BSkyB highlights multi-screen and on-demand credentials

“Technology is not an end in itself - it is a slave to the experience.” That was the key message from BSkyB at this year’s IPTV World Forum, where the company was speaking about its multi-screen strategy and the importance of online video via its Sky Anytime service. The philosophy was outlined by Griffin Parry, Director of On-Demand at the UK satellite operator, who added: “We believe in a hybrid distribution model.”

Sky has certainly moved quickly to augment its broadcast satellite service delivered to the TV set. The Sky Anytime on-demand service is available on the PC via the web (as well as on the television using push-VOD), and Sky Mobile TV has 200,000 subscribers across three mobile phone networks in the UK. Six linear channels are streamed for PC consumption as well: five sports channels plus Sky News.

Addressing delegates at the TVoverNet sessions at the Olympia conference/exhibition in early March, Griffin was keen to point out Sky’s on-demand credentials. Not surprising perhaps, when the other conference rooms were full of telcos and cable operators discussing the size of their long-tails and the potential for VOD to differentiate services and increase ARPU. Griffin includes Sky+ PVR time-shift viewing in the on-demand category, and said the company recorded 3.4 billion such events in 2007. “Unarguably, Sky+ is the UK’s No.1 on-demand service,” he contended.

Sky Anytime TV, which provides push-VOD titles on an operator-controlled portion of Sky+ hard drives, is also achieving recognition in UK satellite homes. This service, which includes 40 hours of  regularly refreshed content, including TV shows, is available in 1.9 million homes and used in 1.2 million. There were five million viewing sessions using the service in December 2007. Sky’s main rival, cable operator Virgin Media, was recording 33 million views per month for its on-demand services at the end of last year, to put this in context.

Griffin said Sky is offering consumers a complete, multi-screen experience and revealed statistics that highlight the extent to which viewing audiences have fragmented, even on the same platform (albeit a hybrid platform if you include Internet to PC).

Sky viewers watching the first episode of ‘Ross Kemp in Afghanistan’, broadcast initially on Sky One, saw the programme in the following ways: Sky One live (on a Sunday at 9pm), 38 per cent of viewings; Sky+ PVR time-shifted sessions, 12 per cent; the Red Button (interactive/enhanced TV) director’s cut, 5pc; Sky One HD, all showings, 2pc; Sky One repeats, 21 per cent; Sky Two repeats, 16pc, Sky Anytime (on-demand) on PC, 2pc; Sky Anytime on TV (push-VOD), 4 per cent.