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Have linear pay channels had their day? - OldSkoollCITV - 01-07-2021
I am aware that Fox UK had to close down because of Disney+ but the reason why that the channel is a huge loss to the linear pay TV market is because Fox was one of the strongest and well known ones. Since the mid-2010s Sky have weeding out alot of pay linear channels by going free to air or closing down.
Sky under Comcast seen to know what they are doing, they have launch the set of linear genre based entertainment channels to fill the gap just in case more third party channels jump ship. I believe Sky Kids could be the next one to laucnh.
Linear TV are not the huge thing in the age of streaming but it could come back.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - what - 01-07-2021
As has been mentioned here before, Sky's contract with Nickelodeon supposedly blocks them from launching Sky Kids as a linear channel.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - nwtv2003 - 01-07-2021
The only reason why Sky has launched the Crime, Comedy, Documentary and Nature linear channels is to give their acquired on demand content a linear outlet on its EPG. They haven’t launched these channels for great ratings. I remember reading that Netflix is going to launch a linear channel in France at some point, for this reason. Certainly, Atlantic, Witness, Arts and History are going that way too.
I guess every company will see things differently, but it’s clear Disney see no future in linear pay TV for its channels. Whilst there’s no doubt their channels including the acquired Fox portfolio rated okay, clearly there is more to be gained by having the channels content available on Disney+, where they are getting anywhere between £60 to £96 a year directly from a subscriber (give or take which subscription you took out) probably makes more money for them than going through Sky or Virgin and advertising revenue. Times Disney+ revenue by a million subscribers at least (they probably have more than that!) then it certainly makes more financial sense.
I can see Discovery going this way too, with some of their pay TV channels.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - London Lite - 01-07-2021
Netflix opened up a Pandora's box for rights owners. When they realised that Netflix was providing a viable product using their content, they all realised that they could sell programming direct to viewers instead of a third-party provider.
So this is why you have Disney using their acquired content on Disney+ alongside their family friendly originals, Discovery removing content from NOW and TVPlayer to take it in-house and Sky increasing their investment in original content that they can show without being as reliant on acquisitions.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - Neil Jones - 01-07-2021
OldSkoollCITV post_id=25248 time= user_id=1749 Wrote:I am aware that Fox UK had to close down because of Disney+ but the reason why that the channel is a huge loss to the linear pay TV market is because Fox was one of the strongest and well known ones. Since the mid-2010s Sky have weeding out alot of pay linear channels by going free to air or closing down.
Sky under Comcast seen to know what they are doing, they have launch the set of linear genre based entertainment channels to fill the gap just in case more third party channels jump ship. I believe Sky Kids could be the next one to laucnh.
Linear TV are not the huge thing in the age of streaming but it could come back.
Well Sky Kids did launch, but not as a channel.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - Brekkie - 01-07-2021
nwtv2003 post_id=25279 time= user_id=1028 Wrote:The only reason why Sky has launched the Crime, Comedy, Documentary and Nature linear channels is to give their acquired on demand content a linear outlet on its EPG. They haven’t launched these channels for great ratings.No doubt about it though that having them as "channels" on Now especially, but increasinly on Sky as well, was always part of the plan with them knowing the likes of Disney would begin pulling their services.
It does seem odd that Nickelodeon would still have a contract preventing Sky launching a rival, although I guess it works two ways if it prevents Sky losing more kids channels. Two questions - is all Sky Kids original content imported or have they commissioned some of their own, and is Nickelodeon being packaged in with Paramount+ where that has launched?
Have linear pay channels had their day? - gottago - 01-07-2021
nwtv2003 post_id=25279 time= user_id=1028 Wrote:The only reason why Sky has launched the Crime, Comedy, Documentary and Nature linear channels is to give their acquired on demand content a linear outlet on its EPG. They haven’t launched these channels for great ratings.I don't think that's the only reason they launched linear channels, I think they're very much aware that their EPG is looking increasingly bare and they needed to beef up the offering to make it still look like their linear offering is still value for money.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - UTVLifer - 01-07-2021
London Lite post_id=25281 time= user_id=953 Wrote:Netflix opened up a Pandora's box for rights owners. When they realised that Netflix was providing a viable product using their content, they all realised that they could sell programming direct to viewers instead of a third-party provider.The BBC have also been doing this, Doctor Who has been recently been removed from Netflix in the UK, and with them also having uploaded all the same Clarkson-era Top Gear series' (S10-S22) to the iPlayer as they have on Netflix, I suspect that it could be next - in the UK at least. Other shows like all the old eps Waterloo Road have been box setted on the iPlayer in full over the last year or so as well
So this is why you have Disney using their acquired content on Disney+ alongside their family friendly originals, Discovery removing content from NOW and TVPlayer to take it in-house and Sky increasing their investment in original content that they can show without being as reliant on acquisitions.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - London Lite - 01-07-2021
While I still watch linear tv, the sheer ease of use of VOD makes it more convenient as I'm no longer reliant on scheduled times to watch them.
Sky Documentaries for example have already put the whole series of their Ghislaine Maxwell documentary on NOW, so that you don't have to wait for it to be on the linear channel, while the BBC have put EastEnders on iPlayer in week blocks during Euro 2020, which for me personally is another way of ensuring the future of the soap with younger viewers than making them wait. It'll be a retrograde step when the football finishes that you have to wait for it to be uploaded after the linear tv airing on BBC One.
However, I still think there's a market for linear tv. It can be used to preview shows you later watch on SVOD and event television, such as live sport, festivals or to drip feed drama shows.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - Neil Jones - 01-07-2021
Brekkie post_id=25297 time= user_id=976 Wrote:nwtv2003 post_id=25279 time= user_id=1028 Wrote:The only reason why Sky has launched the Crime, Comedy, Documentary and Nature linear channels is to give their acquired on demand content a linear outlet on its EPG. They haven’t launched these channels for great ratings.No doubt about it though that having them as "channels" on Now especially, but increasinly on Sky as well, was always part of the plan with them knowing the likes of Disney would begin pulling their services.
It does seem odd that Nickelodeon would still have a contract preventing Sky launching a rival, although I guess it works two ways if it prevents Sky losing more kids channels. Two questions - is all Sky Kids original content imported or have they commissioned some of their own, and is Nickelodeon being packaged in with Paramount+ where that has launched?
I believe Paramount+ (as launched in the US) has Nickelodeon content. They seem to have Spongebob if nothing else, and a few other acquired things. Apparently coming to the UK in 2022.
Re: Sky Kids - https://www.sky.com/watch/channel/sky-kids might be of interest. Now it seems to be a tie in to the Sky TV add-on of the same name but I'm sure it used to be more stand-alone.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - Rdd - 02-07-2021
UTVLifer post_id=25303 time=1625175833 user_id=1030 Wrote:London Lite post_id=25281 time= user_id=953 Wrote:Netflix opened up a Pandora's box for rights owners. When they realised that Netflix was providing a viable product using their content, they all realised that they could sell programming direct to viewers instead of a third-party provider.The BBC have also been doing this, Doctor Who has been recently been removed from Netflix in the UK, and with them also having uploaded all the same Clarkson-era Top Gear series' (S10-S22) to the iPlayer as they have on Netflix, I suspect that it could be next - in the UK at least. Other shows like all the old eps Waterloo Road have been box setted on the iPlayer in full over the last year or so as well
So this is why you have Disney using their acquired content on Disney+ alongside their family friendly originals, Discovery removing content from NOW and TVPlayer to take it in-house and Sky increasing their investment in original content that they can show without being as reliant on acquisitions.
This has had a knock on Ireland, thanks to removal from Netflix, since the start of 2021 - the only ways to watch Doctor Who here - one of the BBC’s biggest properties - is to either watch live on linear TV, watch the very small amount of (recently aired on W) episodes available on UKTV Play or - whisper it - buy the DVDs. There are several other British TV shows that have gone the same way recently, because the BBC are taking them out of the market to support Britbox. There are other examples of shows only available on linear tv or recent catch-up.
Has linear tv had its day? No. Sports will always want to be watched live, as does breaking news (even if the jury is out regarding the 24 hour news channel). “Water cooler” shows like Line of Duty (another show whose first run episodes can only be seen “live” (or PVRed from their BBC One broadcast at any rate) in Ireland, as the creators of the Irish-based podcast Shrine of Duty noted as they were being interviewed on BBC Breakfast). Reality TV shows like the X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent are designed for live TV and don’t work well as box sets (the audience voting aspect being lost). The shop window aspect of linear tv is still useful even though clearly Disney has decided it doesn’t need it.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - James Martin - 02-07-2021
Yes, basically live content will become the bread and butter of linear.
I'd hope once The Thing becomes less of an issue that we might see more investment in event television. Stuff like the live productions of Grease in the USA, or the Sound of Music on either side of the water, are a great start.
Am I right in saying that with Love Island, a significant chunk of the audience do not watch the linear TX?
To answer the original question, however:
Yes. They have. I get the impression now most people would rather pay Netflix, Amazon, Disney+ etc. than their provider for "premium channels" when they consist entirely of recordings. For example, I'm amazed Sky Cinema's linear channels are still A Thing. Apart from Line of Duty and GoT, I'm struggling to think of any non-reality pre-recorded show which has been such a big deal for linear in the past few years.
In the case of Amazon, most people already have access to Prime Video because they've taken out a Prime subscription for something else.
Like you say, Sport is a different ball game - and I believe it's that and only that which will, in effect, stop NOW from overtaking Sky itself in the next decade.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - Neil Jones - 02-07-2021
I do wonder if an argument in support of linear channels is that while streaming services are all very nice and give you access to more content than you'll ever be able to watch even if you lived to be 327 years of age, but they're only available if you have an internet connection that works and is available. Linear channels don't need that, they just need the broadcasting infrastructure and receivers to be working.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - johnnyboy - 02-07-2021
I think the BBC have probably got it right with the return of BBC3 although they should never have removed it in the first place, imo.
Linear TV viewing will continue and all of us will still use it for decades to come albeit less and less (even if, for some, it's a few minutes per day).
I think linear TV will essentially act as barker channels for specific streaming services and programmes.
Did anyone see the rather magnificient Time on BBC1? Its heavy promotion across linear channels and its presence on the EPG and on online listings websites brought many viewers to the show - moreso than if it had just been promoted on iPlayer, I contend.
I also think that, over time, fewer and fewer shows will be dumped as a whole on streaming - instead, episodes will be dropped every week to give people a reason to return to both the streaming services and the linear channels.
But what do I know? I remember seeing the internet for the first time at Sheffield Uni in 1994 and thinking it was a lot of rubbish and would never catch on.
Have linear pay channels had their day? - nhk - 02-07-2021
James Martin post_id=25335 time= user_id=872 Wrote:Am I right in saying that with Love Island, a significant chunk of the audience do not watch the linear TX?
I don't have the facts on hand to back it up, but from what I've seen and heard from my friends is that the only proper television they watch for themselves is Love Island and I'm a Celebrity, and both times these are done over the ITV Hub as 'it's just easier to use an app than it is to use the telly, and it's more convenient in case you miss it" as the catch-up episodes are in the same place as the newest/premiering episodes.