The BBC has reported another major issue with its catch-up and streaming service, with a growing number of users saying they can’t access the streaming service.
- Viewers incorrectly being told they are abroad and locked out of the iPlayer.
- Some seeing error ‘02066’.
The BBC says it’s investigating a problem where users are locked out the iPlayer because the service thinks they’re outside of the UK.
It described the fault as a “widespread” issue, but wouldn’t go into further details.
In the meantime, users are being asked to try accessing the iPlayer via “another network”, which may not be possible for some users.
The BBC iPlayer may genuinely flag up a user as being outside of the UK if they use a VPN, which masks their true location. In some cases, IP addresses may not be registered in the UK, even though they are in the UK. The BBC has published a guide to assist users on its website.
However, the current problem seems to be affect more users than normal, including users trying to access via a home network that’s not changed recently.
On Friday, the BBC reported playback issues on some 2019-2021 Freeview Play TVs manufactured by Vestel. The fault report has been cleared over the weekend; viewers should check for a software update.
Marc Thornham