On iPlayer, branding and its flipside

I’ve been thinking about why the BBC’s iPlayer is so irksome.

It isn’t so much that a lot of the content will originate on Macs, but they apparently can’t be bothered to make it available unless you’re on Windows. Or even that despite the irony, they are jumping on the (rather tired) ‘i’ prefix bandwagon to imply modernity…

I think it comes down to branding.

One of the functions of branding is to establish “brand values.” Human values that is (such as caring, cool or sex-appeal), to confer upon a company or product. The desired effect is that we will identify with these values and aspire to attain them, buying the product in pursuit of that goal.

It’s in our nature to anthropomorphise. We ascribe human personalities to everything from companies to our pets, our cars, to even the frost on our windows. But there lies the rub – when a company presents itself to us with human values we treat it as such. If they go on to fail to meet our expectations, or otherwise behave in a way that is inconsistent with character, we feel it as a human betrayal.

I’m a child of the 80s, so I remember when the BBC was channels one and two (of four) on my parent’s telly, and a handful of radio stations. No BBC3, no BBCi, no podcasts. I imagine the BBC as a faithful old civil servant, tirelessly creating news programs, documentaries, great childrens’ shows etc.

When I read a story on the BBC’s website with sloppy journalism, when I see an advert for a program I fancy only to find it’s on a BBC channel I don’t have, it annoys me. When I read that an exciting new service won’t work on my modern computer and broadband internet connection, I’m pissed off.

I gladly pay my license fee. I’m working my way through the Planet Earth series on DVD at the moment. It’s a masterpiece, the likes of which commercial stations will probably never produce because there’s more money in “Extreme Celebrity Self-Degredation 2007”. The BBC is a great asset to this country but one that we are made to pay for, in a manner comparable to paying council tax.

I expect access to every part of it, but if that doesn’t happen it will only be the latest let-down.