The ABC's Catch Up TV service is only coming to current WD TV Live models.

Western Digital's move to add the ABC's iView to the WD TV Live media player was an exciting step for Australian online video fans. This tiny set-top box was already one of Australia's most impressive Swiss Army Knife media players, alongside D-Link's more expensive Boxee Box.

For many WD TV Live owners iView would be the icing on the cake, letting them enjoy the ABC's online catch up service on their TV without the need to shell out for a new television, Blu-ray player or other lounge room gadget. Unfortunately earlier adopters have been left in the lurch.

The original version of the WD TV Live, the one with built-in Ethernet but not built-in wi-fi, won't get a firmware update to add iView. Nor will the old WD TV HD. According to Western Digital's local PR team, only these two current wi-fi-enabled models will get a taste of iView goodness;

WD TV Live (model: WDBGXT0000NBK-AESN)
WD TV Live Hub (model: WDBACA0010BBK-AESN)

In Western Digital's defence, the models which missed out are a few years old. But the company still could have made the situation clearer when announcing that iView was coming. According to reports from readers, some retailers don't realise that the new firmware update offers iView. Even Western Digital's own tech support line is telling some callers that the WD TV Live does not support online video.

There's clearly been a communications breakdown, but the official word from Western Digital's Australian PR team is that iView is available on those two players now if you do a firmware update.