General : £3 TV increase but BT Sport Europe is "free"

[MovedGoalPosts]

hmm just got an email from Virgin Media:

The price of your TV package is going up so we can bring you bigger, better entertainment.

.

Great so a £3 increase. So much for the UK having zero inflation rate

Even more annoying:

"The great news is we’re giving you a brand new channel to enjoy, BT Sport Europe HD"

Thanks muchly but I don't want sport channels. This is not bigger better entertainment

Can somebody please tell all of the TV distribution companies, Virgin, BT, Sky or whoever has excessively deep pockets that I don't have those deep pockets. I don't in any way want to be seen to be assisting the funding of the overpaid prima donnas that call them selves footballers or whatever.

Sports channels are not an inducement to everyone to get digital TV subscriptions. If we want such premium channels they should be an add on, so we don't all fund the cost.

[OLD BOY]

Yes, we non-sports fanatics seem to be ignored altogether!

Where is Sky Atlantic? Grrr!

[arcimedes]

I so agree with you. I don't want to watch football. I only thing I really watch is the Tour de France. I would like to watch all the F1 races BUT that means paying for all the Sky Sports Channels.

I thought of mentioning Sky Atlantic so I also agree with Old Boy.

[tassiekev]

The other side of the coin, with a possible solution.

I love my football, for 9/10 months a year its 90% of what I watch. Of the 230 channels on the Big Kahuna package (no sports) there are about 224 that I never watch. So in many respects, I'm helping to subsidize your habit!

You may wish to look at the deal from a large satellite broadcaster which offers many hundreds of channels, including Atlantic, plus box sets and all in HD. At the moment £18pm - which is half price for 12 months. Keep your BB & phone with VM if you wish but if enough non-football fans take up the offer, VM may just decide to offer something similar. Alternatively, you can continue to sub my football habit and I'll continue to sub the 224 channels I never watch for you guys.

Just a thought.

[Bob]

Ouch. A few questions that spring to mind?

Since BT Sport became part of the XL package, I wonder how many people moved to Virgin or upgraded their existing package to take advantage?

How many people with the XL package regularly tune into any of the BT Sport channels?

What proportion of people with the XL package also subscribe to Sky Sports?

I'm assuming that the answer to all these must be 'quite a lot' as I doubt Virgin would take the commercial risk of adding BT Sport Europe to the XL package and increasing it by £3 to a package if they didn't think it was going to pay off.

I guess the flip side is, there is at least £3 worth of other content I'm paying for that I wouldn't watch.

Regardless, two Virgin controlled price rises in a year is quite cheeky. I just hope there is some investment in the woefully lacked VOD library as a sweetener for non-sports fans.

[passingbat]

Originally Posted by tassiekev

The other side of the coin, with a possible solution.

I love my football, for 9/10 months a year its 90% of what I watch. Of the 230 channels on the Big Kahuna package (no sports) there are about 224 that I never watch. So in many respects, I'm helping to subsidize your habit!

You may wish to look at the deal from a large satellite broadcaster which offers many hundreds of channels, including Atlantic, plus box sets and all in HD. At the moment £18pm - which is half price for 12 months. Keep your BB & phone with VM if you wish but if enough non-football fans take up te offer, VM may just decide to offer something similar. Alternatively, you can continue to sub my football habit and I'll continue to sub the 224 channels I never watch for you guys.

Just a thought.

But the BT sports channels are Premium channels, which by definition are add on, extra cost channels.

Everyone only watches a small proportion of the regular channels; that's just the way it is. Comparing Premium channels to non-premium channels is like comparing Apples to Oranges.

[tassiekev]

Originally Posted by passingbat

But the BT sports channels are Premium channels, which by definition are add on, extra cost channels.

Everyone only watches a small proportion of the regular channels; that's just the way it is. Comparing Premium channels to non-premium channels is like comparing Apples to Oranges.

We'll have to agree to disagree on this one. We've all been offered a package and we make a decision to accept the offer, or not - freedom of choice. I don't want to watch the so-called 'Female skewed' channels or reality channels. Its no odds to me why they are there or not there - they just are. I either accept the package or I don't.

I've made the point that there are alternatives. People switch their suppliers of telephone, gas, electricity, insurance etc. all the time. 'Customer Loyalty' is marketing-speak for a collection of mugs. If anybody thinks that half a dozen people complaining on a forum is going to suddenly make VM 'see the light', I've got some bad news for them (on top of the £3PM increase).

What will make suppliers take notice is the kind of thing that's happened to Tesco over the last few years - when people walk away and start to do business elsewhere.

I sincerely hope I haven't upset anyone by my comments, its not my intention - just my opinion, whilst there's still a bit of free speech left.

[Superblade7]

Originally Posted by tassiekev

The other side of the coin, with a possible solution.

I love my football, for 9/10 months a year its 90% of what I watch. Of the 230 channels on the Big Kahuna package (no sports) there are about 224 that I never watch. So in many respects, I'm helping to subsidize your habit!

You may wish to look at the deal from a large satellite broadcaster which offers many hundreds of channels, including Atlantic, plus box sets and all in HD. At the moment £18pm - which is half price for 12 months. Keep your BB & phone with VM if you wish but if enough non-football fans take up the offer, VM may just decide to offer something similar. Alternatively, you can continue to sub my football habit and I'll continue to sub the 224 channels I never watch for you guys.

Just a thought.

I'd agree with you on the point you've raised as these days loyalty counts for nothing and you've got to vote with your feet/wallet and get the best deal for your needs.

I've recently done exactly that and switched my TV to Sky and couldn't be happier as I've got a great deal for my needs.

[Horizon]

As I said in the other thread, if this price rise happens, I'm cancelling.

Two price rises within a year is disgusting.

And I'll probably switch my broadband too. Would be nice to watch netflix or iplayer which doesn't buffer.

[MovedGoalPosts]

Originally Posted by tassiekev

The other side of the coin, with a possible solution.

I love my football, for 9/10 months a year its 90% of what I watch. Of the 230 channels on the Big Kahuna package (no sports) there are about 224 that I never watch. So in many respects, I'm helping to subsidize your habit!.

But you could just subscribe to your premium and thus extra fee sports channels, but pay for the really basic M TV package without having to have the majority of this 224 channels. On the other hand it seems I don't get a choice I'm paying extra for the channels I do want so I can get the unwanted bonus BT sports as a benefit for paying an extra £3.

[muppetman11]

Originally Posted by Rob

hmm just got an email from Virgin Media:

.

Great so a £3 increase. So much for the UK having zero inflation rate

Even more annoying:



Thanks muchly but I don't want sport channels. This is not bigger better entertainment

Can somebody please tell all of the TV distribution companies, Virgin, BT, Sky or whoever has excessively deep pockets that I don't have those deep pockets. I don't in any way want to be seen to be assisting the funding of the overpaid prima donnas that call them selves footballers or whatever.

Sports channels are not an inducement to everyone to get digital TV subscriptions. If we want such premium channels they should be an add on, so we don't all fund the cost.

Seems your not the only one with those opinions

http://www.seenit.co.uk/how-virgin-m...up-its-prices/

[Dave42]

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

Yes, we non-sports fanatics seem to be ignored altogether!

Where is Sky Atlantic? Grrr!

for the 100th billion time sky wont let anyone have it and it stay that way and still most over rated channel ever

[Stephen]

Its not just BT Sport Europe though. There are two other HD channels coming as well and probably more.

£3 is a small amout compared to what BT and Sky customers have had to pay, so chances are yes a few people will cancel but VM may ultimately get more customers signing up.

[Dave42]

Originally Posted by Stephen

Its not just BT Sport Europe though. There are two other HD channels coming as well and probably more.

£3 is a small amout compared to what BT and Sky customers have had to pay, so chances are yes a few people will cancel but VM may ultimately get more customers signing up.

yes but that's 3 price rises in a year again February then June sky sports one and now this and it getting common now

[tassiekev]

Originally Posted by Rob

But you could just subscribe to your premium and thus extra fee sports channels, but pay for the really basic M TV package without having to have the majority of this 224 channels. On the other hand it seems I don't get a choice I'm paying extra for the channels I do want so I can get the unwanted bonus BT sports as a benefit for paying an extra £3.

Yes and no. If I did that, I wouldn't get HD or 152MB BB. If you add the cost of those back in, I'm better off with the package. Pretty much decided to go BT + Sky when my contract expires in 5 weeks unless something dramatic happens with VM's pricing. It will mean a considerable drop in BB speed but I'll have every channel I want and be saving a chunk of money, and with 2 boxes I'll be able to record 4 programs at once. I appreciate that this option is not available to everyone and that I'm fortunate enough to live in an area where there is reasonable choice. Maybe you don't have that choice but my suggestion is that if you do have a choice, then exercise it - if enough people do, VM will get the message.