Sky says competition probe should include Netflix

UK pay TV operator BSkyB says that the Competition Commission should include online content providers such as LoveFilm and Netflix. The Commission is investigating the market for pay TV movies in the UK and whether Sky has a dominant position. Sky says it has neglected to include the online services already present in the UK or, as in the case of Netflix, about to launch. Both compete for movie rights, Sky noted in a submission to the Commission.

“Both Amazon LoveFilm and Netflix have successfully competed for pay TV movie rights in the UK and elsewhere, including first subscription pay TV window rights, and there is no good reason to believe that their ambitions are confined to acquiring rights from non-major studios, as they have to date in the UK,” Sky noted. It added: “The CC’s failure properly to investigate these issues is a significant procedural flaw in the conduct of its inquiry and is unfair to Sky.”

Separately, Netflix has extended the functionality of its Xbox service in the US and launching it in Latin America. It has been optimized for Xbox and now allows users to select more TV series and movies on screen, new interactive options and support for titles in high-definition.

The Xbox service has also launched in Latin America in Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico. Under the terms of a wider agreement with Microsoft, Netflix said that it now has the rights to launch its service on Xbox in new international territories as it rolls out