UK: BBC iPlayer Android App Removed From Shelf.
The BBC holds a dear place in the hearts of the British. Colloquially we even refer to her as Auntie. “Making the unmissable, unmissable” is the tag line for her generally wonderful iPlayer service.
Apart from being rather poor English, it would also appear that its not entirely correct, not if you’re an Android owner that is.
Developer Dave Johnston was asked by the BBC to remove his beebPlayer Android app from the market because, they told him, they don’t allow unauthorized apps access to their iPlayer streams, and at first glance, that does seem quite reasonable; the iPlayer is publicly funded by UK TV license payers, after all.
Reasonable then, that the BBC have provided a dedicated stream for iPhone users? Reasonable that they use a Quicktime wrapper that only Apple devices can read? Well – no – and not least because the video files under that wrapping are actually in H.264 format, which won’t only run on Android but also on Blackberrys and Palms.
Is Auntie losing her marbles? Perhaps not having to make a profit has dulled her senses over time, or maybe the boys at Apple saw an opportunity to cut the opposition off at the pass, so to speak.
As more of us get Android 2.2 and will be able to access their mobile site, this will become less of a problem but in the meantime perhaps Auntie should change her slogan to “making the unmissable, unavailable.”
AUSTRALIA: HTC Wildfire coming in August to Telstra.
People have been calling the HTC Wildfire the Mini-Desire but its more like their HD Mini but running Android not WinMo. We got it in Europe a few weeks back; its nice, not fast (528 MHz) but with a nice camera (5 Mpx) and a capacitive touch screen as opposed to the resistive technology oft favoured in the ‘lite’ models. We covered it in detail back in June.
Now Australians can add it to their fast growing collection of robo-green handsets. Google Mail and Calendar are the business norm in Australia and this is helping to consolidate Android’s market placing there. The Wildfire will be available exclusively through Telstra in August, with the cost still to be announced but rumoured not be a wallet killer.
Remember, this International slot is a regular feature here at Android Headlines, so be sure to check back daily – and if we’re not covering the news where you are, why not let us know.