BT


BT will not invest in drama, says CEO

BT will not go down the route followed by Telefonica and some other telecom players and invest in original drama, preferring to maintain its existing exclusive focus on sport, according to CEO Gavin Patterson. Speaking at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona yesterday, Patterson (pictured) characterised sport as a market-specific type of content and said that […]

No Amazon bid as Sky & BT renew Premier League rights

Sky and BT have each renewed their Premier League rights, with the former taking four and the latter one of the live rights packages for a total of £4.46 billion (US$6.18 billion), with Amazon seemingly not in the running. Two of the seven packages for the three seasons from 2019 to 2022 are still available, […]

Ampere: Premier League rights to pass £10bn mark

The value of Premier League football rights is set to break the £10 billion barrier for the first time, with Amazon emerging as a “significant potential bidder”, according to Ampere Analysis. The research firm predicts that the total value for UK and international rights in the upcoming auction for three seasons from 2019 – 2022 […]

Opinion: tech is game for TV takeover

With analysts this week claiming sports remains the critical factor in pay TV subscriptions, Iain McDonald from Lewis Silkin argues the battle for sports rights offers a glimpse into the future of television. With the arrival of US tech giants onto the scene, television has undergone a radical transformation over the last decade – a […]

Ampere: sports fans ‘significantly more likely’ to take pay TV

Sports fans typically watch more TV than other consumers and are “significantly more likely” to have pay TV and subscribe to premium channels, according to Ampere Analysis. The research firm found that in the UK some 74% of sports fans have pay TV compared to 62% of other viewers, with viewers over the age of […]

BT strikes deal with Sky for Now TV and sports

BT has agreed a deal to sell Sky’s low-cost OTT TV service Now TV to BT TV customers. Sky will make the full Now TV service, which includes content such as Sky Sports, Sky Cinema and the Sky Atlantic channel, available via BT TV set-tops. BT will be able to sell Now TV subscriptions direct […]

AMC set to go free for Snatch premiere

BT and AMC will broadcast the channel free of charge in the UK from October 28 to November 5 via the Sky digital satellite platform. During the period, Sky subscribers can catch a host of series marathons as well as the exclusive UK premiere of new drama series Snatch (pictured), which stars Harry Potter star […]

BT/AMC snatch Rupert Grint crime caper for UK

The Rupert Grint television remake of crime caper Snatch is headed exclusively for BT-distributed network AMC in the UK. The ten-episode original drama debuted recently on Sony Pictures Television (SPT)’s VOD service, Crackle, and is now headed for the UK. It will launch there on October 31 in a 10pm slot on the BT pay […]

Ofcom: UK now a ‘nation of binge viewers’

The UK has become “a nation of binge viewers” but there are stark differences between how older and younger people watch TV, according to Ofcom. The UK broadcast regulator’s annual Communications Market Report 2017 claims that 79% of UK adults, some 40 million people, now use catch-up services like the BBC iPlayer, or subscription services […]

BT TV boss departs after three years

The managing director of BT Sport and BT TV, Delia Bushell, has announced plans to step down following a three-year stint at the UK telecoms operator. Bushell will stay at BT until the start of June to oversee a handover of responsibilities and is due to announce her future plans “in the coming weeks”. “This […]