Sky to lose Discovery channels

50Twuncle

In less than a weeks time - Sky are losing Discovery channels
https://www.sky.com/help/articles/changes-to-sky-channels?DCMP=snt-skycom:ec_channel_changes
This was the main reason that I subscribed - so it will be bye bye sky hello freeview - as it will be with many others I predict
I see that Sky felt it unnecessary to even notify its CUSTOMERS ?

teddysmum

50Twuncle wrote: »

In less than a weeks time - Sky are losing Discovery channels
https://www.sky.com/help/articles/changes-to-sky-channels?DCMP=snt-skycom:ec_channel_changes
This was the main reason that I subscribed - so it will be bye bye sky hello freeview - as it will be with many others I predict
I see that Sky felt it unnecessary to even notify its CUSTOMERS ?

Also Eurosport 1&2 and some channels which are on Freeview anyway.


According to the report, I read, the Sky spokesperson said that they would invest in UK products instead.


There would be no need to tell customers yet, as nothing is yet fixed.

[Deleted User]

50Twuncle wrote: »

In less than a weeks time - Sky are losing Discovery channels
https://www.sky.com/help/articles/changes-to-sky-channels?DCMP=snt-skycom:ec_channel_changes
This was the main reason that I subscribed - so it will be bye bye sky hello freeview - as it will be with many others I predict
I see that Sky felt it unnecessary to even notify its CUSTOMERS ?

if you log into 'My Sky' there will be a banner at the top advising you of the change, apparently they consider that adequate notice...

VisionMan

50Twuncle wrote: »

In less than a weeks time - Sky are losing Discovery channels [and Eurosport 1&2].
This was the main reason that I subscribed

I love posts like this. Utter nonsense of course, as they are available elsewhere. However, here is the main thread on this topic -

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5592264

[Deleted User]

50Twuncle wrote: »

I see that Sky felt it unnecessary to even notify its CUSTOMERS ?

The link to Sky's website is still saying that Discovery MAY remove their channels at any time after February 1st 2017, so it's a little premature for them to be making official notification to customers.

Anyone logging into Sky's site as a customer IS informed of the current situation.

I still suspect that Discovery will break before Sky do, 10 million Sky homes is an awful lot for Discovery to lose.

mije1983

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

I still suspect that Discovery will break before Sky do, 10 million Sky homes is an awful lot for Discovery to lose.

Exactly. I think Discovery need Sky more than Sky need Discovery.

Discovery say that 5.5m people a week watch one of their shows on Sky. Across 13 channels that's less than half a millon per channel per week, or about 60,000 viewers per day. That's in the unlikely event that each of the 5.5m viewers only watch 1 show a week. The actual unique subscribers watching a Discovery programme will be much less.

It will be a very small percentage of Sky's customer base that watch one of the Discovery channels and no doubt Sky have decided that paying more than £/$x will be worse for them than upsetting a small number of customers.

VisionMan

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

I still suspect that Discovery will break before Sky do, 10 million Sky homes is an awful lot for Discovery to lose.

Err, no. Nowhere near.

For starters, a few years ago, before SKY started aggressively increasing its prices, Sky Sports was estimated to have 6.5m users. That figure is now estimated to be 5.2. And of those 5.2m, how many actually watch Eurosport (its biggest channel on Sky) and its other lesser Discovery channels?

Skys churn has gone through the roof and the 83% price increase for Premier League football has also slashed its profits. Yet in their latest results presentation, its ARPU (average revenue per user) rose by 12%. Which represents a smaller user base paying more than they were previously. And now this.

But theres a story to both sides there, which basically boils down to Discovery want to charge more, Sky pay less.

In my opinion, the channels will be pulled. And Sky won't be the first platform to dump them since Discovery Networks £920m purchase of the Olympics until 2022. And they won't be the last.

carguy143

There's talk of Discovery and BT doing a deal to resell the Discovery channels to Sky customers much in the way that BT already do with AMC and BT Sport. It's very expensive to get BT Sport on Sky and I imagine even more so if they did the same thing with Discovery. I guess it would be a big win for BT if true as they could use it to gobble up more of the pay TV market.

http://www.seenit.co.uk/could-bt-sell-discovery-and-eurosports-channels-to-sky-households/

[Deleted User]

VisionMan wrote: »

Sky Sports was estimated to have 6.5m users. That figure is now estimated to be 5.2.

I was referring to Sky's 10 million customers, not simply Sky Sports.

VisionMan

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

I was referring to Sky's 10 million customers, not simply Sky Sports.

And where did you get that figure from? Do they still have 10m users? I don't know and nor does anyone else either!

The channels are gone, in my opinion. As this public spat has just gone too far.

''[Sky] says the channels are no longer as popular with viewers as they used to be and that it had been “overpaying” for them in recent years.''

http://www.seenit.co.uk/could-bt-sell-discovery-and-eurosports-channels-to-sky-households/

[Deleted User]

VisionMan wrote: »

Do they still have 10m users? I don't know and nor does anyone else either!

I'm certain Sky knows...