Itv moves into pay television

[cg010169]

ITV to launch high defination digital channels on SKY


ITV has agreed a pay-television deal with Sky to launch high definition versions of its successful digital channels as a subscription service on the Sky platform.

ITV2 HD, ITV3 HD, and ITV4 HD will launch as part of Sky+HD’s subscription package of channels in autumn 2010. The channels will be available to all homes subscribing to a Sky+HD subscription, of which there are more than 2.9 million.
ITV2 HD will launch in October for the start of The Xtra Factor, with ITV3 HD and ITV4 HD launching shortly after.

ITV’s digital channel family is the most successful in the UK, and increased its total share of viewing over the first half of 2010 by 12%, with ITV2 and ITV3 the two most popular digital channels in the UK.

source
ITV to launch high defination digital channels on SKY



Personally, I don't know how this is gonna work. Are we gonna be asked to pay for these channels once they are on SKy. I can't see Sky paying them anythink out of the £10 HD sub, so it must be a different sub. As if thats the case they have shot themselfs in the foot.
If you browse through itv2,3 and 4 it's just repeats from shows from 10 years ago or movies repeats. The plus side might be the football which they could show, but in general they aren't gonna invest in HD shows to justify any future price plan as you know they'll just upscale the channels.

 

[nozzer]

.....versions of its successful digital channels as a subscription service on the Sky platform......

.......ITV2 HD, ITV3 HD, and ITV4 HD .

Obviously the definition of successful has slipped somewhat recently. Have you seen the dire viewing figures these channels actually get ?

As for HD versions, well, the comments above say it all really. Why would anyone pay for an upscaled repeat of a 1980's TV show, most of which weren't particularly good even at the time !

Perhaps ITV is trying to hype and add value before attempting to hawk them off onto some unsuspecting buyer.

 

[timekeeper]

omg what is the point in this , as you have pointed out nozzer the quality of some of these programs is shocking as it is , why would i want to watch it in hd only for it to be broadcast in 4:3 like some of the stuff up-scaled on ch4 hd !!!

 

[pinkhelmets]

HD tv in the uk has now been crippled. Itv have no care if they get zero viewers of the HD versions, they have a contract and get paid anyway. Sky hold the cards so that if the uk public want to watch HD content they must pay 30 quid or more a month. Itv2,3,4, ch4hd, ch5hd, plus other ch4 & ch5 offerings are now all signed to sky along with any smaller HD broadcasters. Uk tv has been bought, it's too late now.
For the average public this means SD telly will be the norm for the next decade or more, we can now expect no further progress. Freeview HD will be a flop and this news maybe explains why freesat receivers have plummeted in price.

You can't blame itv, they pay extra for HD content so this seals their additional funding they needed. For sure it is a shame for the uk that HD popularity will fall short in comparison to other nations. We shall need to pay over £500 per year minimum for the priviledge of quality images and no doubt that will be more expensive than anywhere. Pay-tv has won, we shall all be paying fortunes for what we watch, or just downloading illegally ~or perhaps us lucky few will have hacks to rely on.

 

[oneman]

No doubt that sky now has the monoply on HD. But HD in this country is around the same price if not cheaper then parts of europe.

From what I understood there will be more content on freeview (SD and HD) and analogue system gets switched off.

 

[Evastar]

Well with the way things are going in Ireland with the recession a lot of people genuinely can't afford to pay the prices they are charging. It seems to be just push to get every possible cent they can from you, even for absolute rubbish