ITV seeks 'satisfactory solution' for Blu-ray recording confusion

ITV looking to sort out HD recording problem
ITV looking to sort out HD recording problem

Users of Panasonic's new Freesat/Blu-ray recorders have noticed that they are some hefty restrictions on what they can and cannot record on to Blu-ray discs, especially when it comes to content broadcasted on ITV.

In fact, according to Home Cinema Choice, all content on ITV is currently flagged as Copy Never. In contrast, the BBC has branded its content Copy Once, so users can burn BBC HD programmes on to Blu-ray disc for personal archiving purposes.

Meeting terms

TechRadar spoke to ITV about this matter, and the broadcaster is aware of the situation and is currently working to combat the issue.

An ITV spokesman told us: "We are talking to both Panasonic and Freesat in order to find a satisfactory solution for ITV HD content on the Blu-ray recorder which meets the terms of our programme rights contracts."

It seems that it is not so much the programmes that are causing the problems, but the clarity of the HD signal. Picture perfect recording does mean that is piracy more of an issue.

This isn't the first time problems have arisen. Back in April, the BBC announced it was setting all its content to Copy Once – even though David Preece from Panasonic had been under the impression that "once these recorders go on sale, the [BBC] will move the majority of their broadcasts to Copy Free."

Marc Chacksfield

Marc Chacksfield is the Editor In Chief, Shortlist.com at DC Thomson. He started out life as a movie writer for numerous (now defunct) magazines and soon found himself online - editing a gaggle of gadget sites, including TechRadar, Digital Camera World and Tom's Guide UK. At Shortlist you'll find him mostly writing about movies and tech, so no change there then.