Newspapers vent anger over BBC iPhone app

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Plans to launch a dedicated BBC iPhone application (app) has been harshly
criticised by the Newspaper Publishers Association (NPA) which is set to
complain to ministers and the BBC Trust that the new smartphone service will
distort the market.

The plan, which was revealed at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this
week, will mean that the BBC’s popular free online content, including its
iPlayer TV service, will be available as an iPhone app for the first time
and other platforms such as Google's Android and BlackBerry later in the
year.

The move to bulk up its presence on smartphones like the iPhone has created
tension between the state-owned corporation and other media companies
looking to generate revenue from digital platforms with paid-for content.

“The BBC is preparing to muscle into a nascent market and trample over the
aspirations of commercial news providers,” said David Newell, director of
the NPA.

“At a time when the BBC is facing unprecedented levels of criticism over its
expansion, and when the wider industry is investing in new models, it is extremely
disappointing that the corporation plans to launch services that would throw
into serious doubt the commercial sector’s ability to make a return on its investment,
and therefore its ability to support quality journalism,” he said.

“We strongly urge the BBC Trust to block these damaging plans, which threaten
to strangle an important new market for news and information,” he said.

However, the BBC hit back saying that the content is already available on some
mobile phones.

“We believe the BBC Online Service Licence is quite explicit in allowing the
BBC to repurpose its online content for consumption on mobile devices,
something the BBC has successfully executed for a decade for the benefit of
the Licence Fee payer,” said a spokesman for the BBC.

The BBC has one of the most popular websites in the UK, behind Google, and has
already launched a number of mobile services, including the iPlayer on
selected handsets while its Worldwide arm offers applications for its Lonely
Planet travel site and Radio Times magazine.

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