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For many of the companies listed, more details will be found in the section on New Services.
AA Insurance is taking part in the Flextech Television Microsoft’s WebTV trial.
Abbey National is using Open (BIB/BSkyB) to initially provide product information and the facility to ask a customer service representative to call back by telephone. Later in early 2000 it will offer full interactive banking. It is investing £100m over 3 years in the internet and interactive TV.
Barclays Bank was working with C&W Communications Digital service at the time NTL took over C&W's cable operations.
Barclaycard is also in the Flextech / Microsoft WebTV trial.
The Co-operative Bank has been providing interactive balance checking on BSkyB since 1996 via Sky's interactive teletext (and also incidentally via Vodaphone's SMS service).
Goldfish is another partner in in the Flextech / Microsoft WebTV trial.
HSBC is also to use Open to offer interactive banking. In September 1999 it was registering 500 users per day.
Natwest is working with Microsoft's Web-TV.
Orange is also working with Microsoft's Web-TV trial with Flextech.
The Money Channel was launched on BSkyB from 7 February 2000 focusing on financial and investment issues. It ceased broadcasting in May 2001 and went into administration. See under Interactive Services
Argos, British Airways and Littlewoods/Granada Home Shopping Group were also working with C&W Communications. Earlier this year discussions were underway by C&WC with QVC, What Car and First Call.
Littlewoods is developing a multi-channeled retail group across instore, mail order catalogue, television and internet with the aim of leveraging its expertise in logistics. In November 99, its digital TV channel on Sky, a joint venture with Granada, increased output to between 12 and 14 hours per day.
The BBC, Carlton, M&S and Tesco are working with Microsoft's Web-TV.
Argos, Asda, Carphone Warehouse, Dixons, First Call, Ford, Going Places, Iceland, Next, Somerfield, and WH Smith are using Open, or are expected to be using the service.
Flextech Interactive will supply Open with its UKTV Shop, which sells BBC books and merchandise, and SceneOne, which sells CDs, books, videos, and concert and event tickets. Later Flextech will also make available to Open its Screenshop, selling domestic and household items, and TV Travel Shop, selling holiday packages. The Travel Shop is backed up by a plus 150 staff call centre. Flextech's General Manager, Ashley Highfield, said that the call centre had a high conversion rate and shorter call durations because their customers were already informed before making the call.
Flextech is also working with Bass, Peugeot, Vauxhall, Honda, and Tesco in an interactive advertising trials using Microsoft’s WebTV.
Tesco's has adapted its internet site to work with NTL's iTV service. It has also developed a prototype TV remote control with a built-in bar code scanner so customers can easily re-order items.
QVC is a major US shopping channel that is broadcast by SkyDigital. After watching the advertising customers then use their telephone to order the goods. QVC is part owned by TCI.
Woolworths will use the Open interactive TV services to provide e-commerce shopping with an emphasis on CDs and videos. In an experiment with 1,000 users it took orders from around 2% of them each week.
BSkyB sees sport as a major audience puller and has invested millions in gaining exclusive rights to major sport events. Via its Open interactive services, Manchester United football fans are able to access fan news and purchase merchandise from the Manchester United Megastore.
In May 2000, BSkyB payed £266m in stock for the web portal Sports Internet with the aim of cross promoting the two media. The deal gives BSkyB exclusive betting links including tax free offshore accounts as well as 49% of Sports E-tail, an online mechandiser. Nether-the-less, many commentators said the price was far too high.
Feeling uncompetitive against BSkyB, the terrestrial digital operator ITV Digital was rumoured to be talking to cable operators NTL and Telewest Communications, as well as its ITV parent companies, with the view to jointly making a counter bid for football viewing rights. However, this was not to be. In June 2000 in the next round of 3 year broadcasting rights for the Premier League was auctioned. BSkyB bid £1.1bn to secured the rights to screen 66 live matches a year - £5.5m per match!. This compares with £670m for the previous 4 year licence. NTL did secured the rights for 40 pay-per-view matches per year with a bid of £328m - that's £2.7m per match!, and with a bid of £183m, ITV beat the BBC's bid of £123m for the rights to screen football highlights. The next day the BBC announced that it had purchased from BSkyB the broadcasting rights to FA matches for £400m. This is over £300m more than the previous £96m deal. However, for NTL they soon realised that the economics didn't stack up and October 2000 they withdrew their bid.
Bernie Ecclestone, the high-profile promotor of Formula One motor racing, is substantially increasing the TV rights. In the UK, the BBC, who had broadcast the races for many years, in 1999 was out-bid by the commercial TV channels. In fact the BBC hardly shows any sport having been outbid by the various commercial channels.
ITV launched the ITV Sport subscription channel in August 2001. In its first year it will offer over 300 football matches. See Services - Sport.
PA Sporting Life is working with C&W.
The BBC and Carlton are working with Microsoft's Web-TV.
ITN has adapted its internet site to work with NTL's iTV service.
On 26 June 2000, BSkyB launched SkyNews Active, to all its digital subscribers (3.4m at that time). Viewers are able to select different types of news on a series of mini screens while the main screen shows the regular Sky News channel. In the mini screens, viewers will be able to select particular news items from a list of headlines. Further text based background information is available via a service called Read It. With Read It on the the main screen, Sky News is shown in a mini window. There will also be a rolling ticker-tape service shown at the bottom of the screen.
Yellow Pages is also expected to use Open.
EMAP Online, EMAP Radio, Scoot, Uproar, LOOT, Live TV, Manchester Evening News, ABC Connect, ITN and Associated New Media are planning to deliver information to C&W digital customers.
Emap, which has large range of magazine publications and internet sites, as well as its radio interests, is looking to re-invent itself as a major content provider, providing the needs of different interest groups across multiple channels including digital TV.
The Job Channel advertises on Sky Television using the digital text service..
Feature films have always been seen at a key attractor for British audiences. All the major satellite, terrestrial and cable providers offer complete film channels either bundled as part of the monthly subscription or for an additional fee. Additionally they also provide pay-per-view for broadcast films, either directly themselves or by other providers like Film Four, part of the commercial Channel 4 TV company. BT has always seen pay-per-view for video on demand as a key competitive offering, providing access to 1,000s of individual films. It's ADSL trials in Colchester, Ipswich and West London have all provided this service. In July 2001, BT will be allowed to offer the service nationally.
The Internet poses both a threat and an opportunity for the music industry. Many artists are looking to sell direct to consumers by downloading their music in the MP3 format. For existing labels, the Internet is ideal to offer consumers access to their back catalogues and the ability to create their own combinations. Not only will digital TV give access to these services but it also provides an opportunity for cross selling, especially from the highly popular music channels.
In January 2000 two mergers brought this new multi-media world closer. First AOL, the major Internet ISP took-over Time Warner to create a business valued at $350bn, and then Time Warner, which owns Warner Music, agreed a joint venture with EMI worth c$20bn. EMI has interests in serveral Internet companies and owns the HMV Media Group. EMI shareholders and artists were said to be unhappy with the deal as control of the board is in Warners favour. However, as it is a joint deal and not a merger or a take-over, there is little they can do other than hope for a rival bidder during the 6 months it will take to pass the deal across the regulatory authorities.
The EC said there were concerns with the vertical integration of TW content with AOL's online services, especially in the light of AOL's joint promotion, distribution and sales arrangements with Bertelsmann. And in respect of the TW-EMI merger there were competition concerns as the number of major music companies would be reduced from 5 to 4. On 6 October 2000, a few days before the expected EC decision, Time Warner and EMI called off their planned merger when it became apparent that the EC wanted substantial concessions. However, the EC was more positive about the Time Warner -AOL merger and approved it a few days later. See Controversy: Two massive world mergers to be investigated by US & European authorities.
In Europe, AOL Europe is a 50/50 venture with the German media company Bertelsmann.
EMI/Warner and Sony have a joint music venture with BSkyB called Music Choice Europe. Besides providing 47 music channels to 5m homes across Europe it also provides downloadable music on interactive TV, the internet (with Freeserve, possibly Microsoft, and Music Choice's own website) and mobile phones. BSkyB owns 49, EMI 22% and Sony 11%. In September 2000 it announced an intention to float on the stock market for £190m.
Gaming and betting are two topics that are also expected to grow especially as they can be run off-shore and thus escape the betting levy and other regulations. Littlewoods, who lost 66% of their 6m football gambling players to the National Lottery, has fought back with an Internet and interactive TV offering.
Life Style programmes are already well established on the digital channels and now life style channels are emerging.
Innergy is called a "human potential, mind, boy and spirit" television channel. It is being launched by Dave Stewart of the 1980s pop group The Eurythmics. Also behind the venture is Morgan Mason, former White House staffer, and Eileen Gregory of Seven Dials Films. It will be broadcast by the Amsterdam UPCtv and there will be an associated web site and eventually interactive feature on the TV channel.
Microgen is planning to launch a business-to-consumer via interactive TV based on its internet business-to-business service. The service offers easy one click billing to consumers and paperless billing and improved cash flow to companies. No more "it must of got lost in the post" excuses!
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