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Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky
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Old 23-09-2018, 00:52   #3091
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

Quote:
Originally Posted by Horizon View Post
But with Netflix and other streamers encroaching on their pay tv profits, it may not be as crazy as it sounds.
It's certainly not crazy.

VM is the only cable company in the UK, it's main profits come from internet provision with Pay TV as secondary with the majority of that revenue made up of reselling SKY channels.

Comcast is a cable company who now owns SKY so their best bet moving forward is a merge or takeover of VM.
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Old 23-09-2018, 10:28   #3092
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

Virgin and Sky in the UK are only part of wider operations.

By that logic would Comcast/Liberty seek to merge their operations all over Europe? Is that a serious prospect that regulators will entertain? Highly doubtful in my view, although I do accept the point that in the UK market at least (from the consumer point of view) Virgin/Sky essentially offer the same service at similar prices and the “competition” doesn’t do anything to keep prices down.
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Old 23-09-2018, 12:40   #3093
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

It will be interesting to see how this all pans out longer term.

Sky Cinema currently shows Disney films , once Disney looks to move all it's content onto it's own global streaming service it's possible this could end although to be fair I guess Sky could still strike a deal to include the Disney streaming service on it's Sky Q platform.

Will we see Comcast set up a global streaming service using originally produced Sky content and content from it's NBC Universal division ?
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Old 23-09-2018, 13:46   #3094
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

As Comcast has just paid £30bn for three letters, not only do I think its a safe bet that Comcast will set up a global streaming app, but its pretty obvious what that app will be called: Sky.

---------- Post added at 12:46 ---------- Previous post was at 12:32 ----------

Quote:
Originally Posted by jfman View Post
Virgin and Sky in the UK are only part of wider operations.

By that logic would Comcast/Liberty seek to merge their operations all over Europe? Is that a serious prospect that regulators will entertain? Highly doubtful in my view, although I do accept the point that in the UK market at least (from the consumer point of view) Virgin/Sky essentially offer the same service at similar prices and the “competition” doesn’t do anything to keep prices down.
I only floated the idea of a merger due to the close relationship that John Malone has with Comcast and the American cable industry.

I think a merger is unlikely, but the media world is changing and soon it will all be about the likes of Apple, Amazon etc and the old media/telcos will get left behind if they don't change and consolidate.
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Old 23-09-2018, 14:13   #3095
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

Apple/Amazon etc won't effect telcos. The telcos are still needed for internet connection.
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Old 23-09-2018, 15:54   #3096
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

I agree, but as far as the UK goes, the pay tv element is a large part of Sky's, VM's and BT's profits which may be eroded away by the streamers.

Remember what a former cable boss said from 15-20 years ago said, "we don't just want to be the pipe, a utility."
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Old 23-09-2018, 17:15   #3097
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

The thing is for a cable co, unless it gains ownership of the content (at production level) rather than a distributor, then it is far more profitable for them to be the pipe and leave everyone else in a bidding war.

The best thing to happen to Virgin was BT/Sky in a bidding war for Premiership rights. The squeeze on broadband/line rental ended, allowing Virgin to raise their prices in line with the rest of the market. Yes, in turn Virgin have a wholesale deal with BT, but it will be small beer when you think line rental and broadband have creeped up for the entire customer base.
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Old 23-09-2018, 17:21   #3098
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

Quote:
Originally Posted by Horizon View Post
But with Netflix and other streamers encroaching on their pay tv profits, it may not be as crazy as it sounds.
I've just been looking at the shows on Netflix and there's a fair amount of content even some labelled as Netflix Originals that are either NBC Universal , Disney or Fox shows.

With these companies expanding their distribution footprints I can see these kind of things ending.

NBC Universal for instance can easily distribute it's shows in Europe using Sky after takeover and with a OTT service can look even further afield thus not needing Netflix.
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Old 23-09-2018, 19:33   #3099
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

Are shows popular because they are on Netflix, or is Netflix popular because of the content they have?

If it’s popularity is that it is a low price alternative to mainstream pay-tv then the answer is to push its own content through Now TV.
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Old 23-09-2018, 21:31   #3100
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

Quote:
Originally Posted by Horizon View Post
As Comcast has just paid £30bn for three letters, not only do I think its a safe bet that Comcast will set up a global streaming app, but its pretty obvious what that app will be called: Sky.
Anything is possible and between Sky and Comcast they certainly have enough content behind them to put a pretty decent offering together although I still think Disney will have a much greater content offering especially when it gains full control of Fox.
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Old 23-09-2018, 23:47   #3101
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

Quote:
Originally Posted by jfman View Post
The thing is for a cable co, unless it gains ownership of the content (at production level) rather than a distributor, then it is far more profitable for them to be the pipe and leave everyone else in a bidding war.

The best thing to happen to Virgin was BT/Sky in a bidding war for Premiership rights. The squeeze on broadband/line rental ended, allowing Virgin to raise their prices in line with the rest of the market. Yes, in turn Virgin have a wholesale deal with BT, but it will be small beer when you think line rental and broadband have creeped up for the entire customer base.
All true, but the pipes are still a means to a end.

People don't want fast broadband because they need 200mb connection for email, they need it for gaming and services such as what the streamers offer.

Quote:
Originally Posted by muppetman11 View Post
I've just been looking at the shows on Netflix and there's a fair amount of content even some labelled as Netflix Originals that are either NBC Universal , Disney or Fox shows.

With these companies expanding their distribution footprints I can see these kind of things ending.

NBC Universal for instance can easily distribute it's shows in Europe using Sky after takeover and with a OTT service can look even further afield thus not needing Netflix.
With spoken about this in the linear/streaming threads, but with hundreds of channels AND streaming apps, something has to give at some point.

With Disney withdrawing their new content from Netflix in America next year, that's the first salvo fired with the likely conclusion that media companies will only have their own content on their own apps in the future.

It's why Netflix is spending billions on original content now while it can, as it knows it will eventually lose all third party content at some point in the future.

Quote:
Originally Posted by jfman View Post
Are shows popular because they are on Netflix, or is Netflix popular because of the content they have?

If it’s popularity is that it is a low price alternative to mainstream pay-tv then the answer is to push its own content through Now TV.
Sky is launching its full IPTV service next year, or was, but perhaps in the end as I believe Comcast will use the Sky name for its own streaming service, Sky will ultimately morph from a satellite tv company to Comcast's global streaming app and it may well look far more like Now Tv than the planned full IPTV service.

As to your popularity question, no doubt its probably a bit of both. But as Netflix has become mainstream, clearly its more than just the brand that attracts people. They have awful stuff, but they also have some really great things too and a lot easier to find than flicking through hundreds of channels.

---------- Post added at 22:47 ---------- Previous post was at 22:40 ----------

Quote:
Originally Posted by pip08456 View Post
It's certainly not crazy.

VM is the only cable company in the UK, it's main profits come from internet provision with Pay TV as secondary with the majority of that revenue made up of reselling SKY channels.

Comcast is a cable company who now owns SKY so their best bet moving forward is a merge or takeover of VM.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jfman View Post
Virgin and Sky in the UK are only part of wider operations.

By that logic would Comcast/Liberty seek to merge their operations all over Europe? Is that a serious prospect that regulators will entertain? Highly doubtful in my view, although I do accept the point that in the UK market at least (from the consumer point of view) Virgin/Sky essentially offer the same service at similar prices and the “competition” doesn’t do anything to keep prices down.
Final ponder from me tonight on a possible future Comcast/VM relationship.

Rather than going down the merger route, could Comcast simply do a deal with VM to pump Comcast's services down VM's cables? Or, and more likely, they do a deal to allow Comcast access to VM's ducts??

Comcast is cable tv/broadband company to its core. I highly doubt they will spend billions more now building their own UK cable network, which means using someone else's infrastructure. And there's only two choices, continue to piggyback off BT's poles or do a deal with VM.

And to the earlier reply about Liberty Global and Comcast coming together, I think it is very possible, might even throw Vodafone into the mix too.

Lots more media mergers to come, I believe.
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Old 24-09-2018, 00:06   #3102
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

I agree on the point about a lot of rubbish on Netflix, but it does have shows people talk about and does appeal to people who don’t want to scroll through hundreds of channels.

It also appeals where people don’t want to watch “one per week” and who want to catch up because everyone in work is talking about it but have missed the whole first season. People can catch up at their convenience.

A worldwide content provider/platform who wanted to put the squeeze on that potentially could find it quite easy. It’s profits aren’t huge considering it’s outlay if you had incentive to squeeze it.
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Old 26-09-2018, 17:02   #3103
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

21st Century Fox agrees to sell 39% Sky stake to Comcast

https://news.sky.com/story/21st-cent...mcast-11509405
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Old 27-09-2018, 00:22   #3104
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

Bye Rupert!

He may have brought us choice, but there was a heavy price to pay and I just don't mean in our wallets either.
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Old 27-09-2018, 07:35   #3105
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Re: Merged:-Comcast makes Bid for Sky

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Originally Posted by Horizon View Post
Bye Rupert!

He may have brought us choice, but there was a heavy price to pay and I just don't mean in our wallets either.
What price and paid by whom?
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