Sky planning internet TV service

Pay-as-you-watch viewing

BSkyB will launch an internet TV service this year, according to the firm’s CFO, Andrew Griffith. Speaking at the FT Digital Media conference in London, Griffith says that the service will provide a cross-platform service with flexible payment models, which could include pay-as-you-watch viewing. Griffith refused to comment on whether the service would charge per episode, saying only that there will be a payment spectrum, although he says that pay-as-you-go services enable content providers to reach a larger audience.

The news comes after reports earlier this year claimed that Sky is readying an attack on online streaming, with consumers continuing to shift their viewing habits online. Sky is already making progress in the streaming space with its Sky Go video-on-demand (VoD) service for existing subscribers. Griffith says that the service now has 2.5m users, watching a cumulative 10m live sessions a week, and adds that the service is not cannibalising traditional viewing. Mobile and tablets account for 60% of total Sky Go viewing, compared to a combined 40% for PCs and games consoles such as Microsoft’s Xbox 360, according to Griffith.

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