BSkyB hopes to plug into new markets

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Pay-TV broadcaster BSkyB has become the latest media company to jump on the so-called "triple play" bandwagon.

With its £211m ($374m) purchase of Easynet, BSkyB will soon be able to offer broadband and telephony services, as well as its current satellite TV service.

Not only will the deal allow the broadcaster to tighten its grip on the Pay-TV market, it will also enable it to diversify into other areas - picking up key subscriber numbers as it widens its horizons.

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Source: BBC

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BT, the telecoms giant, is to terminate its marketing partnership with British Sky Broadcasting, following the satellite broadcaster's £211m acquisition of Easynet, the internet services provider.

BT currently promotes Sky subscription packages on its website and in literature to customers.

Speaking to The Sunday Telegraph, Ian Livingston, the chief executive of BT Retail, said: "The relationship between BT Retail and Sky will have to be reviewed."

He added that BT's marketing of Sky accounted for about 9,000 new subscriptions per month to the satellite operator's pay-TV channels. This is equivalent to around 10 per cent of the broadcaster's total monthly new customers.

An executive with links to BT, added: "Obviously BT and Sky are to become direct rivals now that both companies have signalled their intent to provide video on demand and TV over the internet. It is hard to see what BT has to gain from promoting Sky."

James Murdoch, the chief executive of BSkyB, told analysts last week that he expected his company to continue to have a relationship with BT.

It is believed that future relations will be confined to Sky's use of BT's network, run by the telecom group's wholesale division.

BT's shares have suffered from BSkyB's entry into the internet arena. The shares fell to 206p on Friday - a six month low - and analysts raised competition concerns.

Source: Telegraph

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