6 ms·

I would expect PBS, of all TV stations, to be less constrained by distribution contracts and to be able to stream their content worldwide. Instead, they choose

I would expect PBS, of all TV stations, to be less constrained by distribution contracts and to be able to stream their content worldwide. Instead, they choose Youtube TV which is US-only.

wnevets 7y ago
why would you expect that?
- gtirloni 7y ago
  "The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and television program distributor. It is a nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educational television programming to public television stations in the United States..." (emphasis mine) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PBS https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PBS
  - xxpor 7y ago
    I can't stream BBC 1 in the US either though.
    - OJFord 7y ago
      I thought you could if you have an account and accept the terms (including claiming to have a television licence, which I think requires a (British) national insurance number to obtain)? Or do you mean as an American in the US?
      - xxpor 7y ago
        Perhaps it's changed, but last time I looked the BBC had simple GeoIP blocking for anyone not inside the UK.
        ripdog 7y ago
        Not simple - they have an extensive blacklist of VPN servers too.
        mr__y 7y ago
        this provides an incentive for someone to provide vpn/tunneling service with IP pool large enough to prevent blacklisting to be effective
        Mindwipe 7y ago
        That doesn't last long. The BBC use the same provider as a number of Vegas gambling services, and they're very effective because Vegas is willing to spend lots of money on forensic work.
      - LeoPanthera 7y ago
        You cannot do this even as a Brit in the US. Everything on the iPlayer (except radio) is geo-restricted to the UK, and they're really very good at playing whack-a-mole with the VPN services as well.
  - Spooky23 7y ago
    They still buy syndicated content and have licenses for distributing things like BBC.
  - techsupporter 7y ago
    But the last two words in your quote are "United States." PBS, like all distributors, licenses content from producers of content--sometimes PBS is the producer, often it is not--for distribution inside a defined territory. For example, Doctor Who, Red Dwarf, Downton Abbey, and Are You Being Served are all British TV shows licensed by PBS for distribution in the US. PBS can't stream them worldwide same as the BBC can't show some of the content it distributes outside of the United Kingdom.
  - wnevets 7y ago
    Like others have pointed out they're still licensing from content creators to broadcast in the US. This is why new Sesame Street episodes are now on HBO and not PBS
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
- jillesvangurp 7y ago
  It's a reasonable expectation for original content that they produce themselves. The problems start when you enter into byzantine licensing agreements with third party producers that insist on all sorts of complex agreements that are only valid within certain regions. It gets worse when those producers start delegating to even more subcontractors. It's kind of backwards to be doing business this way. There are plenty of Youtube channels that have a wider reach than many TV shows with millions of subscribers and views per video. The trick is simply to ensure you have copyright for all content that you create plus a world wide distribution license for any third party content embedded in that (e.g. background music). This is basically how Netflix works these days and one of the reasons they are mopping up the media market that is still focused on creating and selling content for individual TV channels.
  - Mindwipe 7y ago
    > This is basically how Netflix works these days It absolutely isn't.
    - jillesvangurp 7y ago
      Basically, most Netflix productions launch on the same day in most/all countries they operate in. So it is absolutely their strategy to do this.
cbhl 7y ago
It turns out that licensing doesn't work that way. Worldwide distribution costs more than domestic, and streaming rights cost more than broadcast-only. And PBS doesn't have as much leverage as for-profit broadcasters, so the negotiations for those rights took longer. Here's some prior context: https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/talkingtech/2018/04/15/why-isnt-pbs-included-cable-alternatives/469817002/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/talkingtech/2018/04/15/w... https://www.techhive.com/article/3338083/why-live-pbs-streaming-is-taking-so-long-and-how-to-deal-with-it.html https://www.techhive.com/article/3338083/why-live-pbs-stream...
- swebs 7y ago
  It's their own show though. Who would they have to pay for streaming rights?
  - nomadluap 7y ago
    They may have already signed an exclusive streaming contract with another provider.
  - Mindwipe 7y ago
    They still have to abide by SAG and Writers Guild contracts, they still have to clear stills, and they still have to deal constantly with music rights and existing distribution agreements. PBS also show stacks of shows acquired from elsewhere or which are international co-productions. The answer is they'd have to pay stacks of people for streaming rights, on a tiny budget. I really pity the poor bastards at PBS who had to try and arrange the underlying copyright clearance for this YouTube deal, which must have been an unholy nightmare given their budget.
bdamm 7y ago
PBS is available on all kinds of mediums. They have apps on Apple's App store, they have apps on Apple TV, and you can stream content from their web site(s). And not only new programs, but amazing archives of old content as well. Want to relive your childhood of watching Mr. Rogers? It's all there, it's all free, and it's available via a bunch of access methods! So rather than choosing Youtube TV, they seem to be embracing a "all possible mediums" strategy. The only down side is that you need to get around the location check. Pretty great for free if you ask me. I'm surprised all their stuff isn't on Netflix to be honest, since it's just about everywhere else.
aguyfromnb 7y ago
>Instead, they choose Youtube TV which is US-only. I'm an avid PBS Frontline viewer (some of the best documentaries out there). As a Canadian, I can watch most of them on the PBS website, but the odd time an episode will be rights restricted. I assume this is because of footage or music that they are unable to clear the licenses for outside of the US. And really, as a publicly funded broadcaster, why should they care about me in Canada?
- jonny_eh 7y ago
  Maybe they sold the rights for that particular episode to a broadcaster in Canada, like the CBC?
  - aguyfromnb 7y ago
    >Maybe they sold the rights for that particular episode to a broadcaster in Canada, like the CBC? Also possible, and something I hadn't thought of.
- II2II 7y ago
  I was sifting through the comments hoping to discover that this is available in Canada. It is disappointing that it is not because PBS was available over the air or as part of basic cable service in many Canadian communities. Border stations were quite active in soliciting funds from Canadian viewers, and many Canadians grew up with their programming. I don't know what the current state of affairs is with PBS since I have not watched television for over 15 years, but would be interested in seeing PBS extend its reach into Canada for others to benefit from.
  - aguyfromnb 7y ago
    >but would be interested in seeing PBS extend its reach into Canada for others to benefit from. I'm with you. But I think you'd run into the 1-2 combination of the American public not wanting to fund free TV for Canadians (though obviously the marginal cost is ~$0) and the Canadian public not wanting to "pollute" our air waves with American media.

I would expect PBS, of all TV stations, to be less constrained by distribution contracts and to be able to stream their content worldwide. Instead, they choose Youtube TV which is US-only.

wnevets 7y ago

why would you expect that?

gtirloni 7y ago
"The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and television program distributor. It is a nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educational television programming to public television stations in the United States..." (emphasis mine) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PBS https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PBS
- xxpor 7y ago
  I can't stream BBC 1 in the US either though.
  - OJFord 7y ago
    I thought you could if you have an account and accept the terms (including claiming to have a television licence, which I think requires a (British) national insurance number to obtain)? Or do you mean as an American in the US?
    - xxpor 7y ago
      Perhaps it's changed, but last time I looked the BBC had simple GeoIP blocking for anyone not inside the UK.
      - ripdog 7y ago
        Not simple - they have an extensive blacklist of VPN servers too.
        mr__y 7y ago
        this provides an incentive for someone to provide vpn/tunneling service with IP pool large enough to prevent blacklisting to be effective
        Mindwipe 7y ago
        That doesn't last long. The BBC use the same provider as a number of Vegas gambling services, and they're very effective because Vegas is willing to spend lots of money on forensic work.
    - LeoPanthera 7y ago
      You cannot do this even as a Brit in the US. Everything on the iPlayer (except radio) is geo-restricted to the UK, and they're really very good at playing whack-a-mole with the VPN services as well.
- Spooky23 7y ago
  They still buy syndicated content and have licenses for distributing things like BBC.
- techsupporter 7y ago
  But the last two words in your quote are "United States." PBS, like all distributors, licenses content from producers of content--sometimes PBS is the producer, often it is not--for distribution inside a defined territory. For example, Doctor Who, Red Dwarf, Downton Abbey, and Are You Being Served are all British TV shows licensed by PBS for distribution in the US. PBS can't stream them worldwide same as the BBC can't show some of the content it distributes outside of the United Kingdom.
- wnevets 7y ago
  Like others have pointed out they're still licensing from content creators to broadcast in the US. This is why new Sesame Street episodes are now on HBO and not PBS
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
jillesvangurp 7y ago
It's a reasonable expectation for original content that they produce themselves. The problems start when you enter into byzantine licensing agreements with third party producers that insist on all sorts of complex agreements that are only valid within certain regions. It gets worse when those producers start delegating to even more subcontractors. It's kind of backwards to be doing business this way. There are plenty of Youtube channels that have a wider reach than many TV shows with millions of subscribers and views per video. The trick is simply to ensure you have copyright for all content that you create plus a world wide distribution license for any third party content embedded in that (e.g. background music). This is basically how Netflix works these days and one of the reasons they are mopping up the media market that is still focused on creating and selling content for individual TV channels.
- Mindwipe 7y ago
  > This is basically how Netflix works these days It absolutely isn't.
  - jillesvangurp 7y ago
    Basically, most Netflix productions launch on the same day in most/all countries they operate in. So it is absolutely their strategy to do this.

cbhl 7y ago

It turns out that licensing doesn't work that way. Worldwide distribution costs more than domestic, and streaming rights cost more than broadcast-only. And PBS doesn't have as much leverage as for-profit broadcasters, so the negotiations for those rights took longer. Here's some prior context: https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/talkingtech/2018/04/15/why-isnt-pbs-included-cable-alternatives/469817002/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/talkingtech/2018/04/15/w... https://www.techhive.com/article/3338083/why-live-pbs-streaming-is-taking-so-long-and-how-to-deal-with-it.html https://www.techhive.com/article/3338083/why-live-pbs-stream...

swebs 7y ago
It's their own show though. Who would they have to pay for streaming rights?
- nomadluap 7y ago
  They may have already signed an exclusive streaming contract with another provider.
- Mindwipe 7y ago
  They still have to abide by SAG and Writers Guild contracts, they still have to clear stills, and they still have to deal constantly with music rights and existing distribution agreements. PBS also show stacks of shows acquired from elsewhere or which are international co-productions. The answer is they'd have to pay stacks of people for streaming rights, on a tiny budget. I really pity the poor bastards at PBS who had to try and arrange the underlying copyright clearance for this YouTube deal, which must have been an unholy nightmare given their budget.

bdamm 7y ago

PBS is available on all kinds of mediums. They have apps on Apple's App store, they have apps on Apple TV, and you can stream content from their web site(s). And not only new programs, but amazing archives of old content as well. Want to relive your childhood of watching Mr. Rogers? It's all there, it's all free, and it's available via a bunch of access methods! So rather than choosing Youtube TV, they seem to be embracing a "all possible mediums" strategy. The only down side is that you need to get around the location check. Pretty great for free if you ask me. I'm surprised all their stuff isn't on Netflix to be honest, since it's just about everywhere else.

aguyfromnb 7y ago

>Instead, they choose Youtube TV which is US-only. I'm an avid PBS Frontline viewer (some of the best documentaries out there). As a Canadian, I can watch most of them on the PBS website, but the odd time an episode will be rights restricted. I assume this is because of footage or music that they are unable to clear the licenses for outside of the US. And really, as a publicly funded broadcaster, why should they care about me in Canada?

jonny_eh 7y ago
Maybe they sold the rights for that particular episode to a broadcaster in Canada, like the CBC?
- aguyfromnb 7y ago
  >Maybe they sold the rights for that particular episode to a broadcaster in Canada, like the CBC? Also possible, and something I hadn't thought of.
II2II 7y ago
I was sifting through the comments hoping to discover that this is available in Canada. It is disappointing that it is not because PBS was available over the air or as part of basic cable service in many Canadian communities. Border stations were quite active in soliciting funds from Canadian viewers, and many Canadians grew up with their programming. I don't know what the current state of affairs is with PBS since I have not watched television for over 15 years, but would be interested in seeing PBS extend its reach into Canada for others to benefit from.
- aguyfromnb 7y ago
  >but would be interested in seeing PBS extend its reach into Canada for others to benefit from. I'm with you. But I think you'd run into the 1-2 combination of the American public not wanting to fund free TV for Canadians (though obviously the marginal cost is ~$0) and the Canadian public not wanting to "pollute" our air waves with American media.