The REVENGE of ITVx

 

I didn't get very far with my recent resolution to try to watch all the remaining World Cup games live...  Last night's tie between Argentina and Egypt actually started at a reasonably accessible 11pm for me; but, alas, the UK coverage was being carried on the independent TV channel's ITVx streaming platform - so, I knew I was likely to be fucked.

ITVx has been so notoriously BAD, for so long (annoying UI, archived programmes impossible to search, and - worst of all - a glitchy and unstable stream, with unusably low speeds for any high-demand live event; I recall the Queen's Funeral being about an hour behind actual time by the time I eventually managed to finish watching it!), that I've gone through extended spells of giving up on it altogether and not even trying to make it work. I skipped most of England's qualifiers for this World Cup because they were on this useless bloody channel.

But, to be fair to them, I have been pleasantly surprised recently: they do seem to have - finally - invested in some substantially upgraded server capacity, and their stream has been more stable and less prone to freezing.

Until last night. I suppose a crunch game for Messi's Argentina, against the also highly popular Mo Salah and Egypt, was likely to be one of the biggest worldwide draws of the competition so far - particularly with the way Messi's been playing in this tournament. During the first-half, I suffered a few bothersome mini-freezes; and about midway through the second-half, just as things were getting really interesting, the dratted stream started breaking down altogether.

In the further interestts of fairness, I should also acknowledge that the issues might not have been entirely with ITVx this time. My VPN kept breaking down as well; and a few times, the Internet in my guesthouse dropped out altogether for a few seconds. So, it was more likely to be a problem with my local network - whether censors attempting to interfere with a recognised VPN routing (I've had that happen to me a few times), or just a demand overload as half the neighbourhood stayed up into the early hours streaming this same match. The final outcome was somewhat spoiled for me by a huge cheer from a coffee shop a couple of hundred yards away - about 20 minutes or so after I finally gave up on my errant stream,... and decided to try to watch a full re-run this morning.

Watching the footie from the far side of the world is a constant challenge, I'm telling you....

[Bugger! A week later, when I tried to watch the France v Spain semi-final, the ITVx stream froze on me after just a few minutes. It would appear that their server capacity is indeed still wholly inadequate for really popular live events - especially those occurring in 'prime time' back home. I had to make do with an early morning re-watch (here in Vietnam; safely the middle of the night back in the UK).

However, I have finally managed to solve the long-standing irritation that the control bar at the bottom of their full-screen view refuses to 'go to sleep' and continues to detract from what you're watching permanently; which is quite a big problem, since the bloody thing is massively oversized, taking up nearly 25% of the screen. I have quite often made do with the regular viewing pane, which, although much smaller, is at least unobstructed. I spent quite a long time last week ploughing through several potential 'solutions' suggested by Google; but, of course, since that once-great search engine is now addled by incompetent AI 'helpers', all of its suggestions were either years out of date or completely bogus. But then.... I finally stumbled on the 'answer' for myself: on my laptop, at least, I have to move my mouse-cursor off-screen to the side - not the top or bottom. Strange; but I swear it works. Do give this a try, if this ITVx display glitch has been bugging the crap out of you too.

But thank heavens that the Final is going to be on both BBC and ITV. I know which one I'm going to be watching on.]

[Well, no, as it happened, the BBC iPlayer proved to also be susceptible to lag and freeze-up problems with the enormous streaming demand on its Final coverage. ITVx - probably because far fewer people were trying to watch it! - actually proved to be my better option for the last game.]

This time, IT MATTERS

 

My scorn for the League Cup knows no bounds. 

I have always - always; ever since I was a child - felt that a second domestic cup competition is otiose, and ridiculous. I am rarely even aware of the earlier rounds being played, and I seldom bother to watch the Final (except in that one glorious year, back in the 1980s, when second-tier Oxford United managed to win it - one of the great small-club triumphs in English football history; just a pity it wasn't in the proper cup...). 

The tournament's flimsy credibility hasn't been helped by having a succession of unlikely sponsors insist on splashing their name on the trophy - a somewhat contemptible one in the gambling company Littlewoods, along with simply ludicrous ones like its current backer - the energy drink that isn't Red Bull; and, back in the day, the Milk Marketing Board supported it for a long while: calling it the 'Milk Cup' made it sound like some sort of confectionary...). 

My feeling is that the competition could become more useful and relevant - and less of a strain on an already dangerously overstuffed top-flight schedule - if it were restricted to clubs outside the Premier League.

However, we do have an unusually significant match-up in this Sunday's Final: Arsenal and Manchester City, the two teams vying for this year's Premier League title. And the game happens to come at a particularly crucial moment in that title race, as City's challenge seems to be evaporating after they tamely dropped points in their last two games - to allow the leaders to pull out a rather daunting 9-point gap.

I have an inkling, therefore, that this year's League Cup might actually decide the League title as well. City, I think, really, really, really need to win this game - to lay down a marker that they're not giving up the challenge yet, to try to put a bit of a dent in Arsenal's growing self-confidence. They still have a game in hand over their rivals, and they are slated to play them at home in Gameweek 33. If they could win both of those, Arsenal would be facing a very nervy run-in.

But if Arsenal can beat them on Sunday, they'll go to The Etihad in a month's time with no fear - and they'll probably win again there. City NEED to win this game - not for the worthless 'consolation prize' trophy, but to keep the title-chase alive.

So,... I might actually watch the game this year!  [Well, I'll try. Since the UK coverage is on the dreaded ITVX, I very much doubt if I'll be able to get a viable stream.]

[Well, what do you know? ITV seems to have upped its game - at last. It has been so notorious for so long for not having sufficient server capacity to maintain a stable stream on popular live events that I've largely given up even bothering to try it over the last few years. But it worked a treat last night! (Maybe only because comparatively few people are interested in watching the League Cup Final, even when it is between the two best teams in the country??)

I confess, I am pleased to see Arsenal 'wobble' a bit, and City re-energise their title challenge. Arsenal fans should probably be a little worried by the manner of the defeat: their team was completely dominated in the second-half, and had no response. It was a performance so lacking that it suggests they might struggle in a number of the remaining games, not just the crunch match at The Etihad. It is uncertain, though, whether the long wait before they play in the league again will amplify or diminish the psychological impact of this result.

Of course, my man Adam Clery has already put out an excellent video examining how City were able to control the game so emphatically.]

What gives, BBC??

 

Dear Auntie Beeb, WTF is up with this??  Midweek 'Match of the Day' programmes almost never seem to be available on the iPlayer any more! Only (if we're lucky) bare highlights of individual games, with no team line-ups shown at the start, and no pundit analysis afterwards.

And no explanation is ever offered for this strange - and exasperating - omission; at least, not any very readily accessible one; at least,... not one that the ever-deteriorating Google can find. The only possibly relevant notices the Internet seems to have about the non-appearance of the full programme are generic and out-of-date FAQ answers which vaguely suggest it might be down to 'a rights issue', with no further elaboration. And sometimes the programme appears as normal; but sometimes it doesn't.  WHAT GIVES???

Now, some may object that I shouldn't really be watching the BBC iPlayer anyway, since I don't in fact live in the UK (and haven't for nearly a quarter of a century!). But come on, the BBC obviously don't really give a shit about that, because they must realise that at least two-thirds of their streaming viewership is accessing the service from other countries via VPNs (it would be easy to stop, if they wanted to; and they have, occasionally).

And, as a sometime lawyer, I don't really get this argument about 'rights issues' in other territories. Where cable and satellite services - to say nothing of the dear old Internet - are now so widely available cross-border, there can be no effective exclusivity of broadcast rights within any particular geography. And the nominal 'exclusivity' for its rebroadcast rights that the EPL sells can only meaningfully apply against rival providers in the same medium (terrestrial TV, or cable, or satellite, or streaming) as well as the same territory,... and only for the same type of content (presented for the local audience, with commentary and discussion in the native language). It is utter nonsense to suggest that anyone shouldn't have access to BBC programming in English because a TV station in a nearby country might be offering coverage of the same event in a different language.

But good grief, BBC, if you are going to randomly withold some of your programmes from the Internet - without any obvious logic or consistency - you should at least give us a NOTICE OF EXPLANATION, easily available, every single time. It's not that hard to do.