Quote:
Originally Posted by OLD BOY
It didn't stop other companies offering it though, did it?
With withheld Sky channels, no platform can offer it, even if they wanted to, except at ruinous prices, and that is the point.
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Yes. When the iPhone was exclusive with O2 the other companies were stopped from offering it.
---------- Post added at 16:21 ---------- Previous post was at 16:10 ----------
The truth of the matter is that the last thing we as consumers actually want is companies offering exactly the same product as each other. Differentiation, and exclusivity on some things like Atlantic, mean that companies like Virgin have to respond through innovation and price - hence TiVo and some pretty decent retention deals. Anyone who thinks two companies with nothing to compete with each other on other than price would engage in a price war to the benefit of the consumer is kidding themselves. The competition would, in effect, become between pay tv and non pay tv and as we can already see from the UK market, people who have decided to pay for TV will do so regardless of the fact that a pretty decent offering is already available for free. There will be no incentive for Sky or Virgin to innovate, they will simply stand still. What would be the point of Virgin signing deals wit TiVo if Sky would automatically have the same deal? What would be the point of Sky signing a deal with HBO if Virgin would have access to the same programming? If these things had never happened you'd be stuck with V+hd, Sky+hd would never have improved to the extent it has and you'd spend most of your time trying to find HBO content in the early hours on BBC 2, if it even ever came.
These types of deals are good for companies because they are good for the consumer. Trying to open up the market by effectively closing it down and forcing companies to share what they've won the right to through good thinking, good negotiating and good marketing, will just result in there being no point in bothering. In the meantime, there are other, perfectly legal, ways of enjoying HBO shows. Maybe not first run, maybe not directly through your tv platform, but they exist. I can't help thinking if people really wanted to watch the shows on Atlantic they'd have sourced them from elsewhere by now and that, actually, this argument is more just an opportunity to have an unnecessary dig than about a real desire to see the channel arrive.
---------- Post added at 16:23 ---------- Previous post was at 16:21 ----------
That said all of this is off topic!