SKT Sky Network Television Limited.

[Entrep]

Gosh, that's really crawling on four legs for new business. Sure to upset current subscribers....

Current subs have been upset for several years already and people still have SKY

[Rep]

Current subs have been upset for several years already and people still have SKY

That is true but what is also true is that they now have a lot of lapsed subscribers - who handed back their decoders and MySky boxes and haven't come back... some of them were using the FanPass but a lot have simply vanished over the horizon for SKT and haven't been seen since... the question is what does SKT do - does it try to get them back... does it keep playing whack-a-mole with KODI box sellers and users... or does it change its model?

Or does it simply sit on its hands and watch the slow decline and continue milking the cash cow?

[blackcap]

Latest sign-up program for Sky TV in Hamilton. Sky Basic + Sky Sports (incl BeIn Sports channels) + MySky box + Installation (if needed) = $9pw.

Smacks of desperation to me

But what a perfect way to infuriate existing subscribers

Right time to give up SKY and get the Mrs to sign up. Just stupid from SKY if they are going about it this way.

[Zaphod]

Latest sign-up program for Sky TV in Hamilton. Sky Basic + Sky Sports (incl BeIn Sports channels) + MySky box + Installation (if needed) = $9pw.

Smacks of desperation to me

But what a perfect way to infuriate existing subscribers

That deal has been running for over a year now. We (re)signed up on it mid last year.

[JBmurc]

$36 per month !!!!! for Mysky ?? only got soho channel more and I pay over $100

[JeremyALD]

They are doing everything they can do boost sub numbers for the Lions tour and improve profitability. Although this might work for the next year, they really are playing a short term game. They always rely on big sporting events to keep subs and subscriber's but theyre going to run out of gas if they continue to piss people off.

Does Sky ever report an NPS score for customer satisfaction? I wouldn't be surprised if it scored lower than Wilson carparking.

[bull....]

$36 per month !!!!! for Mysky ?? only got soho channel more and I pay over $100

Ever hoping that your be hooked and keep it a small price to pay to get a long term customer.

Anyway be returning my sky next mth after must be 15yrs odd? dont need it anymore really only used it for cnbc, news, movies but most this is all available free now so whats the point bye bye sky:( but guess my pocket will be much happier :t_up:

[Rep]

They are doing everything they can do boost sub numbers for the Lions tour and improve profitability. Although this might work for the next year, they really are playing a short term game. They always rely on big sporting events to keep subs and subscriber's but theyre going to run out of gas if they continue to piss people off.

Does Sky ever report an NPS score for customer satisfaction? I wouldn't be surprised if it scored lower than Wilson carparking.

Given the question for NPS is:
How likely is it that you would recommend [brand] to a friend or colleague?

I'd be surprised if the NPS score was actually positive.. as it would suggest that promoters were outweighed by detractors... on the other hand, if the customers who are still on the service are blindly loyal then they might still have a positive score. It would be the lapsed customers who'd be detractors....

[Nasi Goreng]

Imagine a business that made $100m profit per year and that was declining year on year by 10%. The cost to fix this business might be to settle on a profit that might be $50m profit per year... which would still not guarantee the success of the business but perhaps allow it to find new areas to grow and stop the rot.

As a CEO, what do you do? to write off so much profit in one year would be a huge brave call but maybe the best call for the long term health of the company.

The easier option is to milk it for the next 4 years, build up your cash reserves and see what unfolds. It appears to be the road Sky is on now. Their share price down trend tells it all. Wonder where it will end?

[Subway]

Perhaps it needs to be taken over by a large multi national not already in the NZ market so they can make the structural changes that Sky cannot make while still being listed.

[bull....]

sky getting really agressive in there promotions - Im thinking things are not looking good this half must be trying to boost those subscriber numbers.

[Entrep]

They are also one of the most up-voted NZ threads on Reddit at the moment - https://www.reddit.com/r/newzealand/comments/6ed524/****_you_sky_tv_and_your_stupid_decision_to/

The hate is strong in the younger generation for sure.

[Zaphod]

The hate is strong in the younger generation for sure.

So is the hate for paying for anything. Listening to the 20+ year olds in the office, they won't even pay the $14 for Netflix.

[WingingIt]

So is the hate for paying for anything. Listening to the 20+ year olds in the office, they won't even pay the $14 for Netflix.

I'm 23 and I freeload off a mates Sky Go account when he isn't using it. I would never pay for sky considering the reliability of Sky Go. Problems every single time I used it.

[xafalcon]

Perhaps I missed it, but doesn't SKT traditionally increase subs on June 1st?

Last year they left movie channel pricing unchanged (the Netflix effect), but increased basic and sports pricing

Have they decided to forego the annual sub increase across the board this year?

[bull....]

Perhaps I missed it, but doesn't SKT traditionally increase subs on June 1st?

Last year they left movie channel pricing unchanged (the Netflix effect), but increased basic and sports pricing

Have they decided to forego the annual sub increase across the board this year?

I think they are not this year

[bull....]

From tomorrow, all Australians can watch what they want, when they want and where they want at a price that suits them best, from low-price, no-commitment, HD streaming up to a state-of the art viewing experience via our cable and satellite iQ3 set top box.”

http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/foxtel-unveils-its-new-streaming-service-foxtel-now-from-10-a-month/news-story/3c559a4baa56839466dfc12779285b82

Foxtel seem to relise they need to change with the time WONDER IF SKY TV WILL EVER GET IT

[Zaphod]

It's certainly a step in the right direction, and represents an evolution of Sky's Neon service, however I'm sure there will be howls of indignation that services are still provided in bundles.

For the sake of investors, Sky need to be more forthcoming with their strategy for Neon.

Disc: Not an investor.

[ohpark0119]

I'm a wee pissed off at sky.

Disc: an investor....

[bull....]

It's certainly a step in the right direction, and represents an evolution of Sky's Neon service, however I'm sure there will be howls of indignation that services are still provided in bundles.

For the sake of investors, Sky need to be more forthcoming with their strategy for Neon.

Disc: Not an investor.

sky should offer buddles of skinny options and then give customers the option to top up their plan with channels not included in their skinny package.

[bull....]

I'm a wee pissed off at sky.

Disc: an investor....

i would be too looks like it wants to go lower. im not a holder but a soon not to be sky payer so guess thats another customer lost, i would be interested in returning if they had pick and pay options for channels but with the arrogance of sky wont hold my breath from this dinosaur.

[ohpark0119]

i would be too looks like it wants to go lower. im not a holder but a soon not to be sky payer so guess thats another customer lost, i would be interested in returning if they had pick and pay options for channels but with the arrogance of sky wont hold my breath from this dinosaur.

Stubborn bastards need to change

[Baa_Baa]

sky should offer buddles of skinny options and then give customers the option to top up their plan with channels not included in their skinny package.

Agree, buy what you want when you want it, nothing more nothing less. Interesting if I'm correct, there's no objection from anyone here to paying for Sky content. Just object to paying for content that isn't and won't be consumed. Sky really are demonstrating a profound ignorance of the internet content consumption, I guess it's that they are mired in an old school commercial model that just simply can't compete, so they perpetuate the tired old worn out model for as long as they can stay profitable and solvent. A slow glide to oblivion.

[bull....]

I would say SKY will be in panic mode soon , customer numbers dropping at the pace they are mean they will be outbid for content in the future which will perpetuate the decline in customer numbers and sky know this hence there all out advertising blitz ( why does a monopoly need to do this? think about it ) its in a terminal decline under its current model.

[Jay]

How may channels are their in the basic package, lots, Mainly watch about 3 or 4 of them, occasionally a few others, Plus sport, ditched the movies as hardly ever had time to watch them.
Pick and choose options would be much better

There must be only about 3 people that watch some channels!

[JeremyALD]

The one saving Grace is their sports coverage is fantastic. Fanpass could of big much bigger at the old price point if they promoted it more. I think they were worried they'd lose full subscription customers to the service.

I think sky needs to move quickly, however it seems like they're wanting to hold onto things like the Lions to keep their customers. How long can huge sporting events go on for? Eventually there's going to be a year with no world cups that people are hugely interested in and subscriber's will fall sharply. Seems like there just waiting for that to happen before changing their approach?

[ohpark0119]

The one saving Grace is their sports coverage is fantastic. Fanpass could of big much bigger at the old price point if they promoted it more. I think they were worried they'd lose full subscription customers to the service.

I think sky needs to move quickly, however it seems like they're wanting to hold onto things like the Lions to keep their customers. How long can huge sporting events go on for? Eventually there's going to be a year with no world cups that people are hugely interested in and subscriber's will fall sharply. Seems like there just waiting for that to happen before changing their approach?

Sky probably betting on the merger approval with no plan for future

[Entrep]

The Lions Tour came up and they probably didn't see the uptick in satellite subscribers like previous major events (assuming they intend to watch it via Fan Pass instead, which makes them less money), so they basically shut down Fan Pass so that people would be forced to buy the satellite service instead. They basically killed their most promising new product for some new subscribers for 6 months.

[Benny1]

I got rid of Sky a few years ago...don't miss all the endless repeats of The World's Deadliest Catch.. (how many times do you need to watch someone dredge up a few crabs from the ocean floor?)
I would however pay for just a Sports Package. ..Do like the Rugby League..go the Warriors, but until Sky gets with the new world they won't be making any money out of me..I won't be investing any money with them ethier

[BlackCross]

Neil Campling of Northern Trust with a bit of insight into the World Wide fall off in popularity of major sports broadcasting

Premier League football suffered the biggest drop in viewing on Sky TV for at least seven years, raising questions over the popularity of live sports as well as the sustainability of a lucrative source of funding for English clubs.
Average viewing on Sky’s live TV channels fell 14 per cent over the past season even after it paid two-thirds more to show the matches under the latest three-year deal with the Premier League at about £10m per game......

....We see the BARB data as the latest in a long line of statistics which suggest the viewing trends of live action sports is going the same way as other forms of linear TV.....

....The Champions League final coverage over the weekend in the US saw flat viewership versus 2016 but down 18% from 2015. (Source: SMW). Major League Baseball, on Fox, over the weekend was down 19% in ratings and 16% in viewership from last year. (Source SBD)
Weekend NASCAR Cup Series racing fell 16% in both ratings and viewership YoY. (Source: SMW). The Champions League final in the UK, averaged just 2.8M TV Viewers (Source: The Times). The only ray of light has been in the NHL Stanley cup finals in which the surprising run of the Nashville Predators has captured interest ....

...ports programming represents an outsized source of costs but has historically been seen as an important lever for subscriptions and distribution. ESPN has long been considered to be the biggest beneficiary of the cable TV bundle. The sports “must have” content has enabled ESPN to negotiate ever higher rates with cable TV providers and then insisting that it’s content be in all of the channel bundles regardless of whether the consumer wants the channel is now faced with falling ratings, accelerating subscriber declines and surging content costs. Whereas others now see this position as an unwanted and unfair “ESPN tax” on their PayTV bundle. The rise of skinny bundles, cord cutting, cord shaving and alternative OTT technologies will likely continue to pressure the Live sports TV industry. We’d much rather invest in the next generation of sports; namely eGaming and eSports.

Personally these days I'm only interested in my own team's matches plus just the highlights from the rest of the league, be they playing soccer, cricket or rugby. Maybe it's over saturation and dislike of the huge payments made to the 'stars' that's turning me off to some extent.

[JeremyALD]

Yet another PR nightmare for Sky TV with a commercial played after the Haka backfiring bigtime.

[bull....]

Yet another PR nightmare for Sky TV with a commercial played after the Haka backfiring bigtime.

what a joke all pumped up only to be deflated by some dumb ad.

[Baa_Baa]

Fanpass worked like a dream last night, watched the Lions/AB's game (brilliant) and America's Cup, flawless delivery. So sad that I had to buy a whole month $100 and they have the sneaky roll over so if I don't cancel, it's another $100. In this case there's a few more games to come so one more month sub works, but mostly it won't. Anyway, I have to say Fanpass is rock solid but their subscription model sucks and I hate them for that. I want to buy one game, or a day or a week maybe, but these aren't options anymore and SKY have just lost the ****ing plot by withdrawing them. Idiots, they can't see the internet woods for the trees.

[flyer]

SKY and Vodafone terminate their sale & purchase agreement8:50am, 26 Jun 2017 | GENERALFurther to the announcement of 1 March 2017, Sky Network Television Limited (“SKY”) (NZX: SKT; ASX: SKT) and Vodafone Europe B.V. , a wholly owned subsidiary of Vodafone Group Plc, have now decided to terminate the sale and purchase agreement (“SPA”) in relation to the proposed merger of SKY and Vodafone New Zealand.
The parties have also decided to withdraw the appeal of the Commerce Commission decision regarding the proposed merger.
SKY and Vodafone New Zealand will continue to work together to strengthen our commercial relationship for the benefit of the customers and the shareholders of our respective organisations.

[Entrep]

SKY and Vodafone terminate their sale & purchase agreement8:50am, 26 Jun 2017 | GENERALFurther to the announcement of 1 March 2017, Sky Network Television Limited (“SKY”) (NZX: SKT; ASX: SKT) and Vodafone Europe B.V. , a wholly owned subsidiary of Vodafone Group Plc, have now decided to terminate the sale and purchase agreement (“SPA”) in relation to the proposed merger of SKY and Vodafone New Zealand.
The parties have also decided to withdraw the appeal of the Commerce Commission decision regarding the proposed merger.
SKY and Vodafone New Zealand will continue to work together to strengthen our commercial relationship for the benefit of the customers and the shareholders of our respective organisations.

awkward...

[bull....]

under $3 soon i reckon

[Nasi Goreng]

It might be a bargain at some point... and that point may be below $2

[bull....]

Sky cancelled hand back on the weekend :) $65 richer now per month and to top it off just got netflix free so all my tv is now free gee feels like a leap back in time lol.

[value_investor]

Adapt or die. Netflix has come out with a record number of subscribers beating all market expectations even the highest ones. 13% gain in share price in a single day.

Sky still has time to change their model and move into stability instead of free falling. The way management are running this company though it doesn't sound like it will get to that point. Case in point, the changes to Fanpass might help improve profits and revenue in the short term due to the Lions tour but it really hurts their brand long term. People recognise it straight away that they are being gouged especially as deliberate as Sky did it. Spark was able to identify shifts in the market very early on and the negative connotations its name and product had under "Telecom" and "Xtra" but they were able to change things before it was too late.

I wouldn't hold my breath with Sky.

[Baa_Baa]

Insightful comments, completely agree!

[LAC]

I think they will get there eventually, they still make a chunk of cash.
On 940mill revenue they made NPAT of 140mil,
Netflix did 181mil from 8.8Billion,

I good acquisition will get their numbers up again, I think if Sky can start negotiating global rights on content then they have a potential to do well.

[hardt]

I think they will get there eventually, they still make a chunk of cash.
On 940mill revenue they made NPAT of 140mil,
Netflix did 181mil from 8.8Billion,

I good acquisition will get their numbers up again, I think if Sky can start negotiating global rights on content then they have a potential to do well.

SKY TV hit that sort of margin because of the set top box model at $99/mo... which is not the way forward.

They need to really up the anti on NEON... 99% of my watch list is HBO - I do pay $20 a month and I am "content" with what I am getting.

Sports has to be broken away from the current packages, people ( me included ) would pay 30-50 dollars a month for sports.

I am picking they will continue to bleed the high margin model they have now until it hits some sort of equilibrium in the market.

Gain a large cash base to acquire some key content to help ramp up after a pivot down a new avenue.

[LAC]

Yes I totally agree! The STB model is over and they will still continue to milk that cow until the last few drops are left. What I am saying is that it's not going to be a massive change for Sky with regard to how the will get the content out, they have the platforms to stream the content and all they will need to close one tap and open the other. With big pockets it's going to need some other revenue stream to make up for the lower revenue though. Neon, SkyGo, FanPass etc etc isnt going to generate that $99/mo you are referring to in my opinion and they will acquire something, they would be crazy not to.

[bull....]

Bad day for sky a major s/h selling down

https://www.nzx.com/companies/SKT/announcements/304492

bad press today

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/95049927/richard-macmanus-skys-streaming-apps-are-a-viewing-nightmare

and the chart technicals are terrible guess my call of under 3 is coming

[ratkin]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/tennis/95420635/amazons-move-into-sport-highlights-broken-pay-tv-model

[Rep]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/tennis/95420635/amazons-move-into-sport-highlights-broken-pay-tv-model

SKY should be afraid - very afraid.

[peat]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/tennis/95420635/amazons-move-into-sport-highlights-broken-pay-tv-model

thats big news.... with their web services infrastructure they can stream content easily

[Entrep]

as long as there is no one else to produce the rugby here in NZ sky will be alive

[Rep]

as long as there is no one else to produce the rugby here in NZ sky will be alive

As long as... that's inviting disruption Entrep...

[Baa_Baa]

SKY should be afraid - very afraid.

Hopefully it is a wake up call, plenty of opinions here see the end of Sky and not the future as they fail to accept reality or convincingly reinvent themselves in the digital age.

[bull....]

SKY should be afraid - very afraid.

Totally gree should be very afraid , 2021 rugby rights up for review i believe you can imagine prime subscription with rugby viewing.

[JAX]

as long as there is no one else to produce the rugby here in NZ sky will be alive

Chicken and egg. If SKY loses the rights, whats the point of them owing the company (OSB) that does that production. So they could shut it down and lose their shirt on it out of spite effectively - which would not exactly be a prudent use of shareholder funds - or sell it to the new rights holder or anyone else. Or they could keep it and charge for the privilege and at least keep a sliver of revenue from the sport. Or the rugby union themselves using the bonanza of all that extra revenue produce it themselves and not need them anymore as part of the deal. There is 3 options off the top of my head - So its not the sure thing lock in everyone believes it to be.

[Entrep]

Rights and production are different. They could produce the rugby and someone else broadcasts it or vice versa. There is not another company in NZ that can produce all the rugby games they do, Intl, Super Rugby, NPC all the way down to school boy. That is a lot of games and not a small or easy operation to start

[JAX]

Rights and production are different. They could produce the rugby and someone else broadcasts it or vice versa. There is not another company in NZ that can produce all the rugby games they do, Intl, Super Rugby, NPC all the way down to school boy. That is a lot of games and not a small or easy operation to start

They dont need to! - All Amazon/Netflix/Spark etc has to do is acquire the streaming rights. Leave the "broadcast" rights to SKY which then forces them to keep "producing the content".

This is the common approach overseas, split streaming and broadcast rights and get everyone to bid for either - SKY would never win the Streaming and probably couldn't afford both anyway, but couldn't afford not to have the standard rights either. Its a absolute money maker for the Sports - they effectively get a double up for something that didnt exist 5 years ago. NZRugby would be crazy not to follow and Im sure they will. The damage to SKY's business having a competitor thou, will be massive.

[bull....]

bollingers turning down , macd negative , the hourlies consolidating at the lows - whens there results?

[bull....]

under 3 getting closer maybe at report time? be interesting

[Entrep]

^^ Even then would you consider it a good buy? Dividends and cashflow are great, but where is the business in 5+ years?

[bull....]

^^ Even then would you consider it a good buy? Dividends and cashflow are great, but where is the business in 5+ years?

have to change there business model for me to get even faintly interested.
anyway should never buy a business for a high dividend if its unsustainable in the long run as your never get your capital back.

[LAC]

have to change there business model for me to get even faintly interested.
anyway should never buy a business for a high dividend if its unsustainable in the long run as your never get your capital back.

Totally agree but they still have a chunk in the bank, they are bound to acquire something.... if they are losing customers fast then they will look to get customers through a different business altogether. They would be crazy to spend their cash saving this dying business. If they can acquire something they can bundle then they will survive this rut. If they sit back and spend that banked cash on paying divies.....then the game is over.

[Entrep]

totally agree but they still have a chunk in the bank, they are bound to acquire something.... If they are losing customers fast then they will look to get customers through a different business altogether. They would be crazy to spend their cash saving this dying business. If they can acquire something they can bundle then they will survive this rut. If they sit back and spend that banked cash on paying divies.....then the game is over.

I've got an idea - how about they buy a telco? :D

[LAC]

I've got an idea - how about they buy a telco? :D

That was a stupid move, fix a problem business with a problem business:)

[bull....]

Hammer Time lol

poor result with reduced div my under 3 looking good and lower

funny to read the commentary, that they still dont get there fundamental problem is price , they can ramble on all they like about there product but if its overpriced they will always lose.

[Master98]

solid results much better than expected. net profit 116m better MoriningStar 98m and 4-traders 108m,cashflow is massive.

[Sideshow Bob]

Disappointed with the reduction in divvy - especially with that cashflow.

[JeremyALD]

As much as I dislike SKY and think they need new leadership and vision, even with the current management it's starting to look reasonable value. Current under $3 if you factor in divvy.

[Jonboyz]

As much as I dislike SKY and think they need new leadership and vision, even with the current management it's starting to look reasonable value. Current under $3 if you factor in divvy.

Sky TV is a sinking ship unless they start to get smarter about online streaming. It has been the same for ESPN and Disney. ESPN have been hemorrhaging subscribers for years and DIS.NYSE have felt the impact of that - disney's recent move to focus on online streaming was the only smart thing they could do (other than split ESPN off into a wholly separate company).

NEON (Sky's online service) is overpriced and under-catalogued. Game of Thrones is the only reason I login for a 'Free trial' every year...

[value_investor]

It makes me chuckle that John Fellet thinks his biggest competition is piracy when Netflix, Lightbox and other subscription platforms like Amazon are the things they should be worried about most. It also wouldn't give me confidence that Fellet laments the Commerce Commissions decision not to let the merger happen and then not wanting to get into the details of why it would be a good thing. Pretty much, everything is not Sky's fault..

Some of the result here is being cushioned remember by a one off event that happens every 12 years (Lions tests). I have a feeling the numbers would have been much worse without it. Still impressive cash flow, and to make net profit off that revenue in the industry they are in is not terrible. Time is running out for them however.

Disc: Not a holder

[Entrep]

Better than I expected. Still no interested even with dividend. You'll never get your capital back.

[Zaphod]

It makes me chuckle that John Fellet thinks his biggest competition is piracy when Netflix, Lightbox and other subscription platforms like Amazon are the things they should be worried about most. It also wouldn't give me confidence that Fellet laments the Commerce Commissions decision not to let the merger happen and then not wanting to get into the details of why it would be a good thing. Pretty much, everything is not Sky's fault..

Some of the result here is being cushioned remember by a one off event that happens every 12 years (Lions tests). I have a feeling the numbers would have been much worse without it. Still impressive cash flow, and to make net profit off that revenue in the industry they are in is not terrible. Time is running out for them however.

Disc: Not a holder

Their other competitor is simply the internet in general - people are happy to while away a few hours on Facebook, or YouTube or surfing nested hyperlinks to conspiracy theories.

I don't agree with Fellet that they should pair back on the deals for new customers & reducing their content spend on the basis that customers will be attracted & retained due to the new software release and their utilisation of big data. IMO, fresh blood at the top is required.

[Entrep]

They should pair back on the deals for new customers & reducing their content spend on the basis that customers will be attracted & retained due to the new software release and their utilisation of big data

Did he actually he say that? LOL. Because they've done such an amazing job so far. My SKY box takes 5 seconds to do anything (ie change channel) after a button press because it's so old and the "new software" is slowing it down so much already. So exactly what more are they gonna be able to do with it that won't brick it? I already feel like throwing it out the window half the time.

[LAC]

The future of this company will be a major acquisition IMO, their current business is dying and they have a large bank balance. They need something to complement their cash flow and retain customers. I think Power, Insurance or BB. There are ways around the commerce commission rulings if they pull sports out of the business which would allow them to get the Telco option back one. The Telco is my least favorite option though.

[bull....]

The future of this company will be a major acquisition IMO, their current business is dying and they have a large bank balance. They need something to complement their cash flow and retain customers. I think Power, Insurance or BB. There are ways around the commerce commission rulings if they pull sports out of the business which would allow them to get the Telco option back one. The Telco is my least favorite option though.

i dont think they have any options they are a dinosaur , need to save all there money for all blacks rights so dont think they will be doing any aquisitions the only thing they will continue to do i reckon is milk all you for as much as they can

[JayRiggs]

Interesting listening to the Radiosport talkback last night.
Alot of disgruntled Sky Sport customers who feel they aren't getting value for money.
A few callers were saying they called Sky customer service to cancel their subscription, but the customer service reps offered them discounted $30/month deals to keep them on + free stuff like movies for 3 months.

Sky getting desperate to keep their loyal customers!

[Zaphod]

Did he actually he say that? LOL. Because they've done such an amazing job so far. My SKY box takes 5 seconds to do anything (ie change channel) after a button press because it's so old and the "new software" is slowing it down so much already. So exactly what more are they gonna be able to do with it that won't brick it? I already feel like throwing it out the window half the time.

Given the track record, it's hard to believe I know! - here's the quotes:

"Fellet confirmed there would be no price rise for Sky customers this year, but said he wanted to rein back "aggressive" discounts to new customers"

"Fellet said Sky planned to cut its content costs by 5 per cent in the year to June."

Regarding the decoder, our "next gen" decoder was actually pretty quick but a relative's older unit is exceptionally slow to the point of it being almost unusable. These older units should have been automatically replaced by Sky or not have received the new update(s).

[blackcap]

Interesting listening to the Radiosport talkback last night.
Alot of disgruntled Sky Sport customers who feel they aren't getting value for money.
A few callers were saying they called Sky customer service to cancel their subscription, but the customer service reps offered them discounted $30/month deals to keep them on + free stuff like movies for 3 months.

Sky getting desperate to keep their loyal customers!

Thanks JayRiggs, I will do that myself and call them after the US Open tennis and see what they will offer me. $30 a month and I may be tempted to stay. Otherwise I will cancel and just get my partner to join when the cricket season starts again... :)

[Entrep]

Officially under $3 now

[hogie]

Officially under $3 now

I hope no one here has shares in SKT ... I would've sold out of these years ago. They simply haven't kept up with the times and are offering an inferior product at a premium price.

[JeremyALD]

Someone stop me from hitting the buy button!

[Ace]

Someone stop me from hitting the buy button!

blockbuster...

[Ogg]

Someone stop me from hitting the buy button!

https://betanews.com/2017/04/13/millennials-pirate-streams/

[JeremyALD]

Thanks both I will resist. I do think there is a good chance this will bounce at some point to mid $3s but probably not worth the risk. Completely agree it's not a good long term hold, but as a trading stock it is tempting at current levels, especially with the divvy coming up

[Entrep]

https://betanews.com/2017/04/13/millennials-pirate-streams/

This article https://techcrunch.com/2017/08/22/over-a-third-of-millennials-say-theyll-pay-for-disneys-streaming-service-survey-finds/ contradicts that one to an extent, but sadly for SKY neither is helpful for its business.

[Ogg]

This article https://techcrunch.com/2017/08/22/over-a-third-of-millennials-say-theyll-pay-for-disneys-streaming-service-survey-finds/ contradicts that one to an extent, but sadly for SKY neither is helpful for its business.

That's even worse. Sky is basically just a middleman. If Disney is going to directly stream it's content then there's no reason why Rugby New Zealand can't outsource to a video crew to film the All Black games then stream that content direct. Basically keeping all the profits themselves. Why pay a third party to resell your own content?

[Beagle]

Winston Peter's appears to be going to hold the balance of power. One of his key desires is that key international sport events involving Kiwi's are screened free to air.
Interesting behind the paywall article on NBR - Guts of it is extremely negative. Lot of talk that if you ring SKY up to cancel your subscription they offer you a special deal of $20 month to keep it. Desperation anyone ? This stock is facing systemic issues that ensure it is in structural long term decline.

[Bjauck]

Winston Peter's appears to be going to hold the balance of power. One of his key desires is that key international sport events involving Kiwi's are screened free to air.
Interesting behind the paywall article on NBR - Guts of it is extremely negative. Lot of talk that if you ring SKY up to cancel your subscription they offer you a special deal of $20 month to keep it. Desperation anyone ? This stock is facing systemic issues that ensure it is in structural long term decline.
It sounds like the newspaper... if you say you're going to cancel your sub, all of a sudden they come up with a discounted deal to keep you sweet. Tough luck for the subscribers who say nothing!

[blackcap]

Interesting behind the paywall article on NBR - Guts of it is extremely negative. Lot of talk that if you ring SKY up to cancel your subscription they offer you a special deal of $20 month to keep it. Desperation anyone ? This stock is facing systemic issues that ensure it is in structural long term decline.

Thanks for highlighting this, Jay Riggs was saying the same thing. The more people are made aware of this the more are going to try it on. I am after the US open and will let you guys know what "deal" is given to me. This could snowball badly for SKY where in the end they just have to lump a $30p/m charge and be done with it.

[Entrep]

https://www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?forumid=106&topicid=160441

[minimoke]

Tough luck for the subscribers who say nothing!No tough luck about it. If they aren't bright enough to work it out they don't deserve a discount

[Entrep]

$2.50 target price from Craigs

[sb9]

$2.50 target price from Craigs

Well, Mr Fellet still believes in his company...must be reading his own script...

https://nzx.com/companies/SKT/announcements/306088

[bull....]

Winston Peter's appears to be going to hold the balance of power. One of his key desires is that key international sport events involving Kiwi's are screened free to air.
Interesting behind the paywall article on NBR - Guts of it is extremely negative. Lot of talk that if you ring SKY up to cancel your subscription they offer you a special deal of $20 month to keep it. Desperation anyone ? This stock is facing systemic issues that ensure it is in structural long term decline.

i cancelled a mth ago they offered us my sky half price to stay - i said no sick of being ripped off so no thanks - took them 15 yrs to offer me something.

anyway price is still overvalued i reckon on forward cashflows

[Fatboyj]

Will this be a buy consideration at $2.50?

[stoploss]

Will this be a buy consideration at $2.50?

Don't buy in a downtrend ......In my mind buying this is a bit like buying "Blockbuster" shares when netflix started up ... Now put a chart up of the two.

[Entrep]

Don't buy in a downtrend ......In my mind buying this is a bit like buying "Blockbuster" shares when netflix started up ... Now put a chart up of the two.

Great point.

[Fatboyj]

Don't buy in a downtrend ......In my mind buying this is a bit like buying "Blockbuster" shares when netflix started up ... Now put a chart up of the two.

Thank you.

My new mantra: downtrend, blockbuster, netflix, Om.

om
əʊm,ɒm/
noun



a mystic syllable, considered the most sacred mantra in Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism. It appears at the beginning and end of most Sanskrit recitations, prayers, and texts.

[Beagle]

i cancelled a mth ago they offered us my sky half price to stay - i said no sick of being ripped off so no thanks - took them 15 yrs to offer me something.

anyway price is still overvalued i reckon on forward cashflows

I got back on the horse a while ago just as a little indulgence over the colder months and get basic, movies, Mysky+ and high definition for about $80 a month.
The main channel I watch is CNBC the world's leading business channel. I think ~ $50 a month is a complete rip off for the basic part of the package but I think it just earns it keep for me in terms of keeping me abreast of international business matters.
The movies at ~ $20 a month is probably reasonable but I object to paying another $10 a month for high definition which is really just standard definition these days, Ultra high definition is the new high definition in my opinion. I might spit the dummy with them as we get closer to summer and I get out and about more...

No way I'd own the shares even at $2.50.

[muss1]

My thoughts on how Sky might become a bit more relevant again. Drop the basic package, make Fan Pass a fair price, and allow people to build their own plan online.

They've got good content... a turnaround is possible in the future but need to see some bold moves from the company.

Article: https://www.thestockpickerau.com/single-post/2017/08/24/An-Open-Letter-to-Sky

[value_investor]

Johnny boy maybe trying to show the market his own confidence in the company by buying 150k worth of shares. Unfortunately, he's already down on his position by quite a bit. It comes off disingenuous really..

[minimoke]

Johnny boy maybe trying to show the market his own confidence in the company by buying 150k worth of shares. Unfortunately, he's already down on his position by quite a bit. It comes off disingenuous really..
Confidence will come when people see the company making goods decisions. Throwing good money after bad isn't one of them

[bull....]

Johnny boy maybe trying to show the market his own confidence in the company by buying 150k worth of shares. Unfortunately, he's already down on his position by quite a bit. It comes off disingenuous really..


down more today not surprising a company that fails to move with the times only accentuates the problem

[Nasi Goreng]

This has all been predicted for at least 2 years on this thread. Thank goodness for Sky there are not that many shorting options available in NZ.

CEO has done nothing except for try to secure their monopolistic position by trying to merge with a phone company.

Sky Basic Package - Complete Rip Off yet most profitable part of the business (see the problem?)
Sky Sports - the jewel in the crown - until it is not
Fan Pass - was too successful so they took it away
Neon - is more expensive than Netflix and unstable.

Is it too late for a fresh forward thinking CEO to take the reigns?

[Subway]

This has all been predicted for at least 2 years on this thread. Thank goodness for Sky there are not that many shorting options available in NZ.

CEO has done nothing except for try to secure their monopolistic position by trying to merge with a phone company.

Sky Basic Package - Complete Rip Off yet most profitable part of the business (see the problem?)
Sky Sports - the jewel in the crown - until it is not
Fan Pass - was too successful so they took it away
Neon - is more expensive than Netflix and unstable.

Is it too late for a fresh forward thinking CEO to take the reigns?

Plus their Sky Go that is horribly unstable and borderline unusable whenever theres an all blacks game on

[BlackCross]

It's going to be great when Sky go bust and everything will be free.

OK, the Sky box will have gone and I'll have to get the old VHS recorder out of the garage, but that's no problem.

And we'll get terrific coverage of all sporting events on free to air just like when ITV took over the soccer in the UK. It was great...
Oh, just a minute, no it wasn't it was absolute shi*te. Mmmm?

Don't hold but happy with my sky box and especially Premier League coverage on BeIn sports.

[ratkin]

It's going to be great when Sky go bust and everything will be free.

OK, the Sky box will have gone and I'll have to get the old VHS recorder out of the garage, but that's no problem.

And we'll get terrific coverage of all sporting events on free to air just like when ITV took over the soccer in the UK. It was great...
Oh, just a minute, no it wasn't it was absolute shi*te. Mmmm?

Don't hold but happy with my sky box and especially Premier League coverage on BeIn sports.

Bien great, we get to see more footie than they do in the UK

[carrom74]

Despite a "decent" 12.5c dividend...this stock is struggling to hold its ground.Wonder what this stock's price will be when it goes ex dividend..any guesses?

[peat]

Just curious as to why everyone is saying Fan Pass was taken away.

I have never paid for TV before but I really wanted to watch the McGregor/Mayweather fight so I got a 1 mth FanPass and coughed up for PPV.

Worked fine

[minimoke]

Just curious as to why everyone is saying Fan Pass was taken away.

I have never paid for TV before but I really wanted to watch the McGregor/Mayweather fight so I got a 1 mth FanPass and coughed up for PPV.

Worked fine
I think they mean the daily and weekly fan pass you could get but no longer. Plus gone is the cheaper monthly one.

[bull....]

this be bad for skys share price end of sept if it happens

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11914430

[JeremyALD]

Sky now just 7 million away from dropping below 1 Billion Market Cap. $2.59. Shareholders have really lost confidence in the last 6 months

[Entrep]

As Conor McGregor would say, "they'll do fookin nuttin"

[Beagle]

https://www.nbr.co.nz/article/sky-tv-shares-plummet-18-year-low-amazon-looms-b-207287

Ouch, those holding for the dividend have just got themselves skunked.

The root of their problems is their packaging methodology and pricing. Everything optional has to come with the basic package which at just on $50 a month is a complete rort.
If they stop abusing what little they have left of their pricing power they might be able to save some of the Titanic but what's the bet management and directors will simply rearrange the deck chairs or worse, do nothing.

[winner69]

https://www.nbr.co.nz/article/sky-tv-shares-plummet-18-year-low-amazon-looms-b-207287

Ouch, those holding for the dividend have just got themselves skunked.

Jeez 18 years ago was last century

[Beagle]

Jeez 18 years ago was last century

Yeah, its so last century this share. Some analysts have given up on them, see the link. As fire optic broadband becomes more and more readily available the Titanic takes on more and more water and then...
(I think our street doesn't get it till 2020 and Sky will get the boot from our house the very same week we get proper broadband).

[hogie]

Yeah, its so last century this share. Some analysts have given up on them, see the link. As fire optic broadband becomes more and more readily available the Titanic takes on more and more water and then...
(I think our street doesn't get it till 2020 and Sky will get the boot from our house the very same week we get proper broadband).


You're assuming SkyTV will still be around in 2020?!

[Beagle]

You're assuming SkyTV will still be around in 2020?!

LOL yeah good point, a lot of people are getting proper broadband before we are. This thing is in systemic decline, the only question is how long can they keep the Titanic afloat. This thing a definite value trap if people are thinking of buying for the dividend yield they will probably find that their dividends come straight off the share price with extra losses just like today's example to rub salt into the wound.

[RTM]

LOL yeah good point, a lot of people are getting proper broadband before we are.

We live on the outskirts of town and may not get fibre to our address. Recently upgraded to Naked VDSL with Skinny, unlimited.
Wow...what a difference this is making. Didn't appreciate just how significant it would be having unlimited Broadband. The VDSL speed is excellent, the same or a little better than my son's fibre in Te Atatu North....Ooops...its meant to be Peninsular now. NETFLIX is giving us all the series and movies we are likely to need...will buy the odd DVD (eg Game of Thrones) perhaps from time to time. Can readily stream Fox News, CNBC (sometime) etc. Miss SKY sport....but can not see us going back there. Enough other sport to watch on Freeview or streaming, such as the Extreme Sailing series where a couple of Kiwi's are doing well. And its made us more social as well. We go out for dinner with a couple of bottles of red whenever AB's or other are playing. So my point....fibre not necessary to enable ditching Sky.

[bull....]

this news story probably contributed to the fall today .... bad for sky

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11915194

[Baa_Baa]

We live on the outskirts of town and may not get fibre to our address. Recently upgraded to Naked VDSL with Skinny, unlimited.
Wow...what a difference this is making. Didn't appreciate just how significant it would be having unlimited Broadband. The VDSL speed is excellent, the same or a little better than my son's fibre in Te Atatu North....Ooops...its meant to be Peninsular now. NETFLIX is giving us all the series and movies we are likely to need...will buy the odd DVD (eg Game of Thrones) perhaps from time to time. Can readily stream Fox News, CNBC (sometime) etc. Miss SKY sport....but can not see us going back there. Enough other sport to watch on Freeview or streaming, such as the Extreme Sailing series where a couple of Kiwi's are doing well. And its made us more social as well. We go out for dinner with a couple of bottles of red whenever AB's or other are playing. So my point....fibre not necessary to enable ditching Sky.

Love your story, very similar to my own.

We haven't missed SKY, even sports, except their stupid retrograde step of removing daily and weekly Fanpass subs. Saving about $1200 per annum in Sky STB fees.

We also make the occasional visit to group therapy to watch the rugby live at a friends house, it seems to be a developing trend. Good on Sky for promoting community connectedness.

We're also on VDSL, there's no Fibre choice here in paradise, but very impressive performance suitable for a whole family streaming the internet simultaneously. Not waiting for Fibre, there's no need, got the unlimited broadband world streaming on VDSL into our place, it's quite the eye opener.

Best of all is connecting live on internet video with family all over the country and the world, it's brought everyone together in a most surprising way.

Sky really don't get it. No way I'd be a shareholder in this 'used to be' company, there's only one way for them and it's the wrong way, but a fast way to disrupted oblivion.

Sad really.

[Beagle]

Good stuff...must get around to getting VDSL, our old ADSL system is driving me loopy.

[BlackCross]

Good luck if SKY does disappear because you'll end up with the really crap free TV you probably deserve.

[stoploss]

Good luck if SKY does disappear because you'll end up with the really crap free TV you probably deserve.

just like the crap we get on SKY Sport from the Warriors year in year out

[sb9]

Good luck if SKY does disappear because you'll end up with the really crap free TV you probably deserve.

Hmmm....I'm sure someone with deeper pockets will step up and offer a very competitive service, its still not too late for Sky just stop being too greedy and get in line with reality of new era of digital world.

[bull....]

my under 3 dollars was well on the money ill probably stick around for the under 2 dollar party coming soon

[Onion]

Hmmm....I'm sure someone with deeper pockets will step up and offer a very competitive service, its still not too late for Sky just stop being too greedy and get in line with reality of new era of digital world.

Why would someone step up? Where is the value that they would be buying?

If Sky TV is using yesterday's technology then there is nothing to pay for there. A buyer would bring better technology than Sky has.

If it is Sky TV's subscriber base then how badly are the Netflixs and Amazons doing at present? Seem to be growing subscribers quite nicely without buying them from someone else.

If it is Sky TV's contracts with content providers then really the only jewel is the sport. Other content would quickly come through a streaming provider if Sky TV no longer held exclusive rights.

[sb9]

Why would someone step up? Where is the value that they would be buying?

If Sky TV is using yesterday's technology then there is nothing to pay for there. A buyer would bring better technology than Sky has.

If it is Sky TV's subscriber base then how badly are the Netflixs and Amazons doing at present? Seem to be growing subscribers quite nicely without buying them from someone else.

If it is Sky TV's contracts with content providers then really the only jewel is the sport. Other content would quickly come through a streaming provider if Sky TV no longer held exclusive rights.

They could model it differently, with ever changing technology anything is possible.

[LAC]

Who produces the Rugby content?
If Amazon gets the rights who will be contracted to produce that content? Will Amazon do it for NZRU?
Very tough industry to be in, but Sky still has a pile of cash sitting around. They will milk it for as long as they can. I still think the will acquire something very soon. Too little debt for that bank balance especially with where the SP is at the moment.

[hogie]

Wouldn't touch this one even if it went below $1

[Rep]

Who produces the Rugby content?
If Amazon gets the rights who will be contracted to produce that content? Will Amazon do it for NZRU?
Very tough industry to be in, but Sky still has a pile of cash sitting around. They will milk it for as long as they can. I still think the will acquire something very soon. Too little debt for that bank balance especially with where the SP is at the moment.

Sky's war chest is pocket change to the amount of cash that Facebook, Google, Amazon and for that matter, Apple have lying around.

Have a look at the article below and the comments by Chris Keall to give the idea of what Star TV had to bid to keep the IPL rights. USD 600 million is a truckload - nay, a shipload of cash and Murdoch controlled Star TV paid a staggering $2.6 billion to secure the broadcast and online rights...

https://www.nbr.co.nz/opinion/facebook-bids-840-million-indian-cricket-rights#comment-position

[tim23]

I think if you could you would really as you would probably get over $1 in dividends well before the death of the company.
Wouldn't touch this one even if it went below $1

[Baa_Baa]

I think if you could you would really as you would probably get over $1 in dividends well before the death of the company.

"Probably"? That's flawed logic, how much over $1 in dividends? When is death occurring? How long to pay $1 and hope to get $1+ back in dividends? All hypothetical, just don't invest in disrupted companies unwilling or unable to reinvent themselves and going down the toilet. Get your money out before it's a complete disaster, if you have any money in it. One can't rationalise a plausible reason for investing in a business model set on a pathway of capital destruction.

[tim23]

Fair enough - clearly I think they are worth more than $1 by the way I don't hold the stock.

"Probably"? That's flawed logic, how much over $1 in dividends? When is death occurring? How long to pay $1 and hope to get $1+ back in dividends? All hypothetical, just don't invest in disrupted companies unwilling or unable to reinvent themselves and going down the toilet. Get your money out before it's a complete disaster, if you have any money in it. One can't rationalise a plausible reason for investing in a business model set on a pathway of capital destruction.

[GTM 3442]

I would quite happily pay a single somebody a monthly fee to act as an portal or content aggregator for me.

I don't want to have to mess about with 23 separate accounts with various providers for the content I want.

But I also don't want to be forced to buy access to 143 junk channels that I will never watch.

Am I a market of one, crying in the wilderness?

[Raz]

disruption..when you are talking about it it usually is too late

[Jay]

No GMT, you're not alone, I don't want to be paying 10 different providers either and/or as you say for another 60+ channels I don't want.
Some years ago, now 20+ I was talking to a guy from Canada and they had something like 80+ "general" channels and could not find a single thing to watch, thought at the time, we won't get to that, may not have 80+ but a fair few on the basic package, of which I watch maybe 3-4 on a regular basis and the majority never seen.
It seems that anyone can start up a TV channel on anything and get it on the platform, do Sky own all these, surely not, Sky may pay something to the providers??, but I'm sure the only a small number who watch any of these outside the main ones, why don't they stream those and reduce the basic package as has been suggested before. Maybe the demographic that watch these are not tech savy, must have children or grandchildren that could soon sort it out for them

Unless they are confident of keeping the rugby, they have to change or go out of business I would have thought, then there will be a lot of people looking for alternatives.

[waikare]

No GMT, you're not alone, I don't want to be paying 10 different providers either and/or as you say for another 60+ channels I don't want.
Some years ago, now 20+ I was talking to a guy from Canada and they had something like 80+ "general" channels and could not find a single thing to watch, thought at the time, we won't get to that, may not have 80+ but a fair few on the basic package, of which I watch maybe 3-4 on a regular basis and the majority never seen.
It seems that anyone can start up a TV channel on anything and get it on the platform, do Sky own all these, surely not, Sky may pay something to the providers??, but I'm sure the only a small number who watch any of these outside the main ones, why don't they stream those and reduce the basic package as has been suggested before. Maybe the demographic that watch these are not tech savy, must have children or grandchildren that could soon sort it out for them

Unless they are confident of keeping the rugby, they have to change or go out of business I would have thought, then there will be a lot of people looking for alternatives.

To stay alive Sky TV has to remarket it's self, in short offer what the punters actually want, like others paying I am paying for channels that I have no interest or any desire to watch.

Select and pay for the channels you actually want on a monthly sub.

[Jay]

Agree waikare
What I was saying if they get to keep the rugby and cricket, it may give them a bit more time
Don't know when the rugby will be decided, but could be a good punt if you think they will keep it this time round ... if you are brave enough... I'm not!

[carrom74]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/96411260/vodafone-silent-on-speculation-of-partial-nzx-float


Vodafone's proposed NZX float and recent upswing of SKT....any connections?

[Jay]

Is this a real possibility or take it one step further and they take over Sky

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11919649

Basically a partnership between the two, Sky keeping the rights and Amazon streaming it in other countries such as US, UK, Japan, France for a fee paid to Sky .
Must admit Sky do a better job of showing the games here than some other feeds we get - especially South Africa and even Aussie

Though still only a matter of time, maybe a slight reprieve in the meantime ????

[tim23]

At least they have a Retention team now - I renegotiated my deal recently with some success including Soho which has some brilliant TV. .
To stay alive Sky TV has to remarket it's self, in short offer what the punters actually want, like others paying I am paying for channels that I have no interest or any desire to watch.

Select and pay for the channels you actually want on a monthly sub.

[blackcap]

At least they have a Retention team now - I renegotiated my deal recently with some success including Soho which has some brilliant TV. .

Hi Tim, can you explain more? I am about to say goodbye to SKY as the tennis is over and cricket does not start for a while. What deal did you negotiate and do you have to initiate the negotiation or do SKY do it themselves?

[stoploss]

Hi Tim, can you explain more? I am about to say goodbye to SKY as the tennis is over and cricket does not start for a while. What deal did you negotiate and do you have to initiate the negotiation or do SKY do it themselves?

I have sky Via Vodaphone as on cable in Wellington . I called and said I wanted to cancel it , they immediately offered a $ 300 incentive to sign up for a year .
So just start off with either I am cancelling or I need to cut some costs are there any specials on at the moment and they should start coming to the party .
i would suggest repeat this with your mobile phone provider, and insurance or go via an insurance broker to check if they could make any savings or get you a better
policy for the same or better cost .
If you need any help with a mortgage PM me ...!!

[tim23]

Rang them and said I'd been a customer for close to 20 years (switched to digital when it first came out as needed to take decoder so could watch cricket at beach house - also had to switch to Meredian Energy). Anyway expecting to get movies for 3 months I got free Soho for 3 months and my basic reduced to $1 a month for 12 months, it was worth about $400. Admittedly I have multi room, Soho, my sky so was spending about $140 a month. Was best money I ever earned then did the same with Meredian and got my prompt pay discount to 15% from 10% plus $100 credit.
Hi Tim, can you explain more? I am about to say goodbye to SKY as the tennis is over and cricket does not start for a while. What deal did you negotiate and do you have to initiate the negotiation or do SKY do it themselves?

[blackcap]

Thanks for the replies. Will be giving them a call tomorrow and seeing what they have to offer. I have heard from another source that you can also get deals through the telemarketer on a different 0800 number for SKY. So will be trying both approaches and see what happens. I am paying about $90 a month at the moment but we only really watch sports and all the other stuff we watch is free anyway. I may even say to the SKY people that my friend has a KODI box and gets everything for free and that I am looking at that option... what can you offer me?
Thanks for the other possibilities Tim and Stoploss, did not even consider Meridian, and or Insurance, we have successfully negotiated with the bank in the past but off course the other providers are there too. Cheers!

[Zaphod]

Thanks for the replies. Will be giving them a call tomorrow and seeing what they have to offer. I have heard from another source that you can also get deals through the telemarketer on a different 0800 number for SKY. So will be trying both approaches and see what happens. I am paying about $90 a month at the moment but we only really watch sports and all the other stuff we watch is free anyway. I may even say to the SKY people that my friend has a KODI box and gets everything for free and that I am looking at that option... what can you offer me?
Thanks for the other possibilities Tim and Stoploss, did not even consider Meridian, and or Insurance, we have successfully negotiated with the bank in the past but off course the other providers are there too. Cheers!

The telemarketer deal requires you to have completed a stand-down period of a few months (exact period varies by contact centre agent).

I'm not sure if mentioning the free Kodi deal is an ideal strategy as you're admitting to the call centre agent that one alternative is to pirate content, and although there is rigorous debate on the legal technicalities, I personally would not want to be caught up in any test cases.

IMO the best strategy is to push the case for having been a long time loyal customer, and point out the other low-cost legal generic streaming alternatives.

Bit OT I suppose, so I'll leave this there.

[tim23]

With Meredian I just mentioned that Genesis had a great deal going and that my wife had shares in Genesis so we should be with them - that seemed to help!

[blackcap]

The telemarketer deal requires you to have completed a stand-down period of a few months (exact period varies by contact centre agent).

I'm not sure if mentioning the free Kodi deal is an ideal strategy as you're admitting to the call centre agent that one alternative is to pirate content, and although there is rigorous debate on the legal technicalities, I personally would not want to be caught up in any test cases.

.


I did wonder about that.. I might just mention that my friend has a Kodi box and leave it at that. The legal technicalities are interesting. I did understand it is not illegal to actually have one, even view content. But opinions do differ.

As for the stand down, I need not have SKY till the cricket season starts and failing that, my partner will apply in her name... so no stand by required.

[Everwood]

i cancelled a mth ago they offered us my sky half price to stay - i said no sick of being ripped off so no thanks - took them 15 yrs to offer me something.

anyway price is still overvalued i reckon on forward cashflows

I intend to cancel our Sky basic package which is a rip off. I would seriously consider keeping it, if we were offered it half price to stay. Did Sky just offer you the deal when you said you intend to cancel?

[minimoke]

Since SKY seem devoid of any bright ideas, heres one they can have for free. Buy the OZ/NZ Tivo licence.

That way they buy a few hundred thousand loyal set top box users and save them $600 each from buying a new PVR - which they could spend on SKY subs. They can stream pay per views via the set top box. And they can come to a deal with Vodafone to share internet resource. Does away with cost of dishes. Could look at bundling Netflix / lightbox apps and the like through the same box. Given their cash wouldn't be an expensive investment and gives them another leg or two for income.

[bull....]

I intend to cancel our Sky basic package which is a rip off. I would seriously consider keeping it, if we were offered it half price to stay. Did Sky just offer you the deal when you said you intend to cancel?

i said im cancelling, they said why your been a very long time customer, he said is it the price and I said yes..... he said we give you half price for a year if you stay ... I say no we have better alternatives now goodbye.

[Entrep]

i said im cancelling, they said why your been a very long time customer, he said is it the price and I said yes..... he said we give you half price for a year if you stay ... I say no we have better alternatives now goodbye.

https://media.giphy.com/media/3o7qDSOvfaCO9b3MlO/giphy-downsized.gif

[blackcap]

Called to cancel, they offered me pretty much half price for what I currently had, from $94 to $49 per month. Might just stick it out till after the cricket season.....

Worth a call anyway.

[bull....]

story on nbr pretty much about this

https://newsroom.cisco.com/press-release-content?type=webcontent&articleId=1878785

[flyer]

Interesting they need to do something and do something fast before they lose more subscribers.
I am contemplating ringing up to cancel to see if they will offer me half price:t_up:

[blackcap]

Interesting they need to do something and do something fast before they lose more subscribers.
I am contemplating ringing up to cancel to see if they will offer me half price:t_up:

Give it a go... I did just that 2 or 3 days ago. From $94 a month I now pay $49 a month.

[Nasi Goreng]

Just looking at todays result in the Herald. SKY have lost 27897 subscribers in the last 12 months. It sounds like a lot but they currently have 824782 subscribers so they have only lost 3.3% of their customer base in the last year. 3.3% meh, no sweat?

Everything else being equal, their current operating expenses of $600M per year and average customer spend of $945.84 per year, they would need to lose 190000 subscribers to break even so at the current rate of churn, so they have another 6.8 years to find a solution... hmmm maybe shareholders should begin to sweat with a PE of 9.36.

If I was a shareholder, I would be uneasy about holding SKT with a declining customer base and potentially rising costs. If we get into a situation where there are bidding wars for future content, this is going to drive up operating expenses and if the speed of customer churn increases, the break even number might approach faster than some have foreseen.

If we fast forward 12 months, and assume operating costs are the same, and churn drops by 5% (41k customers), this would reduce revenues by $39M and provide a profit buffer of 151000 customers before break even is achieved. We are not quite into the area of sweat just yet but you would have to be nervous as a Sky director or investor against what is now a relatively thin margin for profit.

[value_investor]

Just looking at todays result in the Herald. SKY have lost 27897 subscribers in the last 12 months. It sounds like a lot but they currently have 824782 subscribers so they have only lost 3.3% of their customer base in the last year. 3.3% meh, no sweat?

Everything else being equal, their current operating expenses of $600M per year and average customer spend of $945.84 per year, they would need to lose 190000 subscribers to break even so at the current rate of churn, so they have another 6.8 years to find a solution... hmmm maybe shareholders should begin to sweat with a PE of 9.36.

If I was a shareholder, I would be uneasy about holding SKT with a declining customer base and potentially rising costs. If we get into a situation where there are bidding wars for future content, this is going to drive up operating expenses and if the speed of customer churn increases, the break even number might approach faster than some have foreseen.

If we fast forward 12 months, and assume operating costs are the same, and churn drops by 5% (41k customers), this would reduce revenues by $39M and provide a profit buffer of 151000 customers before break even is achieved. We are not quite into the area of sweat just yet but you would have to be nervous as a Sky director or investor against what is now a relatively thin margin for profit.

Past the numbers, I'd be more uneasy at the fact that they stated numbers are down yet have offered no implementation of a strategy or path out of it. Frankly it looks like a presentation that says, "look at all the good programming we have. The downturn is just a phase"

[Baa_Baa]

:scared: 03-03-2017
Eventually if they don't fix the content distribution (increasing eyeballs, wallets and revenue for the whole value chain), the content sources will seek other distributors. SKT are seriously exposed to content distribution disruption as well, as content sources can mount their own online content distribution easily at relatively low costs, cutting out the intermediary (Sky).

NZ Rugby flexes its muscle with AllBlacksTV.com https://www.nbr.co.nz/article/nz-rugby-flexes-its-muscles-allblackstvcom-ck-209053

Here: http://allblackstv.com

Kaboom, SKY.

[Zaphod]

Brilliant move. Now if I just add up all the services I need to subscribe to in order to watch the content I want......

[value_investor]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/99348528/internet-provider-says-sky-tv-is-attempting-to-censor-the-internet

Yikes! This is a really outdated way of thinking. I think this is convenient for management to say in order to make it look like they are doing something but not really. It would be much harder to change their business model and actually try and turn things around..

[minimoke]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/99348528/internet-provider-says-sky-tv-is-attempting-to-censor-the-internet

Yikes! This is a really outdated way of thinking. I think this is convenient for management to say in order to make it look like they are doing something but not really. It would be much harder to change their business model and actually try and turn things around..
An appalling move. Fancy trying to block sites that allow me to download legitimate torrent files! What a waste of shareholders funds.

About time that got with the times and found ways of distributing product in a format and price point consumers would enjoy.

This company needs to pull its head out of the sand and get with the new century. Time for that Chair of the Board to go - he will be the one responsible for the further destruction of shareholder wealth.

[hardt]

ISP's all around the world are already refusing connections to globally blacklisted websites that distribute content illegally, NZ is far behind in the way of protecting copyrights online.

Within this proposal, any website put forth has to go through the courts first to ensure there is a breach of copyright law... that is all.

Pandering to the overblown net neutrality debate will get Vocus new.. misinformed customers...

[Subway]

ISP's all around the world are already refusing connections to globally blacklisted websites that distribute content illegally, NZ is far behind in the way of protecting copyrights online.

Within this proposal, any website put forth has to go through the courts first to ensure there is a breach of copyright law... that is all.

Pandering to the overblown net neutrality debate will get Vocus new.. misinformed customers...

I can categorically say that blocking doesn't work, there is always a work around. What I can also say is I haven't torrented/pirated in years because its far easier to just use netflix. Go figure.

[Entrep]

What subway said

[hardt]

I can categorically say that blocking doesn't work, there is always a work around. What I can also say is I haven't torrented/pirated in years because its far easier to just use netflix. Go figure.

A simple VPN will circumvent it, however I do believe that a substantial amount of people will not go to great lengths to work around a roadblock... people are stupid, never forget.

Never underestimate the power that a slight inconvenience has over people.

Using what is currently at their disposal to protect their property is not going to make things worse... at the very least it gets 5% of people to stop breaking the law.

[Onion]

An appalling move. Fancy trying to block sites that allow me to download legitimate torrent files! What a waste of shareholders funds.

About time that got with the times and found ways of distributing product in a format and price point consumers would enjoy.

This company needs to pull its head out of the sand and get with the new century. Time for that Chair of the Board to go - he will be the one responsible for the further destruction of shareholder wealth.

:t_up: Nicely stated, totally agree.

[Zaphod]

Talking with a former colleague who now works at Sky TV, the content providers have pushed Sky to initiate action or they will enforce clauses in the content distribution agreement contracts to terminate them.

While I agree that this trivially circumvented, there are other pressures being brought to bear.

[bull....]

even if sky is successful they will never stop piracy , the australian ruling which sky is attempting to follow hasnt worked. most people in aus who use these so called illegal sites already use vpn networks and least not forget the actual blocked sites can spring up 100s of mirror sites in a flash and constantly change locations.
so sky or isps will constantly be one step behind.

[minimoke]

Sky is free to try to stop the downloading of copyright infringing material material. But why target the ISP - why not the developers of the Operating System (like Microsoft or Apple) who create the ability to download copyright infringing material.

Other than that, they should keep their sticky beaks out of the internet. They obviously show no inclination to broadening the way copyright protected material is delivered to and accessed by consumers

[LAC]

why not the developers of the Operating System (like Microsoft or Apple) who create the ability to download copyright infringing material.



Lol are you serious? We would instead try and get the OS developers to restrict the apps we run on them?

[minimoke]

Lol are you serious? We would instead try and get the OS developers to restrict the apps we run on them?
https://torrentfreak.com/rightsholders-want-microsoft-ban-pirated-software-windows-160803/

[value_investor]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/100354774/sky-tv-needs-to-keep-firm-hold-on-subscribers-broker-warns

Seems quite conservative considering they lost 33k to year end June 2017. I'd expect more losses in the current FY.

I'm a bit surprised truth be told this one has gone up lately. Whats the chances on sub $2 in 2018?

[hogie]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/100354774/sky-tv-needs-to-keep-firm-hold-on-subscribers-broker-warns

Seems quite conservative considering they lost 33k to year end June 2017. I'd expect more losses in the current FY.

I'm a bit surprised truth be told this one has gone up lately. Whats the chances on sub $2 in 2018?


Very surprised people are still buying this one too ...

[Sideshow Bob]

They have bounced off the bottom of about $2.45 (dead cat?) from early December but both Kiltearn and BlackRock have built up their stakes in recent times. Both around 13%.

Personally, I'd like to see them up their divvy - they can afford it and have the cashflow to do it.

[JeremyALD]

Life's not all bad for Sky TV. They still have a massive customer base, Neon is pretty good and New Zealanders love their sport. Hard to see any growth, but if they keep Rugby which is looking fairly likely they can pay out strong divies for a while yet.

I certainly wouldn't buy but at this level I do understand why some people would. They really do need to adapt and build some customer loyalty though. They have to be one of the most disliked companies in NZ.

[Sideshow Bob]

They really do need to adapt and build some customer loyalty though. They have to be one of the most disliked companies in NZ.

And that is the crux of the issue......people love to hate them. It is as bigger issue as technology change.

[Marilyn Munroe]

Talking with a former colleague who now works at Sky TV, the content providers have pushed Sky to initiate action or they will enforce clauses in the content distribution agreement contracts to terminate them.

While I agree that this trivially circumvented, there are other pressures being brought to bear.

The content producers are overplaying their hand in my opinion.

If they throw their toys out of the cot who are they going to get to distribute and pay for their content in New Zealand?

Busted and broke free-to-air television which is reduced to disgorging reality TV shows day and night or the 300ib gorilla Netflix.

Boop boop de do
Marilyn

[ratkin]

As more and more people switch to huge large screen smart TVs the decline will continue. Netflix, Amazon, Hula and you tube just one button click away, it becomes harder and harder to justify a subscription for sky. They do not help themselves by continually replaying ten year old reruns of shows.
Have lost count of how many times I have seen certain episodes of QI or would I lie to you.

[Zaphod]

The content producers are overplaying their hand in my opinion.

If they throw their toys out of the cot who are they going to get to distribute and pay for their content in New Zealand?

Busted and broke free-to-air television which is reduced to disgorging reality TV shows day and night or the 300ib gorilla Netflix.

Boop boop de do
Marilyn

The whole industry needs to change, but that's not something that will occur overnight.

I would also posit that a internationally dominant Netflix would be equally bad for consumers, especially if the Apple take-over rumours eventually have truth to them.

[Onion]

Life's not all bad for Sky TV. They still have a massive customer base, Neon is pretty good and New Zealanders love their sport. Hard to see any growth, but if they keep Rugby which is looking fairly likely they can pay out strong divies for a while yet.

I certainly wouldn't buy but at this level I do understand why some people would. They really do need to adapt and build some customer loyalty though. They have to be one of the most disliked companies in NZ.

SKT profit to revenue ratio is much better than Netflix!

Netflix Net profit (2016) $USD186.68M
Sky Net profit (2016) $NZD147.1M (2017) $NZD116.3M

Not so different aye! :cool:

I'm still not going to buy SKT!

[axe]

5.3 million net subscriber additions to bring the company’s total number of streaming members to over 109 million. http://fortune.com/2017/10/16/netflix-q3-earnings/

Netflix is pouring all extra revenue growth into content. More content = more subscribers. More subscribers = more revenue which will be used to generate even more content and growth.

Sky on the other hand is generating strong cash flow now but losing subs.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/96015124 - Sky TV loses 33,880 satellite subscribers




SKT profit to revenue ratio is much better than Netflix!

Netflix Net profit (2016) $USD186.68M
Sky Net profit (2016) $NZD147.1M (2017) $NZD116.3M

Not so different aye! :cool:

I'm still not going to buy SKT!

[value_investor]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11982753

I'd be very surprised if this happens. My only thought it is they have lost so many subscribers they're desperate but even then, I don't see it.

[Jay]

Where there is smoke there is fire???

[flyer]

Nearly 9m shares traded this morning

[Entrep]

Anyone know what this is about? https://www.nbr.co.nz/article/print-settlement-leaves-sky-investors-dark-th-p-212994

[winner69]

Anyone know what this is about? https://www.nbr.co.nz/article/print-settlement-leaves-sky-investors-dark-th-p-212994

What is it all about ....us mere mortals can’t see through the key hole to read the words

Good headline though ....ah suppose you like me and are a miserable sod who refuses to pay that exorbitant monthly fee to see these pearls of wisdom

Must be serious though ..hope SKY survive

[Entrep]

Yes, Stuff are usually quick to jump on the SKY bashing bandwagon but nothing from them yet...

[LAC]

Hey guys, can someone please send me a link which is behind the paywall? I just opened that link at work and it seems to open so I am just trying to find out if they all open up. All just says paid content. Is there a sign-on?

[minimoke]

No market announcement. Cant be significant. Maybe clickbait

[freddagg]

No market announcement. Cant be significant. Maybe clickbait

There is nothing new in it, just regurgitating old info, seemed a pointless article.

[bull....]

seems they acheived what was expected , declining revenue , declining dividends , will be interesting to hear if they think lower price points from new bundles will increase revenue or lead to a further decline in revenue . my feeling is the people who couldnt afford it before still wont buy it and the the people paying 50 dollars now will half there bill by choosing only one of the packages? guess the carrot is soho to entice people to stay on the same full package either way looks like a revenue hit to me

[hardt]

Price changes... this should have been in the mix about 5 years ago.

$25 minimum is definitely a good move forward... bit of short term pain ahead from it though.

[JeremyALD]

Sky is actually living in the stone ages. In John Fellets report he continues to show he has no forward thinking whatsoever and makes some ridiculous statements including "we jumped on to on-demand streaming rapidly". No you didn't John, you have simply waited until you've had no choice but to change. How about some honesty about what you haven't done and your learnings, instead of praising all the amazing content Sky has and how innovative you are.

The change in pricing seems to be a sneaky way of not changing packages for any of their existing customers in hope they won't call up to downgrade their packages. Where's the forecasting about how many extra customers this will bring and if this will offset lower ARPC? Even if 10% of existing customers change their plans that's over 2 million in lost revenue.

Also the starter package + sky sport will cost $55 a month yet the cost of monthly fanpass for ONLY sports is $100 a month. So much for supporting digital! Sure the NPAT numbers look OK, but Sky will continue to lose revenue and I don't see anyway that's going to change.

there's huge warning signs in the report by lowering the dividend and discussing potential impairments against goodwill. Also they continually state the subscriber numbers look bad because of fanpass and FATSO. Well why don't they split out subscriber numbers and churn so you can actually see what's going on. The fact a neon customer who is paying $20 a month and can cancel anytime is treated the same as a customer paying $100 on a contract is ridiculous and makes it difficult to see where net growth /loss is coming from.

[blackcap]

What a load of garbage. They just still do not get it. I do not want to pay $25 for a starter package.... and miss out on the 1 channel I do want in the other package. I want to pick and choose channels I want to watch. None of this package bull@#$%!!!

[minimoke]

What a load of garbage. They just still do not get it. I do not want to pay $25 for a starter package.... and miss out on the 1 channel I do want in the other package. I want to pick and choose channels I want to watch. None of this package bull@#$%!!!You are obviously not a hipster millenial forward thinker. What you want is quite at odds with the futurist thinking of Fellet and that other twat on the Board.

[Beagle]

What a load of garbage. They just still do not get it. I do not want to pay $25 for a starter package.... and miss out on the 1 channel I do want in the other package. I want to pick and choose channels I want to watch. None of this package bull@#$%!!!

Agree 100%. I'm ringing Sky on Friday when I have some time. Had enough of their $80 a month. I'll cut the cord if I don't get satisfaction.

[blackcap]

You are obviously not a hipster millenial forward thinker. What you want is quite at odds with the futurist thinking of Fellet and that other twat on the Board.

Indeed, I am not a forward thinker... boy how wrong could I be.

I think this will backfire for SKY. At first I thought, yay cheaper to get the sports, but now I realise that I have to pay $24.91 for channels that are already free anyway before I can pay another $40 or whatever it is to get my sports. No thanks, I think this may be the continuing catalyst for customers ditching SKY and going over to other providers such as Netflix and Kodi boxes.

[Stumpynuts]

Too little too late.

Hybrid android box with TV tuner + Apps installed = Sky extinction.

[hardt]

ok so the $25 package is basically freeview... I don't get it.

[blackcap]

ok so the $25 package is basically freeview... I don't get it.

Thats right. So you pay $25 for what you can get for free to be able to have access to the sports. This is the deathknell for SKY. What a bunch of losers this board is. This is a seriously fcuked up change and will be worse than retaining the status quo.

[Cricketfan]

I still don't understand why people are still buying shares in Sky. The dividend yield might be quite good with the dropping SP but surely there's going to be a capital loss at some point when you sell them or Sky goes bust? Or do some people actually think Sky will recover/

[dodgy]

I still don't understand why people are still buying shares in Sky. The dividend yield might be quite good with the dropping SP but surely there's going to be a capital loss at some point when you sell them or Sky goes bust? Or do some people actually think Sky will recover/

Hi Cricketfan,
Just like the National Party needs serious refreshing to keep up with the times, whatever that means, so too does SKY. Maybe otherwise the end is in sight "as we know it".
Regards
-dodgy

[Sideshow Bob]

They definitely need 'refreshment' and by that I don't mean a few craft beers in the boardroom fridge. Sure John Fellet is a nice bloke, but he has been there since the start, over 25 years. The rest of the board don't exactly fill me with confidence....

[JayRiggs]

9530
9531

Sky Starter is pretty much Freeview plus MTV, kids and TAB channels; and minus the Freeview Chinese channels.
It's embarrassing that Sky is even charging for these free channels at all.

They should only charge for channels that Freeview doesn't have.

[bull....]

9530
9531

Sky Starter is pretty much Freeview plus MTV, kids and TAB channels; and minus the Freeview Chinese channels.
It's embarrassing that Sky is even charging for these free channels at all.

They should only charge for channels that Freeview doesn't have.

guess they are thiking most punters wont even notice

[airedale]

When you think about the number of commercials you are also paying to watch, it becomes even less attractive.

[Sideshow Bob]

They are still the company people love to hate.....

[Dust]

I feel sorry for the investors who are still buying this junk, I guess alot of sentiments are still stuck in the dark ages.

Topped up my shorts today....all down hill from here on.

[maknz]

When I saw the headline I thought they might have finally got it and fixed their pricing model... nope, some old mud.

There are only around 3 channels I actually want that Sky offer (the rest is on Freeview / On Demand or other better streaming providers), but even with their new model would still have to pay $75/month to get those 3 channels (starter + premium + sport). Will continue pursuing 'other avenues' and watch this dinosaur stumble to its grave.

[blackcap]

When I saw the headline I thought they might have finally got it and fixed their pricing model... nope, some old mud.

There are only around 3 channels I actually want that Sky offer (the rest is on Freeview / On Demand or other better streaming providers), but even with their new model would still have to pay $75/month to get those 3 channels (starter + premium + sport). Will continue pursuing 'other avenues' and watch this dinosaur stumble to its grave.

Yep that sums it up for me too. Ok I do want more sports channels, but to get the 10 odd that I do watch on the full package I have to still buy starter, premium and sport. Just not good enough. Even on my reduced rate I am going to give them the flick.

[Toulouse - Luzern]

Agree 100%. I'm ringing Sky on Friday when I have some time. Had enough of their $80 a month. I'll cut the cord if I don't get satisfaction.

Thanks Beagle,

Keep us posted on outcome ...

thanks and regards

[value_investor]

Unimpressed with Fellet's announcement, he doesn't seem to get it. He still believes the set box is the main consumer piece and that the on demand way we have gone is just a segment. If not now, then soon it will be the whole piece of the consumer play and not the box top.

There's nothing in this announcement that gets me to believe that Sky have changed their model to be in unison with what is actually happening. The new pricing is a band-aid on a much larger problem. That being that the "box first" model of pay tv operation is not what will propel them in 2018.

And yes I do love to hate this stock.

[minimoke]

Fellet really is not with it at all. Heard him on the radio this afternoon talking about Skys premium for HD content. He reckons its worth a premium due to the low take up of HD tV's. Sky will probably look at the pricing when HD is more mainstream and there are many more 4K sets out there. Does he not realise that virtually every TV in NZ is HD capable. That is 1080p. Sure their will be a few old CRT's connected to a set top box. From there everything else will be 720p (HD ready) or 1080p (HD) and a growing body of 4K (UltraHD).

Virtually every TV in NZ is ready for HD broadcast - the sad thing is there is still so little free to air HD content.

Dont tell him cos he probably doesnt realise it. But many TV's have such good upscalers that many people would find it hard to tell teh different between a standard definition broadcat upscaled to HD and an actual HD broadcast. (Though maybe he does - which is why he is selling HD to teh unwary in teh same way they are sewelling freeview free channels in their starter pack.

[Baa_Baa]

Unimpressed with Fellet's announcement, he doesn't seem to get it. He still believes the set box is the main consumer piece and that the on demand way we have gone is just a segment. If not now, then soon it will be the whole piece of the consumer play and not the box top.

There's nothing in this announcement that gets me to believe that Sky have changed their model to be in unison with what is actually happening. The new pricing is a band-aid on a much larger problem. That being that the "box first" model of pay tv operation is not what will propel them in 2018.

And yes I do love to hate this stock.

Insightful thanks. They, SKY, have a lot of sunk cost in the satellite and set-top-box model, so it's reasonable that they sweat that asset to its demise, especially given the latency in their customer base.

That said, I agree that they have completely missed the point and hopefully for shareholders not the opportunity, to diversify into digital content distribution. This is where SKY seem to have missed the point.

How could it possibly be that with such strong content sources and captive audience in selected 'channels' that they fail to see the opportunity to diversify the distribution to the 'online' audience.

Especially with a platform that works, like FanPass, which is configurable to any content and distribution in any form and price point. The future of SKY is the Fanpass platform, delivering content online, anytime, anywhere at any price point. It just needs to be hooked up to the source content and sliced into consumable chunks that customers can buy when they the want it.

It beggars belief that SKY would put their future at risk by prioritising sweating legacy assets versus embracing digital consumption models, especially while they have a stranglehold on certain types of content.

For shareholders, if the latest announcements don't equate to at least a lower trajectory to oblivion, they will probably see that oblivion is the ultimate conclusion either way.

jmho
BAA

[bull....]

tracking down $2 on the monthlies bollinger is a possibility

[axe]

Lucky they got a "young" "tech savvy" director on the board. they surely have the guidance and leadership to realise how disrupted their current model is. :)




Insightful thanks. They, SKY, have a lot of sunk cost in the satellite and set-top-box model, so it's reasonable that they sweat that asset to its demise, especially given the latency in their customer base.

That said, I agree that they have completely missed the point and hopefully for shareholders not the opportunity, to diversify into digital content distribution. This is where SKY seem to have missed the point.

How could it possibly be that with such strong content sources and captive audience in selected 'channels' that they fail to see the opportunity to diversify the distribution to the 'online' audience.

Especially with a platform that works, like FanPass, which is configurable to any content and distribution in any form and price point. The future of SKY is the Fanpass platform, delivering content online, anytime, anywhere at any price point. It just needs to be hooked up to the source content and sliced into consumable chunks that customers can buy when they the want it.

It beggars belief that SKY would put their future at risk by prioritising sweating legacy assets versus embracing digital consumption models, especially while they have a stranglehold on certain types of content.

For shareholders, if the latest announcements don't equate to at least a lower trajectory to oblivion, they will probably see that oblivion is the ultimate conclusion either way.

jmho
BAA

[IAK]

Lucky they got a "young" "tech savvy" director on the board. they surely have the guidance and leadership to realise how disrupted their current model is. :)

IMO most companies should have "young" "tech savvy" director on the board.

[Entrep]

I actually like the new starter channel. Shame that HD and MYSKY is another $25 on top of that. $10 for HD is particularly offensive.

[minimoke]

I actually like the new starter channel. .What is there to like about it? It is essentially Freeview (Emphasis on free) for $25. If subscribers dont know this then they are vulnerable. How do shareholders feel about ripping off vulnerable people?

[Benny1]

I actually like the new starter channel. Shame that HD and MYSKY is another $25 on top of that. $10 for HD is particularly offensive.

Paying $10 for HD is a complete rip off.
If this company wants to be seen as offering a premium product HD should be a given... not a money sucking extra....
Time for a new direction and that starts at the top with new directors and CEO...

Disc: Do not hold and never will this lot running it!

[errornz]

Anyone else see Sky as the NZ version of Blockbuster? Its only a matter of time before another company creates a better/cheaper IPTV model and wins the sport broadcasting contract.

[Benny1]

Anyone else see Sky as the NZ version of Blockbuster? Its only a matter of time before another company creates a better/cheaper IPTV model and wins the sport broadcasting contract.

The old sport chestnut is the only thing in contention here...without sport Sky will struggle to survive....in fact it would be rather a quick death....

[Entrep]

What is there to like about it? It is essentially Freeview (Emphasis on free) for $25. If subscribers dont know this then they are vulnerable. How do shareholders feel about ripping off vulnerable people?

Freeview + E (for the Mrs), cartoons (kids) and Comedy Central (me). The STB is better than anything else I've found too, having recently left SKY and trying to get Freeview running on my older TV.

[minimoke]

Freeview + E (for the Mrs), cartoons (kids) and Comedy Central (me). The STB is better than anything else I've found too, having recently left SKY and trying to get Freeview running on my older TV.
So why dont they sell a starter pack of E, Comedy Central, Cartoons and the other non Freeeview stuff. As for the Set Top Box, connecting a Freeview STB should not be an issue connecting it a TV. The TV is just a receiver of whatever the STB sends it. Cold be Freeview, Could be Sky, could be chromecast.

[TideMan]

So why dont they sell a starter pack of E, Comedy Central, Cartoons and the other non Freeeview stuff. As for the Set Top Box, connecting a Freeview STB should not be an issue connecting it a TV. The TV is just a receiver of whatever the STB sends it. Cold be Freeview, Could be Sky, could be chromecast.

Or it could be Kodi running on a Raspberry Pi, giving you access to a whole wealth of streaming: BBC iPlayer, ITV, etc, etc.

[Zaphod]

So why dont they sell a starter pack of E, Comedy Central, Cartoons and the other non Freeeview stuff. As for the Set Top Box, connecting a Freeview STB should not be an issue connecting it a TV. The TV is just a receiver of whatever the STB sends it. Cold be Freeview, Could be Sky, could be chromecast.

Sky's upstream content supply contracts are rather prohibitive. They also contain clauses that force Sky to pursue legal action against infringements or the supply contracts can be invalidated. Unfortunately the upstream content industry also has a lot of hard lessons to learn.

[Zaphod]

Lucky they got a "young" "tech savvy" director on the board. they surely have the guidance and leadership to realise how disrupted their current model is. :)

I can hear Mr H drilling holes in the boat as we speak......

[minimoke]

I can hear Mr H drilling holes in the boat as we speak......That implies he's removed his lips from the teat. Which I think unlikely.

[Zaphod]

That implies he's removed his lips from the teat. Which I think unlikely.

LMAO! I stand corrected!

[value_investor]

Perhaps what this does is delay the inevitable, which will mean this one will slowly bleed out.

The cash generating potential and the relatively strong balance sheet is what keeps it afloat for the moment. However, monopolistic behaviours in a competitive market will not win you any new fans. You can't carry out your affairs like its 2005.

[BlackCross]

Like many of the older (over 35) generation we, and my partner especially, don't wish to have to mess around with streaming smartphones and casting to google every time we want to watch a programme. Instead we are more than happy to very easily record programmes to SKY's HD and watch at our leisure. No technical degree required - just a few button presses.

So just for balance, not everyone hates SKY. (and I'm not a holder except via ETFs).

Just a great pity that it wasn't allowed to amalgamate with VOD and become a proper modern commercial Kiwi media company.

[RTM]

Like many of the older (over 35) generation we, and my partner especially, don't wish to have to mess around with streaming smartphones and casting to google every time we want to watch a programme. Instead we are more than happy to very easily record programmes to SKY's HD and watch at our leisure. No technical degree required - just a few button presses.

So just for balance, not everyone hates SKY. (and I'm not a holder except via ETFs).

Just a great pity that it wasn't allowed to amalgamate with VOD and become a proper modern commercial Kiwi media company.

The new TV’s simplify all that Blackcross. Ad free Netflix is right there on the remote. YouTube easily accessed via apps. Yes, I was the same, especially for my wife. We’ve added a Freeview box with a hard drive to record in a similar way to Sky any of the Freeview stuff we want to watch.

All good. Interestingly, in the media rich world we now live in, we are watching less TV overall. But what we do watch we are much more selective about.

Cheers, RTM (>60yrs)

[Beagle]

The new TV’s simplify all that Blackcross. Ad free Netflix is right there on the remote. YouTube easily accessed via apps. Yes, I was the same, especially for my wife. We’ve added a Freeview box with a hard drive to record in a similar way to Sky any of the Freeview stuff we want to watch.

All good. Interestingly, in the media rich world we now live in, we are watching less TV overall. But what we do watch we are much more selective about.

Cheers, RTM (>60yrs)

Curious what brand you chose mate and where you bought it and price, hope you don't mind sharing.

[minimoke]

Curious what brand you chose mate and where you bought it and price, hope you don't mind sharing.You cant go past the Tivo - something SKY ought to have looked at.

[Entrep]

The new TV’s simplify all that Blackcross. Ad free Netflix is right there on the remote. YouTube easily accessed via apps. Yes, I was the same, especially for my wife. We’ve added a Freeview box with a hard drive to record in a similar way to Sky any of the Freeview stuff we want to watch.

All good. Interestingly, in the media rich world we now live in, we are watching less TV overall. But what we do watch we are much more selective about.

Cheers, RTM (>60yrs)

It would be nice to be able to attach a USB drive to the TV to record Freeview directly to that instead of needing to buy a Freeview box (when the TV is also Freeview compatible).

[tga_trader]

Curious what brand you chose mate and where you bought it and price, hope you don't mind sharing.
http://www.harveynorman.co.nz/hotdeals/panasonic-1tb-hard-drive-recorder.html
We've got an older model of that, but it's only 500GB and cost us $888 on special 7 years ago, but it is still 100% mint. If / when it dies we would buy another.
Plus the TV we've bought since can record to hard drive + all the on demand apps + we have lightbox (free through spark), netflix, and amazon prime. We have more TV and movies then we could ever possibly watch, all without Sky.

[bull....]

when spark release there new media channel upgrade , sky might lose more subscribers. spark probably seriously looking at bidding for sport too i reckon the more sky reveunes fall

[RTM]

Curious what brand you chose mate and where you bought it and price, hope you don't mind sharing.
No...don't mind sharing at all. I LIKE electronic toys.
Bought a fairly up model Panasonic TV. Certainly wasn't a budget driven decision. It's great. Only slight ? I have is it is not Android...which is good....but the "operating system" is Firefox. The developers of this have stopped supporting / refining this. So now down to support from Panasonic, so not sure how this will go into the future. Freeview box is SatBox S8200 1TB Hard drive...seems adequate. Tuner in TV is just terrestrial, so in the far north get our TV signal via the old SKY satellite and the Freeview box.

[RTM]

http://www.harveynorman.co.nz/hotdeals/panasonic-1tb-hard-drive-recorder.html
We've got an older model of that, but it's only 500GB and cost us $888 on special 7 years ago, but it is still 100% mint. If / when it dies we would buy another.
Plus the TV we've bought since can record to hard drive + all the on demand apps + we have lightbox (free through spark), netflix, and amazon prime. We have more TV and movies then we could ever possibly watch, all without Sky.

Yes....we have an older version of this....unfortunately not great up North as it only likes Terrestrial Freeview signal. And then that gets a bit messy from then on.

[Jay]

Also note: don't think you get Freeview in HD via the satellite version

[Beagle]

No...don't mind sharing at all. I LIKE electronic toys.
Bought a fairly up model Panasonic TV. Certainly wasn't a budget driven decision. It's great. Only slight ? I have is it is not Android...which is good....but the "operating system" is Firefox. The developers of this have stopped supporting / refining this. So now down to support from Panasonic, so not sure how this will go into the future. Freeview box is SatBox S8200 1TB Hard drive...seems adequate. Tuner in TV is just terrestrial, so in the far north get our TV signal via the old SKY satellite and the Freeview box.

Thanks. Got a little bit on an inertia problem about doing anything right at the minute which I'm blaming on the lovely and charming Claire Danes. Sky gave complimentary access the other day to Soho and I see she's headlining the 7th season of Homeland at present, one of my all time favorite shows. Will review how much I am prepared to let Sky continue to plunder my account for each month at the end of the latest Homeland season.

[minimoke]

Just had a brief look at the latest Spark announcement. By the numbers, for about $100 a month I get Land line, local calls, cheap national calls, unlimited fibre broadband, free freeview HD, free tivo recorder with 1TB hard drive (that cost me $100 upgrade) to record Freeview; Lightbox and now Netflix for 12 months. This has to be 666 channels of sh1t and still not much to choose from. But still I suspect a better offering than Sky.

Edit - I even get free sport with the rugby on Prime on Saturday nights

[RTM]

Also note: don't think you get Freeview in HD via the satellite version

You are correct.....Grrrrrrrr.

[RTM]

Thanks. Got a little bit on an inertia problem about doing anything right at the minute which I'm blaming on the lovely and charming Claire Danes. Sky gave complimentary access the other day to Soho and I see she's headlining the 7th season of Homeland at present, one of my all time favorite shows. Will review how much I am prepared to let Sky continue to plunder my account for each month at the end of the latest Homeland season.

Don’t forget you need your CNBC as well. I miss that. My streaming version of that no longer seems to be working, although I do get the news channels, Fox etc. Gotta get my fix of Hannity from time to time.:)

[RTM]

Thanks. Got a little bit on an inertia problem about doing anything right at the minute which I'm blaming on the lovely and charming Claire Danes. Sky gave complimentary access the other day to Soho and I see she's headlining the 7th season of Homeland at present, one of my all time favorite shows. Will review how much I am prepared to let Sky continue to plunder my account for each month at the end of the latest Homeland season.

Just checked....6 seasons of Homeland on Netflix. Not sure if that is all their is.

[Entrep]

It would be nice to be able to attach a USB drive to the TV to record Freeview directly to that instead of needing to buy a Freeview box (when the TV is also Freeview compatible).

To answer my own question I found out most new TVs have this record to USB function built in... No need for another decoder or box.

[tga_trader]

To answer my own question I found out most new TVs have this record to USB function built in... No need for another decoder or box.

Just need to check whether the TVs are dual tuner or not. That's where we've loved our Panasonic PVR. Because it's dual tuner we can record two programs at once (or handy for dealing with pesky overlaps) while watching something else we've recorded, or another program through the TV.

This is getting quite off topic though....but I suppose we are just killing time until the inevitable.

[ratkin]

Im a bit like blackcross, cant be arsed getting rid of it, although I know there are cheaper alternatives. Have to spend the money on something.
Sky is easy and I know when the world cup football comes round would only be forced to buy it back.

Soho the other reason. The Americans, Fear the walking dead, Second season of Westworld all start next month, and yes I know I can watch them online for free, but I would rather watch them on sky than have to hunt down free streams.

[Benny1]

Im a bit like blackcross, cant be arsed getting rid of it, although I know there are cheaper alternatives. Have to spend the money on something.
Sky is easy and I know when the world cup football comes round would only be forced to buy it back.

Soho the other reason. The Americans, Fear the walking dead, Second season of Westworld all start next month, and yes I know I can watch them online for free, but I would rather watch them on sky than have to hunt down free streams.

I have just gone back to sky after a few years away. Got a bit tired of trying to hunt down feeds on Kodi for my Rugby League. (yes unfortunately I'm a Warriors tragic) and have just enjoyed the Winter Olympics too.
Sky is easy to use and as Iong as I
do some OT at work to pay for it I will probably keep it until the something better comes along.

[Jay]

A little the same ratkin and B1, would have to fork out for a freeview aerial (if I want it in HD) and a recorder if want to record something from the freeview channels, not much idea about streaming stuff, plus rugby just started, F1 about to and the V8s, the tennis opens , so pretty much like a lot of people, got it mainly for the sport.

[minimoke]

A little the same ratkin and B1, would have to fork out for a freeview aerial (if I want it in HD) and a recorder if want to record something from the freeview channels, not much idea about streaming stuff, plus rugby just started, F1 about to and the V8s, the tennis opens , so pretty much like a lot of people, got it mainly for the sport.
When I lived in my shed I bought an aerial from the Warehouse for about $10.00. Get a Series 3 Tivo for $1 - $50 and pay $55 to update the PROM. (Tivo pretty well bullet proof. If/when the hard drive goes $110 for a new 1TB WD Purple Hard drive). A Google Chromecast for $69 for streaming. $184 all up for as much media as you can shake a stick at.