[opendtv] Re: MediaGuardian.co.uk: Freeview 'to overtake Sky Digital in 2005'
- From: dmenolan <dmenolan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: Open DTV list <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 18 Nov 2004 03:31:48 -0500
Wrong end of the stick, as usual? That was a flyer in a right wing paper =
which was flatly denied in public by the BBC DG
Free has driven the digital growth in the UK and Germany: the figures in =
the last quarter tell the story : 600,000 Freeview vs 55,000 pay. BTW we =
have had commercial television since 1955 and there are a large number of=
commercial stations on Freeview including Disney's ABC.
The likely year end is Sky: 7.5M, Freeview: 5.0 M, digital cable: 2.5 M D=
SLTV: ~0.1M which is 60% of all homes being digital.
As usual this will be a crisp response due to time constraints!
Kind Regards as always,
DN
-------------Forwarded Message-----------------
From: INTERNET:opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx, INTERNET:opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
To: , INTERNET:opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
=
Date: 18/11/104 00:02 PM
RE: [opendtv] Re: MediaGuardian.co.uk: Freeview 'to overtake Sky Digital =
in 2005'
=
I heard a promo for a news item -- but not the news item itself -- that t=
he
Beeb is going to halve it's staff due to budget cuts in the offing. I
didn't think that anyone at the BBC wanted to lose staff.
Free was the key component for adoption of radio and TV in the U.S.
However, diversity of sources is a true value-added service provided by
cable, and there is no way to say what the driver is for DTV; free or pai=
d
diversity.
Of course, most of the world watches TV for no cost other than the set an=
d
the time spent watching. Unlike the U.K. and a few other paises, but you=
gain more content and less bother per hour, absent the spots.
John Willkie
-----Original Message-----
From: opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of Alan Roberts
Sent: Wednesday, November 17, 2004 9:52 AM
To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [opendtv] Re: MediaGuardian.co.uk: Freeview 'to overtake Sky
Digital in 2005'
Cable and pay is hardy entrenched in the UK, it's not in the majority of
homes, nor is satellite. Why would the BBC want to axe half it's staff?
Free is indeed a far more powerful inducement than pay-tv, it's been cent=
ral
to the ethos of British broadcasting since 1922 (or thereabouts), and lon=
g
may it remain so.
----- Original Message -----
From: "John Willkie" <johnwillkie@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Monday, January 03, 2000 3:10 AM
Subject: [opendtv] Re: MediaGuardian.co.uk: Freeview 'to overtake Sky
Digital in 2005'
> So, let me see: free is more powerful an inducer than pay? Makes one
wonder
> about the sports content, and the limited ways that this can be overlai=
d
on
> a market where cable & pay is so entrenched (and the choices SO much mo=
re
> plentiful than freeview or sky.
>
> Funny, I've yet to see a posting here about the BBC proposing to axe ha=
lf
of
> it's staff ...
>
> John Willkie
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> [mailto:opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of
> dmenolan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Sent: Wednesday, November 17, 2004 1:27 AM
> To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [opendtv] MediaGuardian.co.uk: Freeview 'to overtake Sky
> Digital in 2005'
>
>
> dmenolan spotted this on the MediaGuardian.co.uk site and thought you
should
> see it.
>
> To see this story with its related links on the MediaGuardian.co.uk sit=
e,
go
> to http://www.mediaguardian.co.uk
>
> Freeview 'to overtake Sky Digital in 2005'
> Owen Gibson, chief reporter
> Wednesday November 17 2004
> The Guardian
>
>
> The BBC-backed free-to-air digital service Freeview is set to break the=
5
> million homes barrier by the end of the year, with industry experts
> predicting it will overtake Sky Digital by Christmas 2005.
>
> Sales estimates from manufacturers and retailers for 2004 show that by =
the
> end of the year they expect to have shifted 3 million Freeview boxes,
taking
> the total to over 5 million.
>
> Current sales are running at an estimated 50,000 a week for the boxes,=
> which offer viewers 30 channels for a one-off payment of between =C2=A3=
40 and
> =C2=A380, confounding expectations that demand would tail off following=
an
> initial rush.
>
> David Chance, who runs "pay TV lite" service Top Up TV offering Freevie=
w
> customers an extra 10 channels for a monthly fee of =C2=A37.99, predict=
ed
sales
> would top 8 million by the end of next year.
>
> "Freeview box sales in the calendar year will exceed 3 million units. T=
he
> Freeview box population will be in 5 million homes by the end of the
year,"
> said Mr Chance, who is also an ITV director and a former BSkyB deputy
chief
> executive.
>
> "The run rate next year could well be another 3 million. By December 20=
05,
> the Freeview platform could be as big as Sky, which is a very big
> milestone," he told a Broadcasting Press Guild lunch.
>
> Mr Chance said that Top Up TV, which launched earlier this year, was
gaining
> momentum now there were more Freeview boxes in the shops that featured=
the
> card slot necessary to upgrade to the pay-TV service.
>
> There are now three Freeview boxes available that are compatible with t=
he
> Top Up TV cards, with three more due to go on sale in the new year thro=
ugh
> high street stores including Argos and Dixons.
>
> He predicted the company would comfortably meet its break-even target o=
f
> 250,000 customers within two years of launch, as more compatible boxes
> became available and ITV realised the benefits of promoting the switch =
to
> digital terrestrial TV rather than satellite or cable.
>
> Audiences for the five traditional channels are affected far less when =
a
> viewer switches to Freeview than when they subscribe to Sky or cable.
>
> Mr Chance said the company was also benefiting from a growing frustrati=
on
> among those who had bought boxes that weren't compatible with the cards=
> required to upgrade to Top Up TV.
>
> "The majority of people who call up and can't get it are very frustrate=
d.
> They were never told the Freeview box they were buying could not receiv=
e
all
> the services on the DTT platform.
>
> "The focus of their frustration is directed at the BBC. They are really=
> pissed off at the Beeb because it is the BBC's cross-promotional
activities
> that are really driving the take-up of Freeview," he said.
>
> Former BBC director general Greg Dyke admitted in his book earlier this=
year
> that part of the rationale behind the launch of the digital terrestrial=
> service was to flood the market with "dumb" boxes incapable of turning =
the
> BBC's channels into "pay as you go" services at a later date.
>
> Because most Freeview boxes did not contain the card slots or encryptio=
n
> technology required to operate a pay-TV service, Mr Dyke concluded that=
> leading the launch of the service following the collapse of ITV Digital=
was
> "important to the BBC defensively".
>
> But Mr Chance said the tide was turning and that retailers were starti=
ng
to
> stock more equipment compatible with Top Up TV in an effort to avoid
> disgruntled customers returning their boxes to the shop.
>
> The adapters with card slots typically cost around =C2=A365, compared w=
ith
=C2=A340
> for the cheapest Freeview set top boxes.
>
> "It leads to a significant number of customers taking their boxes back =
to
> Dixons and wanting to change them. This is causing the multiple retaile=
rs
to
> start to say they will change their range next year to move from stocki=
ng
> 10% of compatible boxes to 50% to 75%. It's quite an important
development,"
> he said.
>
> While he agreed with Mr Dyke that it was probably a mistake for BSkyB t=
o
get
> involved in the launch of Freeview, he also agreed with Sky chief
executive
> James Murdoch that its success would have little impact on the company =
in
> the long term.
>
> Mr Chance agreed with Mr Murdoch's prognosis that pay-TV penetration wo=
uld
> reach 80% within the next 10 to 15 years and that once Freeview
penetration
> reaches 10 million it will begin to dip again as those customers move o=
n
to
> pay-TV.
>
> · To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email
> editor@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx or phone 020 7239 9857
>
> · If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearl=
y
> "for publication".
>
>
>
> Copyright Guardian Newspapers Limited
>
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> You can UNSUBSCRIBE from the OpenDTV list in two ways:
>
> - Using the UNSUBSCRIBE command in your user configuration settings at
FreeLists.org
>
> - By sending a message to: opendtv-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word
unsubscribe in the subject line.
>
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You can UNSUBSCRIBE from the OpenDTV list in two ways:
- Using the UNSUBSCRIBE command in your user configuration settings at
FreeLists.org
- By sending a message to: opendtv-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word
unsubscribe in the subject line.
=
=
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You can UNSUBSCRIBE from the OpenDTV list in two ways:
- Using the UNSUBSCRIBE command in your user configuration settings at Fr=
eeLists.org =
- By sending a message to: opendtv-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word un=
subscribe in the subject line.
----------------------- Internet Header --------------------------------
Sender: opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Received: from turing.freelists.org (freelists-180.iquest.net [206.53.239=
.180])
by siaab2ab.compuserve.com (8.12.11/8.12.7/SUN-2.17) with ESMTP id
iAI01=
usq027067
for <dmenolan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>; Wed, 17 Nov 2004 19:01:59 -0500 (EST)
Received: from localhost (localhost [127.0.0.1])
by turing.freelists.org (Avenir Technologies Mail Multiplex) with ESMTP
=
id 5C77072CFD5;
Wed, 17 Nov 2004 19:01:55 -0500 (EST)
Received: from turing.freelists.org ([127.0.0.1])
by localhost (turing [127.0.0.1]) (amavisd-new, port 10024) with ESMTP
id 23163-66; Wed, 17 Nov 2004 19:01:55 -0500 (EST)
Received: from turing (localhost [127.0.0.1])
by turing.freelists.org (Avenir Technologies Mail Multiplex) with ESMTP
=
id CC23672CAFA;
Wed, 17 Nov 2004 18:56:17 -0500 (EST)
Received: with ECARTIS (v1.0.0; list opendtv); Wed, 17 Nov 2004 18:55:36 =
-0500 (EST)
X-Original-To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Delivered-To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Received: from localhost (localhost [127.0.0.1])
by turing.freelists.org (Avenir Technologies Mail Multiplex) with ESMTP
=
id E185B72C1A5
for <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>; Wed, 17 Nov 2004 18:55:34 -0500 (EST)
Received: from turing.freelists.org ([127.0.0.1])
by localhost (turing [127.0.0.1]) (amavisd-new, port 10024) with ESMTP
id 22012-44 for <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>;
Wed, 17 Nov 2004 18:55:34 -0500 (EST)
Received: from smtp2.ixpres.com (artemis.ixpres.com [216.240.160.204])
by turing.freelists.org (Avenir Technologies Mail Multiplex) with ESMTP
=
id 9E49C72D72B
for <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>; Wed, 17 Nov 2004 18:49:57 -0500 (EST)
Received: from jfrw (01-072.015.popsite.net [66.248.17.72])
by smtp2.ixpres.com (8.11.6/linuxconf) with SMTP id iAHNnI130492
for <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>; Wed, 17 Nov 2004 15:49:44 -0800
From: "John Willkie" <johnwillkie@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [opendtv] Re: MediaGuardian.co.uk: Freeview 'to overtake Sky Dig=
ital in 2005'
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 2004 03:44:48 -0800
Message-ID: <MEBBKIICLHADECOBFPPJIEFKCAAA.johnwillkie@xxxxxxxxxx>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=3Diso-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
X-Priority: 3 (Normal)
X-MSMail-Priority: Normal
X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook IMO, Build 9.0.2416 (9.0.2910.0)
X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2800.1409
In-Reply-To: <001a01c4ccce$2bc8b680$0200a8c0@Vaio>
Importance: Normal
X-Virus-Scanned: clamd / ClamAV version 0.75.1, clamav-milter version 0.7=
5c
on siaab2ab.compuserve.com
X-Virus-Scanned: by amavisd-new at freelists.org
X-archive-position: 4320
X-ecartis-version: Ecartis v1.0.0
Sender: opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Errors-To: opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
X-original-sender: johnwillkie@xxxxxxxxxx
Precedence: normal
Reply-To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
X-list: opendtv
X-Virus-Scanned: by amavisd-new at freelists.org
X-Virus-Status: Clean
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You can UNSUBSCRIBE from the OpenDTV list in two ways:
- Using the UNSUBSCRIBE command in your user configuration settings at
FreeLists.org
- By sending a message to: opendtv-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word
unsubscribe in the subject line.
Other related posts:
