC iPlayer, despite the dissatisfaction of certain users, is proving to be a roaring success according to the latest stats from the BBC.

In the three months since Christmas, iPlayer downloads and streams have topped a staggering 42 million, and they are continuing to grow extremely quickly. For January, February and March, downloads and streams stood at 11.2 million, 14 million and 17.2 million – a month-on-month growth of roughly 25%. During March, average weekly users went over the million mark for the first time.

The average daily number of requests to download or stream programmes also hit 550,000 in March, up from a January average of 360,000+ requests.

Ashley Highfield, BBC Director of Future Media and Technology, commented:

"BBC iPlayer continues to show significant growth and we are delighted that audiences are responding to it so positively. Its initial performance proves the case not only for BBC iPlayer, but for all video-on-demand services over the internet, and benefits both our audiences and the industry as a whole.”

The first episode of the current series of The Apprentice is the most streamed BBC programme on BBC iPlayer in its first three months. Geek Lord, Louis Theroux, nabbed a surprise second place with his documentary Louis Theroux: Behind Bars.-Martin Lynch

[BBC]

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