ABC TV has begun the next phase of television broadcasting in Australia with the launch of its free internet TV service, ABC iView, available at abc.net.au/iview.
ABC iView is a new way to watch TV. No longer tied to the television set, Australians now have access to a quality, high-resolution, full-screen viewing experience on their computer. At the click of a mouse, viewers can choose what to watch, when to watch, and where to watch ABC content from five channels including:
ABC CatchUp – showcasing the weekly programs that everyone’s talking about from ABC1 and ABC2.
ABC News – the latest news from Australia and worldwide, as well as weekly current affairs programs from ABC’s award-winning team.
ABC Kazam! – the ultimate kids’ fantasy channel offering a high energy mix of action, adventure and animation.
ABC Docs – a hand-picked selection of natural history programs, social documentaries and factual series.
ABC Arts – culture comes alive with a specially crafted schedule that celebrates the arts in Australia and beyond
There is also a sixth channel – ABC Shop – which plays previews for programs which can be rented or purchased as high-quality downloads from ABC Shop Downloads.
Programs will update regularly, and the amount of content on each of the iView channels will continue to grow throughout the year.
Director of Television for ABC, Kim Dalton, says ABC iView is the next stage in giving people more control over their tv programming. “The way Australians watch television is changing. People want to enjoy their favourite shows at a time and place convenient to them. The enormous success ABC TV has had in providing our content online through vodcasting, clearly shows that Australians love to watch television this way.”
“ABC iView offers the convenience and choice of television on your computer, without having to compromise on the quality of the vision. With five channels on offer and more in the pipeline, ABC TV continues to set the agenda for the media industry in Australia.”
“ABC TV is committed to offering diverse and engaging television to Australian audiences. With a particular emphasis and focus on Australian content. And as Australians spend more time on line and increasingly get some of their entertainment and information via broadband we want the ABC to be there with Australian made programs and the best of our overseas content. We are redefining television.”
Developed in-house by ABC Innovation, ABC iView is a streaming video service which provides full-screen, high-resolution video at a quality above that found on most international television content sites, or sites like YouTube. To achieve this quality, ABC iView has been designed to run on computers with a high speed broadband connection (such as ADSL2).
ABC iView has its own in-built video player, which means people don’t need to download any additional software to watch video. Users can watch the five channels, or create their own, by selecting individual programs and adding them to a playlist.
Ian Carroll, Head of ABC Innovation and Development, says with the creation of iView, the ABC is taking a significant step into the broadband future. “I see this as just the first of many new and different relationships the ABC will be forming with all Australians.”
ABC TV has already spearheaded the growth on online content in Australia. It launched its vodcast service in July 2006, and last year, ABC TV recorded almost 18 million vodcasts downloaded from more than 20 programs. So far this year, more than 55 programs have episodes or segments that can be viewed online (either through download or streamed) and this continues to grow.
As Australia’s leading multi-platform broadcaster, ABC TV continues to connect with audiences throughout the country, making it easier to enjoy Australian content through television channels ABC1 and ABC2, the most comprehensive array of downloadable content online, and now, the new internet tv service ABC iView.
ABC…Redefining television in 2008.
For more information visit abc.net.au/tv/iview
[Release by ABC TV]