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IPTV: BT soccers it to ‘em |
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Tuesday, 17 July 2007 |
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UK incumbent adds football-heavy sport to its online TV package…
UK incumbent BT has added ‘near live’ sport – with the onus on football - to its Vision IPTV service. BT Vision Sport is aimed at fans who have BT Total Broadband but who are unwilling, or unable, to pay hefty TV sports subscriptions. BT’s service includes 242 Premier League matches per season and up to 125 Coca Cola League and Carling Cup games. Fans can also access Irish sports broadcaster Setanta Sports’ live action which includes 46 Premier League matches from England and 60 from Scotland as well as action from other European football leagues, US PGA tour golf, Nascar and Magners League rugby. BT Vision also offers a library of ‘classic’ sporting content and documentaries available on demand and supplied by sporting giants ESPN and IMG.
According to the telco Vision Sport offers the most inclusive approach to pricing in the market. Viewers can pay £1.99 to watch one of the 242 near-live matches - the first time full Barclays Premier League matches have been available without a TV subscription - or they can choose a subscription that includes all the near-live matches for £4 a month. Fans who want Setanta’s live action pay £9.99 per month – the same as the Freeview digital platform; those who want Setanta in addition to BT’s 242 near live matches can get this through the £12 “Total” package which delivers 75% of all Barclays Premier League matches in full.
Although there may be a certain inevitability about the initiative, BT’s strategy gets the thumbs up from the Ovum consultancy. “In the
US, Home Box Office became so popular because it led on sports (particularly boxing). In the
UK the demand for Sky has been driven by football, so as a new entrant in the entertainment space BT, with its content over broadband offer, was always going to have to offer sport. So this is the one we have been waiting for,” judges Mike Cansfield telecoms strategy practice leader in an Ovum EuroView Daily Comment posting. “Since its launch last autumn, BT has signed up 20,000 customers to Vision. Currently it is adding 2,500 per week - mostly existing customers, but some new. On this run-rate it would top-out at 85,000 at the year end - short of its 100,000 target. Clearly BT hopes sport will give the boost required to kick-on past this target.”
“As the peak seasons for signing-up for football are July/August (as the new season starts) and Christmas, BT is launching at the right time. Competition in this segment is fierce but BT's offer in comparison with Sky's £34 per month offer looks very competitive” adds Cansfield.
John Williamson |
