Series Four Doctor Who In The U.S.

I am pleased today to see the U. S. distribution of Doctor Who speed up. For years now I have been disappointed with how slow and difficult it is to get to watch Doctor Who in the states through legal means. Usually that means waiting a year or so for it to be shown on Sci-Fi Channel or waiting for the DVD release.

This year they have speed up the release of series four in the states to only a 20 day wait! Much better than one year and defiantly a step in the right direction.

Some of you who are saying that Sci-Fi channel are releasing series four on the 18th are mistaken, that includes Sci-Fi channels schedule. They are releasing the series three special Christmas episode on the 18th but the first episode of series four which airs on BBC TV on the fifth will show on Sci-Fi channel on the 20th.

It is a step in the right direction but more needs to be done. They are still excluding a large market of SF fans who no longer watch appointment TV but have a great desire to watch the show and participate in the conversation. By keeping these shows unaccessible they encourage fans to turn to piracy to watch the show. I don't endorse piracy and I have to exclude myself from the conversation because I don't participate in it. That being said, the easiest way to reduce that piracy problem would be to make the show more accessible and in a more timely fashion.

I am not able to catch appointment TV this being another example. Looking at Sci-Fi's schedule I am working during both the 9pm and 11pm time slot and thus not able to watch them.

Hopefully they will continue to move in the direction of making Doctor Who more accessible and maybe Sci-Fi channel could get permission to put it up on Hulu or some other streaming service... Fingers Crossed!