BBC gets the ball rolling to fix World Cup streaming lag

BBC programmes streamed online will no longer lag 30 seconds behind television broadcasts, the corporation has announced, after solving a technical problem that became the bane of World Cup viewing.

People watching the tournament online could hear neighbours cheering goals they had not seen happen, and celebrating penalty kicks before the player on their screen had approached the ball.

The BBC’S research and development department now claims to have eliminated the delay, which was caused because it takes longer to send video over the internet than to broadcast it.

The issue has also affected Amazon’s broadcast of the US Open tennis.

The corporation will unveil its new technology at the International Broadcasting Convention in Amsterdam.

However, viewers will not see the change for some time, as the BBC said it would need the help of the broadcasting industry to get the system up and running. It suggested that the new technology could be working in time for the 2022 World Cup.

♦ BBC programmes could be revolutionised by a new pilot project to turn everyday devices like smartphones and ipads into an instant surround sound systems at home. The first drama using the new technology, The Vostok-k Incident, can be trialled on the BBC’S website using up to 20 devices.

By using speakers in devices such as phones and the Amazon Echo, the technology can mimic the effect of a surround sound system. If successful, the BBC wants to create new programmes using the technology and even retrofit it to old dramas.