Broadband providers should offer customers different packages based on bandwidth in order to address the strain placed on networks by the popular use of the BBC's iPlayer.

That is according to the BBC's head of digital media technology Anthony Rose, who has told a publication produced by the European Broadcasting Union that broadband providers could charge more to customers requiring higher quality streaming.

This method would provide income with which to meet the added costs to providers said to have been caused by the British public's adoration of the BBC's on-demand catch-up TV service.

Rose commented: "The future lies in tiered services. What we need to do is to create the iPlayer services at different quality levels and then let ISPs offer different bandwidth propositions to users.

"For example, the user who enjoys higher bandwidth connections would pay more, and those who are satisfied with lower bandwidth connections would pay less."

The BBC's popular iPlayer received 237 million view requests from its launch in December 2007 to the end of last month.