38 North‘s Martyn Williams checks in on the latest television developments in North Korea:
TV viewers in North Korea are no longer tied to watching shows at the time they air. The country has begun an “Intranet” Protocol Television (IPTV) service providing access to live and catch-up TV, according to a report carried by Korean Central Television on Tuesday, August 16. The IPTV service demonstrates greater media accessibility to the DPRK’s four TV channels, previously available only through a simple, one-time over-the-air broadcast. North Korea’s state TV appears likely to expand its potential reach by making programming available outside of its traditional 3pm to 11pm broadcast time, and free up viewers to tune in at their convenience.
The DPRK’s new streaming service demonstrates a technological advancement for the country, as it is run off North Korea’s Kwangmyong intranet, and could become an indicator of intranet accessibility in North Korean households.
But Williams has a caution for North Koreans thinking of using the service:
However, there is the question of availability: it is unclear how many apartment buildings and houses in North Korea have access to the kind of high-speed data service that such a service relies on. There is also the issue of control and monitoring, as with such a service, monitoring of what programs are watched per household is technically possible.
