Sky's Branding

They've this morning told me that they've taken the commercial decision to restrict those who can access Apps on Sky Q with effect of Thursday. Last year they did the same with the red button where those who took the full Sky Sports package could not access Red Button unless they had the Box Sets pack.

They also confirmed to me that there are changes to the multi-room pack. Everyone who subscribes to mutli-room will get access via mini boxes, However being able to use the Sky Q Mobile and Tablet App is now subject to additional criteria. Those on the legacy originals or the most basic new TV pack will not get it.

Not sure which planet these people are on......

Not sure which planet you are on..

If you want all the whistles, bells and kitchen sink with Sky Q, you should expect to pay for it. Pay the basic monthly subs, and get the basic package.


Most businesses offering customer facing services operate like this.

Try going in to a Ford showroom, and say you want to buy the latest Focus, with alloy wheels, air con, leather trim, heated seats, Bluetooth MP3 Dab entertainment system, sat navigation and windscreen projected speed and journey details for the basic model price - and see what answer you get once the salesman has got his breath back from the convulsive laughter.

But if Sky have decided to take the features away that were already there, surely it's more like a Ford salesman breaking into your Focus, ripping your entertainment system and sat nav out, swapped the alloy wheels for steel ones and tearing out the leather trim, and demanding more money before he puts them back.

They got away with it 10 years ago but these days people will see straight through it. I don't expect them to be profitable for much longer. 5,10 years at most. I don't believe the published customer numbers are concurrent, purely speculation.

Umm..
If they are quoted in the published annual report to shareholders, then, they have been independently audited and are true.

Making stuff up in the annual report, is technically corporate fraud and the directors if found out, would be heading to jail fairly quickly...

.. No doubt with the Sky Newscopter following the prison van from the Old Bailey to Wandsworth prison.

Read what I said again.......

and then try again.

I never said anybody was "making stuff up". The way new customers, existing customers, customers leaving are defined isn't clear cut, black and white as you would suspect. For example, how many customers are on discounted rates, how many have left and then returned, how many customers are Sky giving free subscriptions to? I know some customers have been given free Sky Plus subscriptions, very odd.

It's called retentions. A customer is a customer regardless of whether they pay full, half or no price to Sky. I wouldn't be surprised if a large chunk of the customer base is on a discount of some sort, since you can get new member deals just by signing up and usually another discount deal if you phone to cancel.

And technically Sky+(the functionality) is free to all Sky customers and has been since at least 2007. It used to be a separate charge.

It is only free if you have a subscription with Sky, If you do not, you have to pay a £10 a month charge to retain Sky Plus features. It is a subscription. Sky has sent letters to some ex customers offering this for free after they had left.

If I sign up for a sky product for less than a month, am I counted as a new customer?

If you mean a Sky customer adding a service for a short period (such as Cinema or Sports), then they are not a new customer.

I'm not sure whether NOW TV customers are included in their figures. They are contract-free, but can add a paid service for a month (such as the Entertainment Pass) and would be 'new', but they would appear again in the Churn rate when their pass expires.

I'm sure it's very clearly defined what can/cannot be counted, as ultimately it will be independently verified.

Have there been any trails on some channels advertising their EPG changes on Sky? I've seen History advertise the move to EPG 130, but I haven't seen any other channel yet so far from direct observation.

Quest Red (and therefore presumably Quest) have been running trails today about their move.