SKT Sky Network Television Limited.

[mistaTea]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/131...-to-reach-deal

Couldn't reach a deal with their existing content partners. Bit of a hole in their offering as an aggregator.

Sounds like it pretty much works like SkyGO (you don't get the TVNZ channels either). So perhaps a better outcome would be to offer SkyGO as a standalone (something I have said many times in years gone by). No hardware, people can just sub to the app and start streaming.

Offering SkyGO as a standalone does require contract rework, but where there is a will there is a way. Could offer different/sharper package deals as there are less costs involved.

[Baa_Baa]

Not a big deal at all, just won't show TVNZ programmes on the SKY Box channels. The TVNZ App will still come pre-loaded on the Sky Box and have access to all TVNZ streaming channels.

[mistaTea]

Not a big deal at all, just won't show TVNZ programmes on the SKY Box channels. The TVNZ App will still come pre-loaded on the Sky Box and have access to all TVNZ streaming channels.

Well, it certainly isn't going to force SNT into bankruptcy. So in that sense, yeah no biggie I guess.

But actually it is important to Sky's pod/STB offering. You are positioning yourself as the ultimate aggregator (and that is the selling point for why people should pay you $100 for a pod or $200 for a box that Sky still own). The ability to serve up TVNZ content alongside your other linear offerings is much better than your customers launching a competitors platform to view the content.

Not the absolute end of the world, sure. But it's not a great outcome for the product either.

I wonder what the snag was in getting the deal done. TVNZ will have the domestic cricket - so would be nice for Sky to have it integrated with their other content on the pod like they will on the STB.

Maybe they will still be able to reach acceptable terms in the future.

[Baa_Baa]

Maybe they will still be able to reach acceptable terms in the future.

Yes, that's how I read it, not like they've both walked away, just haven't done a deal that suits both parties. More wonder what TVNZ wants from Sky, for what is after all 'free to air' channels. I suspect it's having to pay TVNZ for some data to populate the SKY Box programming (channel).

Anyway, as a subscriber to the Sky Box, I wouldn't be too concerned as I could just start the pre-loaded TVNZ App and use their programming channel, to find what I want to watch. That said, there's nothing on TVNZ, except maybe the news, that I would ever watch anyway.

[Entrep]

https://thespinoff.co.nz/business/09...dy-for-release

[sb9]

Yes, that's how I read it, not like they've both walked away, just haven't done a deal that suits both parties. More wonder what TVNZ wants from Sky, for what is after all 'free to air' channels. I suspect it's having to pay TVNZ for some data to populate the SKY Box programming (channel).

Anyway, as a subscriber to the Sky Box, I wouldn't be too concerned as I could just start the pre-loaded TVNZ App and use their programming channel, to find what I want to watch. That said, there's nothing on TVNZ, except maybe the news, that I would ever watch anyway.

Yeah, used to watch Television programmers reasonably regularly few years ago, hardly watch any of it now except for occasional news.

[mistaTea]

Yeah, used to watch Television programmers reasonably regularly few years ago, hardly watch any of it now except for occasional news.

Yeah and we all have our preferences etc, but it more about the overall narrative about Sky losing content for various different reasons. Plenty of other people value TVNZ content: The Chase, One News, shows like Happy Valley, Eat Well for Less etc. If you are using SNT hardward to get a bundle of content, it is much more convenient to have all of the content available to you as part of the bundle as opposed to launching another app (in this case TVNZ+).

You guys are welcome to play it down, and I agree that not having TVNZ in and of itself is not 'catastrophic'. But believe me, nobody at Sky will be thinking this is a great outcome. They want people to stay in their universe of content as much as possible - not launching other apps from their platform.

Why, if you had a box or a pod but got to the point you found the majority of time you were just booting up the device so that you can launch NETFLIX, AP, Disney+ or TVNZ+ etc...well you might start to get the idea that you don't really need to pay Sky $85 a month after all!

[mistaTea]

Review of the new STB by The Spinoff.

https://thespinoff.co.nz/business/09...dy-for-release

[Bjauck]

I watched David Attenborough’s Last Day of the Dinosaurs (not a metaphor for Sky!) on Skygo catch-up and almost stopped watching as a result of the number of commercials and self-promotion interspliced in the programme. Almost as bad as TV Three on Demand. At least with TV3 you don’t pay a subscription for it.

[mistaTea]

I watched David Attenborough’s Last Day of the Dinosaurs (not a metaphor for Sky!) on Skygo catch-up and almost stopped watching as a result of the number of commercials and self-promotion interspliced in the programme. Almost as bad as TV Three on Demand. At least with TV3 you don’t pay a subscription for it.

Aye, it is an ongoing challenge for the aggregators.

I believe their contracts usually involce some kind of fixed cost per subscriber and/or share of advertising revenue. So a particular partner might say they will only charge 20c per subscriber for their channel, but want x% of ad revenue (otherwise the FCPS would have to be higher).

So Sky's entire business model is reliant on advertising, and it is a model that served them very well for many years.

But now, given you can get Amazon Prime ad-free for $9/month - if you are paying Sky TV $75 per month for their Entertainment package (including the fee to be able to record programmes) you now expect that it should really have zero ads. If you are paying 8 times what you pay for Amazon Prime, it seems cruel to be subjected to so many ads and self promotion.

Even when the streaming services introduce ad tiers, there will still be an option to pay a bit more to be ad free.

Sky will need to conform to this new model in all of their service offerings I think - cheaper ad supported options and premium no ad options. But that would require a complete overhaul of their current business model and the renegotiation of their contracts. Not a small task!