backstage.bbc.co.uk

Use Our Stuff To Build Your Stuff

Backstage Blog

First backstage.bbc.co.uk competition

UPDATE: We're pleased to announce the competition is no longer restricted to just those living in the UK. Everyone is now eligible to take part!

Having made the 7-day BBC TV schedule data available TV-Anytime format on backstage.bbc.co.uk, we're now keen to see what you can do with it!

The way people watch television - and choose what they are going to watch - is changing. More channels, new delivery platforms, new ways to consume television programming...

For the first backstage.bbc.co.uk competition, we are offering you the opportunity to innovate and build prototypes that demonstrate new ways of exploring the BBC TV schedule. Plus we have arguably the ultimate "geek bling" prize for the producer of the winning prototype.

Some possible ideas you might like to incorporate include:

  • Combining schedules with web services such as del.lici.us, furl, flickr and technorati to open up each programme to external annotation.

  • Focusing on specific genres (contained within the TV Anytime metadata). Promotion of signed programmes, etc.

  • Introducing a social element to a schedule or channel (such as bookmarking programmes, rating/voting, vertical searches by genre).

  • Alerts, SMS, email broadcasts and other client-push delivery mechanisms.

  • Combine the schedule data in interesting ways with existing BBC feeds or non BBC information feeds (such as IMDB, Google images, Wikipedia, Google Video, Yahoo Video).

  • Explore new ways of users tagging the TV data and aligning that with tags attached to existing tag based web services

... but you will no-doubt have your own ideas too!

The winner of the competition will receive a rackmount server, delivered to their door! Whether they chose to co-locate it in a data-centre or run it from their bedroom, we hope it will prove useful for their future backstage.bbc.co.uk prototype hacking.

The winner will also be invited to the BBC to discuss their prototype and take a tour of the department as guests of the backstage.bbc.co.uk team.

We also have two 1Gig USB MP3 players to give away as runners-up prizes.

The competition closes on Monday 5th of September, so get cracking!

Please check out the full competition terms and conditions for details.

  • 25 Jul 2005 02:23 PM

< Previous | News | Next >

Comments  Post a comment

  • 1.
  • On 25 Jul 2005 05:11 PM,
  • bodo said:

Why only UK-Citicens ? In germany we can watch BBC, too.

I will add the BBC-Data into our OpenSource EPG called TV-Browser. Sad that I am not allowed to join the contest with it :(.

Well presumably because people in Germany don't pay the licence fee and therefore it's unfair to give them a rather expensive prize.

  • 3.
  • On 08 Aug 2005 08:53 PM,
  • anon said:

Probably because it is only people in the U.K. that pay for the BBC.

  • 4.
  • On 12 Aug 2005 08:59 AM,
  • bodo said:

BUT If I use the Data in our Program, I am advertising for BBC. So it's a very cheap way to create advertisements for the BBC. I help them to get more Viewers and don't get anything back. And yes, some of our Users live in the UK ;).

  • 5.
  • On 28 Aug 2005 08:10 AM,
  • Jen said:

Just a query - will you be making the entries available for people to have a look at after the competition ends?

The reason being that I have a great idea for a use of the feeds that I shan't be able to do in the time available (as I only just found this web site) - want to see if anyone else does the same thing otherwise I will do it myself!

Hi,

Check out my "BBC Schedule" program in 'Prototypes'

Hope you all like it

Paul

style: lo-fi | hi-fi