The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) will be sunsetting a core feature on its streaming platform BBC iPlayer in the coming weeks, the broadcaster affirmed on Tuesday.
Starting in March, the BBC says streamers who watch BBC iPlayer content on desktop and laptop computers will no longer be able to download shows and movies using the BBC iPlayer Downloads app for Apple Macintosh and Windows-powered computers.
The BBC iPlayer Downloads app allowed streamers to save movies and TV shows to their computers, then watch that content without an active Internet connection.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the BBC said the feature was not used by many streamers who watch content on the BBC iPlayer’s website, and the cost associated with supporting the feature could not be justified going forward.
Starting March 11, streamers won’t be able to download new content via the BBC iPlayer Downloads app, though they can still stream existing content that is downloaded before March 11. That will change on April 8, when the BBC iPlayer Downloads app is retired in full.
Streamers will still be able to save content within the BBC iPlayer app on phones and tablets, the spokesperson affirmed, and online streaming will still be available on desktop and laptop computers through the BBC iPlayer website.
