Computing Services

Welcome to Computing Services
BoB - Box of Broadcasts

BoB national

http://bobnational.net

 

What is BoB?

BoB stands for “Box of Broadcasts” and is a nation-wide programmable Off-Air recording and media archive service provided by the British Universities Film and Video Council. All Universities holding an ERA+ license are entitled to use it. The service was first commissioned in 2000 and is designed to work as an adjunct to CCCU’s existing Off-Air recording service.

 

What does BoB provide?

BoB users can record programmes, watch programmes from the archive, create clips, search for programmes coming up in the next seven days by title or key word, compile their favourite shows into playlists and share these with others.

 

Setting up your BoB account (CCCU Staff and Students)

Accessing the system is easy:

  • Simply go to http://bobnational.net

  • In the “Where are you from?” box enter: Canterbury Christ Church University

  • Select  “Go to login”

If you have not already registered:

  • Select : Register

  • Under new username: enter the first part of your of your email address

  • From the drop down list select @canterbury.ac.uk

  • Click once on Register

  • An email from support@bobnational will be sent to you confirming your password

  • Make a note of the password given and then follow the instructions to activate your BoB account.

Once you have registered:

  • In the "Where are you from?" box enter: Canterbury Christ Church University

  • Click Go to login

  • Enter you Email and Password

This is all you need to schedule recordings and stream tens of thousands of programmes and playlists. 

 

Recording

This TV scheduling service allows you to record TV and radio programmes that are scheduled to be broadcast over the next seven days as well as retrieving programmes from the last seven days from a selected list of 57 recorded channels. There is also an easy clip editing tool. Full guides can be found under the Help tab in BoB.
 

Sharing with others

BoB is only a steaming service and it is not possible to download or embed these clips into other application including BlackBoard. To add BoB content into BlackBoard, please refer to this guide.  


Please note, to view any BoB recordings requires a BoB account.

After a programme is recorded users can stream a Flash video in a web page – in a similar way to BBC’s iPlayer. 

 

Storing your recordings

BoB stores recorded TV and Radio programmes in an archive indefinitely (though users are asked to delete any unwanted programmes on a regular basis to reduce storage needs) for all users to enjoy.

 

The archive currently offers over 45,000 TV and radio programmes covering all genres and that number is to rise as more further and higher education institutions join BoB.

 

Please register now at: http://bobnational.net and start recording!


User Technology’s “Off-Air” ERA recording license - FAQs
 

What and who does it cover?

The Educational Recording Agency (ERA) operates a Licensing Scheme for educational use of copyright protected material. Uniquely serving the UK education sector, ERA is one of a range of collecting societies which help copyright owners and performers derive an income from the licensed use of their literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works. ERA Members are:

  • Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society Ltd
  • BBC Worldwide Ltd
  • The British Phonographic Industry Ltd
  • Channel Four Television Corporation
  • Channel 5 Broadcasting Ltd
  • Design and Artists' Copyright Society Ltd
  • Equity
  • The Incorporated Society of Musicians
  • ITV Network Ltd
  • Mechanical Copyright Protection Society Ltd
  • Musicians' Union
  • Performing Right Society Ltd
  • Phonographic Performance Ltd
  • Sianel Pedwar Cymru

What does ERA license?

ERA grants Licences in accordance with the Licensing Scheme, which has been certified by the Secretary of State under Section 35 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 ('the Act'). The Licences issued by ERA under Section 35 authorise the following two non-commercial activities:

  1. Recording from broadcasts made in the UK of the works and performances owned or represented by ERA members. Recordings may therefore be made by or on behalf of Canterbury Christ Church University.
  2. Electronic communication of licensed recordings within an educational establishment.

What is copyright and Section 35 all about? Who does it benefit?

Copyright law provides authors and performers with a way of earning a living through the use of their creativity; it also gives broadcasters, producers and publishers the means of benefiting from their investment in that creativity. While copyright law protects the interests of copyright owners it also balances this with the needs of users. Section 35 of the Act achieves that balance by encouraging copyright owners to come together to offer a single, convenient and cost-effective licence, in this case for Canterbury Christ Church University.

Who can take out an ERA Licence?

Section 35 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act permits ERA to license 'educational establishments', or their representative bodies; one category of which is “Universities and Colleges of Theology and Higher Education”, e.g. Canterbury Christ Church University.

What Canterbury Christ Church University Can Record

Who makes “Off-Air” recordings?

On behalf of Canterbury Christ Church University User Technology make all recordings on-site.

In general, what can User Technology record “Off-Air”?

Our ERA license permits recordings of broadcasts to be made for non-commercial educational use. A 'broadcast' is defined as a transmission for simultaneous and lawful reception by members of the public i.e. it is not encrypted or encoded and is for general reception, unlike “pay per view” services. The ERA Licence therefore covers scheduled "free to air" broadcasts on:

  • BBC television and radio (including BBC3 and BBC4)
  • ITV Network services (including ITV2 and ITV3)
  • Channel Four and E4
  • Five television

NOTE: User Technology CANNOT record from Sky or Local Commercial Radio stations

Can User Technology record on-demand and interactive services?

No. On-demand and interactive services, i.e. where the viewer or listener actively chooses the viewing or listening time or content of individual programmes, are not considered to be broadcasts under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act and are therefore not covered by the Licence nor by any part of Section 35.

Broadcast programme services delivered via the internet, where the provider or broadcaster offers a range of fixed viewing times for the viewer to select from, are not on-demand services and may be recorded by any member of staff; however this is not a service provided by User Technology (please discuss your requirement with your Computing Services Liaison representative). Non-scheduled internet transmissions are not broadcasts and are not covered by the Licence.

Are there broadcasts User Technology can't record under the ERA Licence?

Yes. Only broadcast material owned or represented by ERA Members is licensed by the ERA Scheme for off-air recording. This means that some contents of certain broadcasts, such as some feature films and advertisements, are not covered by the Licence because ERA Members do not own or control the rights in them. "Pay per View" channels, such as operated by Sky Broadcasting and Top-Up-TV are therefore outside the terms of our license and therefore we are unable to record them.

Are there any other licensing schemes for broadcast material not owned by ERA Members?

Yes. Importantly Section 35 permits rights owners who are not ERA members to set up parallel licensing schemes covering the materials they own or represent. To date, only the Open University has set up a licensing scheme covering its own programmes and which requires a separate license. Open University programmes are available for Off-Air recording by User Technology, but at a fixed-rate fee (minimum charges apply).

Can User Technology record parts of programmes?

Yes, extracts or parts of a programme may be recorded and then stored in either analogue or digital form. Note that the terms of the ERA Licence, including all the labelling requirements, also apply to recorded extracts.

Can User Technology adapt recordings?

No. Programme material must be used as it has been broadcast, so adaptation, amendment, distortion, or mutilation of material is not authorised under the Licence. For example, adapting a recording by separating the original soundtrack from the picture and substituting a new commentary is not permitted.

Modern software packages facilitate the extraction and 're-editing' of film and broadcast material, and Canterbury Christ Church University academic staff are responsible for ensuring that such tools are used responsibly by students.

Programme credits are considered part of a broadcast and should not be edited from recordings.

Can User Technology subtitle recordings or add audio description?

No. The Licence does not authorise the use of subtitles or audio description with recorded material. "Teletext" and "Ceefax", for example are outside the terms of our license and not recordable.

If you wish to add subtitles or audio description to recorded material, approach the owners of the works in question to check whether their consent is required.

Using User Technology Recordings

How are we allowed to use “Off-Air” recordings?

Licensed recordings can be retained, stored and copied (in both analogue and digital formats) and then relayed within the establishment, for example on DVD for showing in class. Recordings can be retained to build a resource bank covering diverse topics: from sports and fitness to history of architecture or from citizenship to the environment.

What restrictions apply to the use of recordings?

Programmes may only be recorded, retained, stored and copied by licensed establishments for non-commercial 'educational purposes'. Although the law does not define this term, licensees will be familiar with types of activities which are commercial in nature, e.g. promotional, which are not purely 'educational'.

For clarification, here are some examples of excluded uses:

  • Showing recordings for entertainment purposes, whether or not the audience has made a payment or donation to see the performance
  • Including recordings or extracts in any corporate materials e.g. video, CD or DVD to promote the establishment, student societies or facilities within the establishment
  • Using stills from recordings on the establishment's website or in any other corporate material e.g. a promotional prospectus
  • Sale or commercial hire of recordings

Who can use “Off-Air” recordings from User Technology?

Registered students, lecturers or other employees of Canterbury Christ Church University directly involved in the students' education can watch or listen to them.

Digital recordings stored on-site, e.g. on a server, may only be accessed from on-site terminals and may not be accessed by staff or students at home or anywhere off-site, as this is not permitted under the ERA Scheme or any part of Section 35.

During 2009/10 it is anticipated that we will move to the ERA "Plus" license which allows off-site, controlled dissemination of digitally recorded material.

Can UK-based students borrow recordings?

Yes. Registered students (including UK-based distance learning students) may borrow (and take off-site) licensed recordings on cassette, CD or DVD. As this may reduce Canterbury Christ Church University’s ability to ensure adherence to Licence terms and conditions, our license insists that staff and students are asked to sign a declaration to confirm the material will be used only for legitimate non-commercial educational purposes.

Can we supply recordings to students based overseas?

No. Supplying recordings in either hard copy form or by electronic means to distance learning students outside the UK is not permitted.

Can I embed recordings in PowerPointŪ presentations?

Yes, including licensed recordings in such presentations is permitted, as long as the Licence conditions are met.

Making, Storing and Retaining Recordings

How do we store recordings?

User Technology currently make “Off-Air” recordings onto DVD by default; however recordings can be made onto video or audio tapes, DVDs and CDs. Digital recordings may also be stored locally on hard disk and on a server for the purposes of facilitating reproduction.

The "Digital Off-Air Project", due for completion during 2009/10 will allow the recording of broadcasts to servers on-site. It is then hoped to permit access to the recordings, via a secure web interface, by all Academic Staff and students. It may also give us the ability to stream recorded programming to the desktop and offer DVD recording on demand (RoD). Access to this service would require digitally signing the Terms and Conditions regarding labelling and use.

Can User Technology make additional copies of recordings?

Yes, recordings made under the Scheme may be copied for educational use, as long as the conditions of the ERA Licence are met and no commercial element is involved. A charge is made for this service by User Technology; however this only recovers “out-of-pocket” costs e.g. postage, purchase of video, DVD, CD etc. which is an allowable charge under the Act and is therefore permitted. Copies which make Canterbury Christ Church University a profit are “infringing copies” and may leave anyone responsible for the dealing in them liable to legal action; therefore they are not, for example, for use as part of any “promotional” material.

Does the ERA Licence cover the copying of pre-recorded videos?

No. The copying of commercially produced, pre-recorded videos, audio tapes, CDs and DVDs is not authorised by the ERA Scheme.

Can I digitise my analogue recordings?

Yes, analogue recordings made under Licence may be transferred into digital formats for the educational use of licensed establishments. For example, recordings currently on VHS video may be digitised and stored on DVD.

How long can we retain recorded material?

Programmes recorded after 30th May 1990 under the terms of an ERA Licence can be retained indefinitely by Canterbury Christ Church University. However space considerations within the campus mean that recordings are usually only kept for up to 6 months.

Recordings which are no longer needed must be destroyed and may not be sold or otherwise dealt with.

Acknowledging Broadcasts

Do recordings need to be labelled?

Yes. All recordings, whether analogue or digital, must be clearly and appropriately labelled. Failure to do so may lead to Licences being withdrawn.

What should be included on the label?

The label or cassette or jewel case plus the tape or disc itself must be marked with the following:

  1. Date (when the recording was made)
  2. Name of the broadcaster
  3. Programme title
  4. The wording 'This recording is to be used only for educational and non-commercial purposes under the terms of the ERA Licence'.

Administration and Regulation

How does ERA ensure compliance with the Licence?

Under the terms of the Licence, ERA is entitled to inspect recordings, including how they are stored and labelled. By prior arrangement ERA's liaison officer visits licensed establishments to check compliance and to help establishments maximise their use of the ERA Scheme.

What happens to an educational establishment which uses recordings without a Licence or in a manner which is in breach of the License?

An establishment making or using off-air recordings without an ERA Licence, or in a manner which breaches the terms of the license, is in breach of copyright law and risks criminal prosecution or civil action.

How is Scheme usage monitored?

From time to time, ERA requires Canterbury Christ Church University to help monitor the effectiveness of the Scheme. This involves inspection of our record-keeping and completion of a short survey. ERA’s liaison officer visits Canterbury Christ Church University to explain procedures and assists with queries throughout the exercise.