Users of Apple's iPhone and iPod touch will now be able to watch BBC shows on the go, the corporation has announced.
Although millions of people are already catching up on BBC shows through the iPlayer broadband TV website, those using phones and iPods have so far been left out because mobile web browsers are not compatible with the Flash technology used by iPlayer.
After behind-the-scenes work, however, viewers can now log on through their iPods and watch BBC programmes whenever they are connected to a Wi-Fi hotspot.
Anthony Rose, the BBC's head of digital media technologies, said that the iPhone was just the first mobile device to get iPlayer compatibility, and that more are on the way — including "another device" by the end of this month.
"We started with the iPhone because it is the device most optimised for high quality video. It displays the BBC iPlayer site and BBC programmes nicely," he said in a post on the corporation's internet blog. "We're working on making BBC iPlayer available on many more browser-enabled devices over the coming months."
When using the iPlayer's web service, programmes are not downloaded to an iPod or iPhone, merely streamed directly over the internet. Some BBC programmes are, however, now available to purchase through Apple's iTunes store.
The announcement came just a few hours after Apple confirmed that it was releasing a software development kit to allow third party developers to build their own official iPhone applications. Until now, developers have had to create unsupported programs, forcing owners to invalidate their warranties in order to install new software.
The iPlayer, which launched last year after a protracted delay and at the cost of several million pounds, has expanded rapidly in recent months. At Christmas the BBC officially launched its new streaming service — which lets surfers view shows directly through their web browser, similar to YouTube — and programmes were viewed more than 17m times between December 25 and mid-February.
Rose also said that the iPlayer website would be relaunched in the coming months, adding extra functionality such as the ability to remind viewers to download programmes which they have been following.
