Coming Soon to Virgin TV (2011) Vol. III.

[BenMcr]

Not seen any rumours of it closing anywhere. Suppose we'll have to wait till the January listings come out to find out

[Media Boy UK]

Originally Posted by HD Boy

I have this feeling it will close.

So they can use it for something else ie Sky Livingit HD or Sky 2 HD.

Remember Sky 2 is moving from 129 to 121 on the Sky EPG.

You are maybe 100% right.

[HD Boy]

Can someone from virgin media confirm that no more channel/channels are coming this year ?

Paul Hicken any more news about more new channels starting before the end of 2011

4 hours ago

Virgin Media Hi Paul, we'll let everyone know if there are any new channels coming Sam

3 hours ago

http://www.facebook.com/virginmedia

I do not have a clue why they are similing unless new channels are coming

[Digital Fanatic]

Originally Posted by HD Boy

Can someone from virgin media confirm that no more channel/channels are coming this year ?



http://www.facebook.com/virginmedia

I do not have a clue why they are similing unless new channels are coming

I think you are reading too much in to the smile, they are just being friendly

[denphone]

Originally Posted by HD Boy

Can someone from virgin media confirm that no more channel/channels are coming this year ?



http://www.facebook.com/virginmedia

I do not have a clue why they are similing unless new channels are coming

There are no more channels coming this year and thats a fact and again you seem to be putting two and two together and coming up with five.

[devilincarnate]

Originally Posted by HD Boy

I do not have a clue why they are similing unless new channels are coming

Maybe they are happy

[denphone]

Originally Posted by devilincarnate

Maybe they are happy

A excellent explanation Devil.

[Felim_Doyle]

Originally Posted by Alan Fry

If the licence fee is cannot be increased, then can the reqiurement of the lisence fee include, smartphones, tablets and computer as well

Along with Government funding for important services like local radio etc

And an increase of the lisence fee, so you really want the BBC to by like ITV post 1990 broadcasting act

The BBC iPlayer is currently available on a variety of platforms including TVs, computers, smartphones, tablets and games consoles. A TV licence is not required to use the iPlayer to watch programmes which have already been broadcast but the 'Watch Live' simulcast service does require one. However, development of the iPlayer was funded by the licence fee and was criticised for taking years of development before producing a viable product.

Nobody said that BBC local radio stations were in jeopardy but they might be if funding was diverted to local BBC TV stations instead. It might be nice to have local TV services covering local news and events in better times but it is just the wrong time to be doing it. If the idea fails then nobody will try it again for decades because it will be marred by having failed without taking into consideration the economic environment of the time. I don't believe that we should be trying to do this for a few years and I can only cynically suggest that it is proposed as a money earner for the government through licensing and for the BBC and Arqiva through leasing of studio and broadcast facilities and the all important EPG slots and Freeview multiplexes.

The current licence fee subsidised the digital switch-over so it should be sufficient to fund public service broadcasting at its current level and even cover future innovation especially if cost savings are realised within the BBC.

Whilst it would be a shame to see services like BBC World Service (radio)* and BBC World News (TV)* go or reduce their broadcasting hours, this is what the majority of former colonial powers and propaganda merchants have been doing in favour of website content and internet streaming of radio and TV programmes. The Irish national broadcaster RTÉ was due to launch an international service this/next year which VM were expected to carry but have shelved it in favour of expanding their website and on-line player functionality. Radio Netherlands and countless others are restricting their overseas services, especially on short-wave radio, as there is no longer a need to provide these services for ex-patriots with the advent of other delivery mechanisms. The 'colonies' are not as cut off from the world as they used to be!

*BBC World Service (radio) is currently funded by the British Government through a grant from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office but, from 2014, it will be funded by the BBC licence fee. This may be an indication that the FCO no longer feel the need for such a service for the reasons stated above and I feel it is unfair that the domestic licence fee-payers should be funding a service for non-fee-payers abroad.

*BBC World News (TV) is a commercially operated service funded by advertising and competing against other news channels, principally CNN. It has the largest audience of any BBC channel.

[Horizon]

Originally Posted by Media Boy

Can Any Virgin worker tell me:

May I ask if any of you know if Sky have any plans to carry on broadcasting Sky Livingit +1 after January 24th 2012 as Sky are moving Sky Living +1 onto it Sky EPG Channel number from that date and I cant find info on where Sky Livingit +1 is moving to on Sky?

I have try ''Sky Livingit +1 may close'' and nothing.

Thanks for any info.

The only channel that Sky has said it's closing for sure, and I'm sure its been mentioned here already is Sky Living Loves. Again (I think) as already mentioned in this thread, VM is to get rid of Current TV at some point next year and I'd suggest that E! Enterntainment will also get the push due to low viewing figures. This would free up EPG slots in the right places for channels such as Channel 5+1.

I said on the Sky threads multiple times on DS that when Sky took over Vm's channels, I could not see most of them surviving a year. I would not be surprised if Sky Living It and It's (excuse the pun) +1 get axed as well, but don't know for sure.

[Felim_Doyle]

Originally Posted by Alan Fry

I understand what you are saying, but my ideas are two seperate ideas

Increasing the Lisence fee is only one option of more funding the bbc, the governement could directly give money for important services like local radio etc

So we should fund the BBC both through the licence fee and through other forms of direct or indirect taxation?

There are far more appropriate ways that the BBC can manage to operate within their current budget without affecting quality. It is also very important that the BBC's funding should be easily identifiable rather than being hidden in back door government funding from the tax-payer. If anything, the BBC needs to become more autonomous and more business-like and less like a state owned broadcaster.

[Horizon]

Originally Posted by Media Boy

Media Boy's 2011 year in review.

The following channels has launch on Virgin TV this year:
Ch 114. ITV1 +1 (England and Wales only - On Jan 11th).
Ch 114. STV +1 (Scotland only - On Jan 11th).
Ch 114. UTV +1 (N. Ireland only - On Jan 11th).
Ch 189. True Entertainment (On Mar 1st).
Ch 826. COLOURS (On Apr 1st).
Ch 974. Sunrise Radio London (On Apr 1st).
Ch 282. Sky Arts 1 HD (On Apr 26th).
Ch 284. Sky Arts 2 HD (On Apr 26th).
Ch 188. BBC ALBA (Scotland only - On May 18th)
Ch 554. PPV Live Events Help (On Jun 27th).
Ch 555. TiVo Pay Per Views (On Jun 27th).
Ch 441. Sky Movies Classic HD (On Oct 4th).
Ch 204. Yesterday +1 (On Oct 7th).
Ch 209. Eden HD (On Oct 7th).
Ch 210. Eden +1 (On Oct 7th).
Ch 261. Good Food HD (On Oct 7th).
Ch 129. Dave HD (On Oct 10th).
Ch 125. Watch HD (On Oct 12th).
Ch 243. PBS (On Nov 1st).
Ch 546. Box Nation (On Dec 1st).
Ch 192. CBS Action (On Dec 15th).
Ch 193. Sony TV UK (On Dec 15th).
Ch 621. NDTV (On Dec 15th).

Originally Posted by denphone

Thats a pretty impressive lists in my mind and lets hope next year brings more of the same.

I beg to differ!

Apart from the 3 new channels today, there has only been 2 other genuine new channels this year, PBS and True Entertainment which have launched on cable.

The rest are +1s or HD versions of existing channels. And some channels like Yesterday+1 and Eden+1 are only relaunches as their predecessor channels used to be on cable before they were removed (UK History+1 and UK Docs+1 removed in 2008.)

Plus Vm has removed several channels over the last few years, many because of the VMtv sale to Sky. If VM bring back channels such as MTV Classic, More 4 +1, History +1, Animal Planet +1 that were removed plus add channels that should've been on the platform ages ago ie, History HD. Then add more recent channels such as the rest of the CBS ones, Universal HD, ITV's HDs etc, then it is adding choice.

But at the moment, I don't see how removing some channels with one hand and adding others with another is adding to choice. It's just keeping things level.

[Henkesghost]

Only Sky Atlantic left as a glaring omission from Virgin for me, perfectly happy otherwise. Some more HD not essential but would be nice. Anyway Christmas party season starts tomorrow, all presents bought time for the fun to start so Happy Christmas to you all from yer number 10 poster Bring on the booze

[HDFootyMan]

Originally Posted by Felim_Doyle

At some point the balance of HD to SD channels will swing and there will be little incentive to continue to support SD variants of channels where there is a HD equivalent. To achieve that, everyone will either have to be fully HD-ready or have a means of down-scaling HD content for SD viewing equipment. That either means having a HD STB or the satellite or cable provider doing the down-scaling centrally. Maybe that's how it works for some channels now. I'd like to see it happen maybe some time in 2013 and definitely by 2015 but there are obstacles.

I feel sorry for DVB-T (FreeView) and DVB-S (particularly FreeSat) customers who have recently purchased equipment but did not opt for HD STBs as they may have to upgrade at a cost sooner than they expected.

Alternatively, the tail could wag the dog and we might be stuck with SD until the majority of people have upgraded and that could take years.

When digital TV was coming, I don't think enough emphasis was put on the fact that HD was rolling out too.

A typical HD channel takes up around x4 the bandwidth of a SD channnel. Even if you closed all the SD channels, its doubtful there would be enough bandwidth for a HD version of every SD channel - unless you start reducing the bitrate of those HD channels (in which case they become HD-lite).

[devilincarnate]

Originally Posted by Henkesghost

Some more HD not essential but would be nice. Anyway Christmas party season starts tomorrow, all presents bought time for the fun to start so Happy Christmas to you all from yer number 10 poster Bring on the booze

Very very true And the Beer and other spirits are flowing here (Jim Beam, Jack Daniels, Sambuca ETC) My posts will get more and more random till after the new year

[Felim_Doyle]

Originally Posted by Media Boy

I have been calling on this for years but I think BBC Three and BBC Four need to merge and rebrand as BBC Extra.

That way the BBC can get some money in by selling off two Sky EPG Channels numbers.

At one time, when there were just two BBC TV channels, BBC1 was the entertainment and news channel and BBC2 was the cultural channel.* Then we went through the 'dumbing down' phase, as it was known, when quality really fell. Now we have BBC One and BBC Two but with less distinction between their individual purposes. We also have BBC Three, the 'dumb and dumber' channel, and BBC Four, the cultural channel like the BBC we used to know and love. So, there is definitely some overlap and room for a saving by redistribution of programming.

I can't see a merger of Three and Four as they are polar opposites. More likely marriages would be One with Three and Two with Four. I also find it hard to believe that there is any BBC Three content that is suitable for broadcast in the afternoon slots of BBC One and BBC Two to fill the void left by the reduction in original and imported daytime programming on those channels as has been suggested.

*Although wasn't the Young Ones shown on BBC2 or am I confusing the University Challenge episode with the real University Challenge?