Virgin extends Sky deal, adds Sky F1 HD, Sky Sports 3 and 4 HD
Virgin and Sky have announced a new channel distribution agreement which sees Virgin's cable TV service extended with several new Sky Sports channels - marking the biggest wholesale channel agreement ever signed by Sky.
The new five year deal continues Virgin's existing Sky deal, giving customers access to Sky's entertainment channels including Sky One and Sky Atlantic, but extends the company's sports coverage with multiple new channels. Channels which made the cut include Sky F1 HD, Sky Sports 3 HD, Sky Sports 4 HD and Sky Sports News HD. It means Virgin Media is the only TV service in the UK to provide all sports broadcasting without requiring separate contracts for different channels; Sky customers have to sign up to BT Sports separately to receive BT Sports channels, but Virgin includes BT Sport in its top-end TV packages. BT doesn't include certain Sky Sports channels in its TV package.
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The new channels should be included in the existing Sky Premium HD bundle, which is currently £7 a month on top of a standard Virgin TV package.
Customers will also be able to use their computer, smartphone or tablet to access Sky entertainment channels later this summer. Using the Virgin TV Anywhere app, TV customers with additional Sky Movies and Sky Sports subscriptions will get access to live and on demand content through the Sky Sports and Sky Movies apps as well.
“We are excited our customers will be able to watch even more great TV from Sky on more devices as a result of the most extensive agreement ever signed between Virgin Media and Sky," Tom Mockridge, Virgin Media’s CEO, said of the deal. "This promises to be a fantastic summer of entertainment and our customers, whether at home or on the go, will get to enjoy Sky’s range of channels for years to come as a result of our investment.”
The news will surely come as news to sports fans that suffered a video blackout on Sunday during the Premier League finale, when Sky's £10 Now TV streaming service failed.
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