Hi,

I have just updated Iplayer desktop from v3.2.13 to .14 and now all of my recorded programs have disapeared and also it will not allow me to add any new recordings.

When I start the program the iplayer desktop interface comes up but all of the tabs (avail now, coming soon etc) have no content. If I go to the iplayer and select a program to download the icon for the iplayer desktop will flash in the task bar but nothing will appear in the available soon screen.

I have uninstalled and re installed and it is exactly the same.

Has anyone experienced this or got any advice.

Hi Simon,

I too am having exactly the same problem, most frustrating.

I started the iPlayer the other evening to catch up on some quality television, to my shock everything had disappeared. Although when you look at the settings it’s clear to see the files are still in the library. Even more bizarre, I still get the notifications for expired downloads. I note the program is still downloading content, it just never becomes visible in the player.

I too have tried a fresh install, but no luck.

There is a very generalised statement on the iPlayer FAQ’s saying that they are aware of the problem. However, it’s doesn’t appear they consider this a massive problem, so I guess it’s safe to assume that it’s only us unlucky few.

I really hope the BBC pull their finger out and address this problem. I’m on a limited bandwidth allowance and it pains me to see my gigabytes drain away for nothing.

Hi,
At the beginning of this week both BBC iPlayer and iPlayer Grabber refused to download files. I contacted the BBC iPlayer Support Team and received the following reply: -
"Thank you for contacting the BBC iPlayer Support Team. We understand that you are unable to download either the Windows Media Player or Portable Media Devices download files. The following message appears on-screen and you are unable to proceed past this: ‘Please wait while we acquire information for your download.’ This is under investigation and we hope to resolve this as soon as possible. We apologise for any inconvenience caused. In the meantime the BBC iPlayer Desktop downloads are unaffected. I would be interested in hearing anyone else who has suddenly cannot download Windows Media Player files and has possibly found a solution.

I also have this problem it may be we have to manually delete some settings that are left over from un
installing? edit: Fixed it by uninstalling Adobe Air as well as Iplayer desktop.

Exactly the same trouble trying to download to WMP. I emailed BBC and got the same standard reply. It doesn't seem they are in any great hurry to fix this ether as the issue has been going for over a week now.

Not good.

I also have the problem. Everything was OK until 14 Feb. All of a sudden I cannot download any material. I can still watch stuff through the player. I first noticed it when a series download refused to happen. All I get is a message saying 'Download Error' no info on what might be the problem. I have done 2 uninstalls and clean reinstalls as described on the BBC website but the problem is not cured. I reported to the BBC and, to my surprise, got a reply but that said little more than to reinstall.

Exactly the same thing is happening to us, and also started on Feb 14. We too have uninstalled and reinstalled iPlayer and Adobe Air, and also these folders as suggested on another forum;
C:\Users\[your user name]\AppData\Roaming\BBCiPlayerDesktop.61DB7A798358575D6A969CCD73DDBBD723A6DA9D.1
C:\Users\[your user name]\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Air\ELS\BBCiPlayerDesktop.61DB7A798358575D6A969CCD73DDBBD723A6DA9D.1

But still it makes no difference; the 'retrieving download information' box appears and the iPlayer flashes, but then the 'download error' box appears, again giving no info as to why. Hopefully someone can help as I am starting to go slightly mad! Thanks,

Hello Everyone,

I too have been frustrated to say the least about this latest issue with WMV downloads. I have finally received a reply from "Mark Roberts, BBC Audience Services" regarding this issue. It reads;

"Thank you for contacting the BBC iPlayer Support Team.

I understand that you’re frustrated by an error message appearing on iPlayer when attempting to download Windows Media Player files, and believe that a fix that is currently being worked on will not address the issue.

Whilst I appreciate your frustration, further to the information within the FAQ below there is nothing we are able to add at the moment:

http://iplayerhelp.external.bbc.co.u...rtable_feb2012

I do understand you that you feel very strongly about this issue, so I’d like to assure you that I’ve fully registered your concerns. This will be included on feedback reports that are available to personnel responsible for maintaining and improving the BBC iPlayer service.

These reports are viewed as important documents that can help shape decisions on future aspects of BBC iPlayer.

Once again, thanks for taking the time to contact us."

I have been in IT for over 30 years in both technically and mangerial to board level and I find it difficult to comprehend that even after 2 weeks it is still not fixed. I understand that they are testing a fix and while I understand it does take time to examine an issue and get a fix in place, I do not find it acceptable that after two weeks it is still not fixed.

I own an IT company including an ISP and if I took more than two weeks to fix an issue such as this I would not have a business.

I rely heavily on the iplayer to catch up on business and tech programs so I can keep upto date.

However, sadly this is not the first time this kind of issue has occurred with iplayer and reading between the lines I think there is more to this issue than we are being led to believe.

If the iplayer app needs a fix why are downloads to the iPlayer app desktop still working but WMV downloads directly from the website not? I suspect this is a backend server issue and nothing to do with the iPlayer App itself - I would like a true explanation with none of the bull.

This is a very poor show from the BBC - frankly I expect better from them.

Hi, I should add that I am having problems downloading to the iPlayer desktop aswell as WMV. I gave up trying with WMV a long time ago as invariably it would say the programme had downloaded but when I went to play there would only be a couple of minutes of said programme.
Anyway I have continued doing clean uninstalls and reinstalls of the iPlayer and Adobe Air, but still exactly the same problem. I have contacted the BBC but just got a standard reply saying they would read it but not to expect an individual reply - most helpful. So has anyone got any ideas or suggestions please?

I suggested a viable alternative approach in reply to the post above by kevinSom but the moderators deleted it (and his reply) on the grounds that I was promoting illegal software. I have asked them to explain the justification for this but have received no reply. My suggestion uses an Open Source program available from a legimate website. It makes direct use of content on publicly available BBC servers and does not circumvent any digital rights management security. Perhaps they may offer a comment here.

wmv downloads appear to be working again - at least on my setup - winxp, chrome.

Yes it does, breaching 296ZB of the CPDA1988, and creates a permanent copy of the file on your machine which is a breach of copyright law.

Phazer

Go into Windows Firewall & manually set up to allow iPlayer.

Same problem appeared thsi week end; tried to uninstall, re install: nothing is happening (list empty, impossible to download new material...)

Plz help

Well everyone,

Mine has just started working again. All on it own, no update, nothing!!!

I just happened to check the other day and everything was fine.

Sorry, I cant offer any sort of solution as I have no idea why it stopped working or why it has started again.

I can't get this to run.. its showing in Taskmanager (bbc iplayer desktop.exe) but thats all it does..

Anyone any ideas!