ABC iView Review

The ABC launched its iView catch-up and live streaming service all the way back in 2008, so it’s been a part of Australian cultural life for a long time now. It features a wide library of content comprising current ABC broadcast content, catch-up content and a mix of older programming, both local and produced overseas.

ABC iView’s lengthy history means that it’s been available for a long while, which means that there are iView client applications available for a lot of different platforms. You can watch it on a laptop or desktop directly from your computer browser, but it’s also available as an app for smartphones (iOS/iPhone and Android) and tablets (iPadOS/Android), many games consoles including the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, set top boxes running Android TV, Apple TV or Amazon Fire TV and the vast majority of Smart TVs sold in Australia over the last decade.

The one very slight caveat here is that if you’ve got a slightly older Smart TV it’s not unheard of for the app to stop working after a period of time. The ABC only has so many resources to pull towards app updates and developments and it pretty clearly seems to prioritise those platforms that are most heavily used. In some cases this can lead to the app still being there, but being behind enough that it won’t launch any more, or won’t show programs even if the interface comes up.

It’s a very light pun on what you do with it. When I start up the ABC iView app, what do I do? I… View.

You see? OK, that’s not an official reason, as far as I know, but let’s go with it. The development of ABC iView was also very closely matched with that of the BBC’s UK streaming platform which is called iPlayer, and it’s also probably somewhat mimicking that.

Access to ABC iView is free, although it has now introduced a login to view process, which requires a free ABC account. Without a login, you can still access iView, but only to view ABC TV live streams, not any streamed catch-up programming. Having a login not only unlocks its content library, but also enables personalisation features such as watchlists and the ability to pick up shows at the point where you stopped watching across any signed-in device, so it’s only a tiny quantity of friction for most users. If you’ve got particular privacy concerns, maybe use a burner email address to get past this issue – in fact this is exactly what the ABC itself advises if you have concerns.

While it obviously varies a little depending on the device you’re using for viewing, the general design is fairly consistent across platforms, with a carousel style view, which, let’s face it, everybody uses for any streaming platform. From your home menu you can access recommendations, the most watched programs and then curated lists of ABC iView content, typically themed around program types, contemporary issues or seasonal events – so, for example, a whole host of Christmas-themed content around December every year.

There’s a separate section just for ABC Kids, so you can more easily let the youngsters browse – and let’s be honest here, watch endless episodes of Bluey – while keeping material you may not want them to see out of reach.

The general approach is good, but like most streamers it’s far from bulletproof, especially for elements like search which can sometimes be a little janky. While it doesn’t carry ads the way all other catch-up VOD services do, you do get promos for other ABC content before a show stream starts.

The other big catch with ABC iView is that it provides a maximum streamed video quality of 720p, tops. That’s delivered over an adaptive stream so if you are on a slower or shakier connection it will drop below that, but it will also never get any better than 720p.

ABC iView has a wide library of content that showcases both its own content as well as streaming content purchased from overseas providers. This covers some very big ABC hits (yes, kids, Bluey is there, because OF COURSE IT IS), a lot of genres that the ABC is well known for – great if you love your British murder mystery series – and a lot of content from the ABC archives. If you’ve missed a recent program broadcast on ABC TV, the odds are very good that it will be available on iView, though this doesn’t always hold true for all sports programming, due to the more complex nature of those rights deals.

However, it’s not like the ABC’s driven a digitisation truck up to its studios and dropped 67+ years of content into a big digital bucket. The changing nature of streaming TV rights means that there’s a number of series that you might think of as “ABC series” that aren’t found on ABC iView; in recent times the most contentious departure is probably Doctor Who, which was long associated with ABC viewing. While everything up to 2022’s episodes were shown on ABC TV, and most were available on iView for a time, current and future content is locked into a deal between the BBC and Disney Plus. That’s not the ABC’s fault per se – it clearly wasn’t going to be able to match Disney’s deep coffers – but it is no doubt disappointing for folks who might naturally expect to see it there.

Like the other catch up broadcaster streaming channels, the menu of content available on iView does vary over time. While ABC iView does tell you when it first made content available on the platform, and some of it does stick around for a number of years, unlike competitor SBS On Demand, there’s no warning of when that content might be removed.