Acquisition by Sky of Virgin Media Television

[wizzy500]

i personally think that $ky may force VM to put the "vmtv" channels on the XLTV pack to get more revenue therefor cust with M+,L losing channels :@

[tvtimes]

Originally Posted by Rob

Bravo for Spartacus. Virgin 1 for Chuck

Living for Medium, Supernatural, Ghost Whisperer, Cougar town. There's loads of great tv on Living.

---------- Post added at 19:15 ---------- Previous post was at 19:12 ----------

Originally Posted by *sloman*

Virgin have sold all their channels to Sky?

So that leaves Virgin with NOTHING and sky with EVERYTHING? Where is the logic?

The logic is sky have given away a lot of their USP's. HD and red button. Virgin will still retain theirs. Their superior bb service, their ondemand will now be strengthened with skys basics line up being added. Sky and VM needed to come together and make ammends with each other. Paytv is under threat from the free market and they need to start offering more competitive packages.

[jcw00]

In 9 years time Sky pull their channels from Virgin.
3 Months after that Virgin sell to Sky and Sky Cable is launched.

[mertle]

Originally Posted by HDFootyMan

MILK AND HONEY (IN HD) UNTIL 2019/20!

After that.....erm.....

VM: "So.....about those negotiations for the Sky content on Digital Cab-"

Sky: "Bugger off will ya? We're finally completing our plans for world domination! Shoo......begone!"

thats the way I see it too but alas we got some thick idiots in the virgin media company who got its head in the sand.

TheDon there tons of examples of big corporates not thinking/doing its homework and missing thing Football League famous stupidity that the ITV Digital was not land locked to parent ITV and contracts shoddily done.

I bet Virgin screwed up bigtime how they can possible trust SKY to play fair is beyond comprehention of incompetance and someone at the top should be looking at his p45 right now.

Heads should roll bigtime. Virgin also playing a dangerous rusian roulette game to hope OFCOM will help to keep SKY in check.

What happens if OFCOM becomes toothless with loss of powers under tories.

Have they not said they gona take away quangos and was there not talk on here awhile back on the investigation there was talk they could loose powers.

We need the powers to block this sale for the good of the platform.

On hoping to get more customers like 5m to make them play kinder sky will make every single oportunity to force people to sky.

Virgin could set up the best platform in the world but not owning content can mean that content get stripped and virgin wont have jot to stop them.

Sky could also provide weak signals poor quality and also like last time hidden feeds. Anger VM customers in hope they ditch cable to Dish with Sky.

They could also tell virgin to stop putting there HD in the XL packages free and force it into extra costs.

Yes we protected but only till 2019 then SKY gloves are off we will receive there knockout blow.

I fully expect VM platform be glorified freeview box after the timeline. With only our basic beeb, itv and american based channels.

All other channels will be removed at some point OFCOM will be powerless to stop it once Murdock buddies strip there power.

[jtaylor06]

Sorry if someone has already suggested this.

But in the end VM customers may get Bravo HD, Challenge HD and Sky 4 HD (If it were to be rebranded as Sky 4) as Sky are looking to get as many HD channels by the end of the year, so this is where they may invest in HD

Well as long as they don't make it exclusive.

[MovedGoalPosts]

I woudn't be reading too much into issues for any renewal in 2019. Who knows where the TV industry will be by then, but more importantly who knows where the TV distribution industry will be in terms of their infrastructure.

BT survive quite happily without being a provider of content and just a carrier. Why shouldn't Virgin Media be free to provide the best network they can such that if the platform is right the content providers will be coming to the carrier because they can't afford not to be on that platform.

Sky already have an increasing problem. They have no decent return path. A phone line isn't really up to the job and the broadband services of custgomers is variable. That leaves many services like on demand and interactive in difficult territory for Sky and yet that is where the future pay market will probably develop. That might improve if BT do get their fibre network rolled out, but then what is that going to end up costing end users? TV is a competetive industry. I see Sky needing Virgin as much as Virgin need Sky.

The press releases are inevitably limited in detail. For the short term the real issues are how well Virgin Media and Sky are agreeing to share, at sensible cost, any additional content and channels that might become available, as well as all the existing premium and non premium HD and SD stuff.

[mertle]

Originally Posted by Rob

I woudn't be reading too much into issues for any renewal in 2019. Who knows where the TV industry will be by then, but more importantly who knows where the TV distribution industry will be in terms of their infrastructure.

BT survive quite happily without being a provider of content and just a carrier. Why shouldn't Virgin Media be free to provide the best network they can such that if the platform is right the content providers will be coming to the carrier because they can't afford not to be on that platform.

Sky already have an increasing problem. They have no decent return path. A phone line isn't really up to the job and the broadband services of custgomers is variable. That leaves many services like on demand and interactive in difficult territory for Sky and yet that is where the future pay market will probably develop. That might improve if BT do get their fibre network rolled out, but then what is that going to end up costing end users? TV is a competetive industry. I see Sky needing Virgin as much as Virgin need Sky.

The press releases are inevitably limited in detail. For the short term the real issues are how well Virgin Media and Sky are agreeing to share, at sensible cost, any additional content and channels that might become available, as well as all the existing premium and non premium HS and SD stuff.

BT in SKY eyes is not a dangerious rival That may change in the future. Sky however consider Virgin a dangerous competitor thats why they thrown wobblies and took channels of them.

Once sky control all content in uk they will have the power to switch the lights out on every rival. You can bet a bottom dollar this is the big picture.

Like I said platforms are useless without content. Whats going to happen to virgin customers once they realise just being a carrier not all its cracked up put box charges up considerably to cover shortages in revenue.

Lets be honest some of those channels was providing income now that income lost. Virgin goto get that back somehow. Sky dont need virgin they would rather we die a horrid death like it dish competitor few years back.

Dont kid us Sky hated cable as soon it got it got organised with merging and rebranded thats when Sky got agressive.

A leopard dont change its spots they still want cable to cease so they become the only platform.

Thats why they want picnic on freeview to kill them as a viable solution and once freesat dangerous and BT they will go after them too.

[TheDon]

Personally I'd quite like it if ofcom did lose it's powers. Then the monopolies commission can step in and they have far bigger teeth than ofcom.

And if they don't feel like taking them on, the EU competition commission can step in and they'd more than likely split Sky into a content and platform division anyway.

Seriously guys, this deal isn't a bad thing. If Sky try to flex any sort of muscle in future with regards to over charging or withholding content they will be biting off their nose to spite their face.

Question.What will I as a non HD VM watcher get instead?

[TheDon]

Red button on Sky sports, sky content on demand.

[Recluse Sister]

Originally Posted by Chris

I suspect what\'s at the root of this is VM\'s belief that linear broadcast TV is becoming obsolete, .

linear broadcast? Please define/explain...

Originally Posted by TheDon

Red button on Sky sports, sky content on demand.

I was hoping for the ordinary non HD sports to be available at a cheaper rate Just my husband could finally watch the cricket he so adores.

[ntluser]

It will be interesting to see what effect this has on the pricing structure of the various TV packs.

[BenMcr]

Originally Posted by Maggy J

I was hoping for the ordinary non HD sports to be available at a cheaper rate Just my husband could finally watch the cricket he so adores.

The Sports prices are due to come down this year anyway even without this happening

[hansi]

Originally Posted by Ben B

Pre-register your interest for Sky Sports and Movies HD Channels here: http://www.virginmediaentertainment....D/Default.aspx

I just tried, but it won't accept my ntlworld address!!