Feb 20 2020
The proportion of UK homes with a subscription to at least one of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video or Now TV passed 50% for the first time in Q4 2019, standing at 50.5%. 14.27 million homes access at least one of these services, a quarter-on-quarter increase of +4.4% or almost 600,000 homes since Q3 2019. All […]
Feb 17 2020
A petition to “save our BBC” has attracted more than 100,000 signatures in less than 24 hours after unnamed government sources threatened to “whack” the British broadcaster by scrapping the license fee and forcing it to radically scale back its services. The 38 Degrees petition is a response to a report on the front page […]
Oct 22 2019
London, October 22, 2019 – Discovery, Inc. today announces the launch in the U.K. and Ireland of dplay, the leading real life entertainment streaming service. The ad supported streaming service launches this week and includes all the great content from Discovery’s free-to-air channels; Quest, Quest Red, DMAX, Food Network, Really and Home. Fans will now […]
Jul 1 2019
Virgin Media’s TV customers will be able to watch all of the big matches on Centre Court at Wimbledon in 4K Ultra HD with HDR. The competition starts on Monday 1 July and tennis fans on Virgin Media’s TV platform will be able to watch all Centre Court matches in 4K UHD with Hybrid Log […]
Jan 11 2019
Discovery Inc. is applying for broadcast licenses in the Netherlands to keep its pay-TV channels such as Animal Planet from going dark in the European Union in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Discovery is also establishing a European operational headquarters in the Netherlands, the company said in an emailed statement on Friday. The U.S. […]
Mar 13 2018
Britain’s media regulator Ofcom says it will “consider the implications for RT’s broadcast licenses” if it’s determined there was “an unlawful use of force by the Russian state against the UK” in the poisoning of Sergei Skripal. In a statement, Ofcom said: “As the independent UK broadcasting regulator, Ofcom has an ongoing duty to be […]
Jan 12 2018
OTTAWA, CANADA, January 12, 2018 – Telesat announced today the successful launch of its first LEO satellite, an important milestone in the company’s plans to deploy a global LEO constellation that will revolutionize broadband communications services around the world. Telesat’s Phase 1 LEO satellite was launched aboard a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) operated by […]
Aug 14 2017
Netflix has ordered a supernatural thriller from the UK, an eight-episode series that will be produced by New Pictures, the British company that is part of Discovery- and Liberty Global-backed production group All3Media. Netflix said that filming is underway in the UK and Norway on the as-yet-untitled series. It was written by Hania Elkington (“The […]
Jul 31 2017
Freeview has announced that Freeview Play TVs account for more than half of all Smart HD TV* sales in the UK. In June, 55% of Smart HD TVs sold were Freeview Play enabled**, a rise of 20 percentage points since January 2017. Launched less than two years ago, Freeview Play brings UK consumers a seamless […]
Jul 27 2017
The Premier League has been awarded a new High Court order for the 2017-18 season to allow it to block pirated streams of matches via Kodi set-top boxes. In March, the High Court had approved a Premier League application to block the computer servers that power the illegal streams, rather than just individual streams, and […]
Jul 27 2017
Viacom is to launch another free-to-air channel in the UK and is exploring a potential move into premium scripted programming. The launch of Paramount Channel in the UK follows that of Viacom-owned Spike in April 2015. Paramount Channel currently operates in 115 countries around the world and primarily airs films, with a handful of acquired […]
Channel launches and updates on Freeview
ITV announces closure of CITV
BBC switch from SD to HD on satellite
Joint UK/international BBC News service from March
Loss of channels on Freesat 4K TV Boxes after a reset
Digital UK becomes “Everyone TV”
Rollout of BBC One HD for the English regions
ITVX launch month delivers 55% increase in ITV’s streaming viewing and 65% increase in online users
New Broadcast 2040+ researchBBC to switch off all SD satellite channels
Dec 31 2020
Proposed amendments to the Broadcasting Code and the Code on the Scheduling of Television Advertising
The UK statutory framework that shapes the regulation of UK television services is changing. The Audiovisual Media Services Regulations came into force on 1 November 2020. The AVMS Regulations implement the revised Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) into UK law. They amend Section 319 of the Communications Act 2003, which sets the standards objectives that […]
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By Expat • Ofcom, United Kingdom • Tags: AVMS, AVMS Directive, European Convention on Transfrontier Television