BBC Three

The thing is there are loads of original programmes on BBC3. Yes, there’s been less this year for obvious reasons, but there’s a good number.

They’ve also got a small number of ‘teen’ programmes, which aren’t attached to a channel. A few of these are imports. They could be used at 7/8pm.

Whilst I don’t think it should be 24/7, going back to it’s previous broadcast hours would be fine.

Clearly the bbc scotland channel is not so much of a financial risk for the BBC isn't it?

The idea of 'financial risk' isn't really appropriate for the BBC, they're not looking to make a return on what they spend money, they just spend it on content

I think BBC Scotland will be given more time but if it is unable to provide new programmes that are popular with viewers then it won't be there in 2022.

So if new programmes will not be popular with viewers, do you think it will be closed next year?

SVT in Sweden (the Swedish equivalent of BBC TV) trialled a similar 'linear / on-demand' hybrid channel delivered via IP - called SVT Flow.

if you went to watch SVT Flow you could watch it like a linear channel - as shows were available in real time, but you could also skip shows you didn't like and jump forwards or backwards in the schedule in a more on-demand way. It didn't find an audience...

I suspect this was less about the delivery via linear vs on demand and less because the shows weren't that distinctive or interesting.

I think 'linear via iPlayer' will struggle in the same was as on-demand via iPlayer has in BBC Three terms - people just don't watch iPlayer that way. If you are watching a TV in your living room - you are likely to be watching linear TV via Freeview, Sky, Virgin or Freesat - and a linear channel like BBC Three really needs to be in that ecosystem alongside BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Four etc. You need to be able to set recordings for shows in your PVR, and see those recordings alongside your BBC One, Two, Four recordings etc. It needs to feel like a regular channel...

Either that or merged with BBC Alba.

Just my opinion but if the programmes that are doing well now, i.e. the likes of Inside The Zoo - which itself is a clone of Inside Central Station and hasn't been as successful - return and/or are replaced with programmes that too are inferior, and the repeats of the later series of Still Game and Rab C Nesbitt don't pull in as many viewers - quite probable as there is a distinct dip in quality - then viewing figures overall will depreciate.

Apart from new series of Guilt and Two Doors Down, I don't see anything on the horizon that stands out to combat this. Again, IMO, the range of programming that can be made for a Scottish audience on a low budget is limited and BBC Scotland have already tried out most of the ideas, with limited success.

Wonder if could mean it was via an app similar to the channels at the end of the Freeview EPG or the music channels , press red to load an IPTV stream of BBC Three?

I don't particularly see the advantage of an IPTV channel when the whole point in the idea of a linear BBC3 returning is to make use of pre-existing bandwidth that's sitting there unused. The costs in bringing the channel back will presumably lie in staffing - schedulers, presentation etc. as opposed to playout so I don't see what money they would be saving if it's an online only channel, those roles will probably still need to exist. I don't think there's any demand for a 24/7 BBC3, nothing really rated before 9pm when it previously on air and in the last few years all their commissioning was focused on 9pm and 10pm.

For what BBC Three has produced in the last 4-5 years, it could easily be done pre-watershed. On top of that, you've got the unbranded iPlayer programmes, they could easily go for that 12-16 demo during the day, and then go for a more 16-34 aged demo. Again, the problem with the original BBC Three in my eyes was probably the watershed and having to share with CBBC, not to mention the heavily reliant repeats from other BBC channels.

BBC Three online definitely has a huger library now and do not need to rely on dead horses like Two Pints or Snog, Marry, Avoid, so having an online 24/7 feed could easily be done much cheaper and efficently, considering that BBC have already opened up a service for 24/7 dance music, why not apply that same logic to BBC Three, a service dying for a linear feed again for shows like Drag Race? Maybe during CBBC's downtime hours, you cut to the already on-going BBC Three feed? Surely that could be done?

Alas, I suppose it's just some money pit waiting to be swallowed, as the BBC spends money on stupid marketing campaigns like the new BBC iPlayer one, trying desperately to attract that BBC Three audience while trying to completely alienate the older generation of BBC viewers. Ho-hum.

In reply to Noggin, The Linear BBC Three iPlayer option could of course be given a unique EPG number, on Freeview at least, and schedule, so apart from the delay in loading the stream it'd appear to most as a pseudo channel there.

Great to hear this, but to be fair I would like to see a full relaunch in TV broadcasting from 7pm-7am on the frequencies of CBBC