Quote:
Originally Posted by Chris
Wrong.
Ofcom forced a rate card on Sky Sports 1 and 2 in 2010. It threatened to do so for movies as well, but backed off in 2012 because of the launch of services like Netflix. There is no compulsory rate card for the Sky Basics channels that I have been able to uncover. Sky and VM thrashed out a mutually acceptable deal for carriage of Flextech and Sky Basics channels in 2010 after the debacle of Sky One etc being pulled from VM for a period of months.
The anti-competitive charges against Sky have been upheld in a very narrow part of its business.
Sky do indeed both 'make' Sky Atlantic and distribute it via their own platform; they are entitled to do so and it is not anti-competitive because there has never been a ruling to say that it is. Virgin Media were free to make a deal with HBO but they didn't. Channel 4, ITV or the BBC could have done so, but didn't.
Sky is under no obligation to water down its investment in its brand. If you want SA, you know where to get it.
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Which is it? Is it wrong? Or is there a rate card?
There is a rate card in place for sport. This is what I was talking about. It is my opinion that the same should be the case for movies (There is NO effective competition in this area) and other channels.
The only reason Sky can afford the money they can is because they charge the amount they do. It is a spiral which has been allowed to continue and which has brought us to where we are. The other companies you mention cannot afford to pay the money Sky do because of this.