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Sky Q is getting better personalisation features and Spotify
All of a sudden, Sky has become the prize in a bidding war between US media giants Fox and Comcast, but for now, it's business as usual on the ground. The pay-TV provider has today announced a number of new features coming to its Sky Q service, primarily focused on making the user experience more personalised. Machine learning will begin to play a more important role throughout -- surfacing different TV shows depending on the time of day, for example. The sports tab is also becoming better tailored, assessing your viewing habits and liaising with the Sky Sports app so it knows your favourite events and teams.
Sky Q’s Dolby Atmos support arrives for new Premier League season
When Sky surprised subscribers with the launch of its new Devialet-made surround sound speaker late last month, it also dropped in news that Sky Q customers would soon enjoy enhanced sound courtesy of Dolby Atmos. At the time, the company remained coy, teasing a "summer" launch, but with the new Premier League season imminent, Sky today confirmed that Dolby's surround sound standard will now be ready for when Arsenal host Leicester tomorrow night.
Sky is shaking up the way you pay for and watch sport
Televised sport is big business -- just ask Sky and BT Sport. Between them, the two companies have spent billions in order to secure access to the world's biggest sporting leagues and major events, resulting in a significant markup for consumers. The rising cost of Sky Sports, for example, has led many to cut the package altogether or seek more dubious alternatives like the so-called Kodi box (although it's the add-ons, not the software facilitating illegal streams). Sky is keenly aware of this, so today it announced a new plan to make its sports coverage more accessible. It's expanding the number of Sky Sports channels to 10, which will cater for individual sports and allow customers to subscribe to each one on their own.
BT beats Sky to Champions League and Europa League TV rights
BT has secured another three-year deal for Champions League and Europa League football, extending its lucrative TV rights until 2021 in the UK. The contract is worth £1.2 billion, up from £897 million in 2013, and includes both the group stages and knockout rounds of each competition. As BBC News notes, the latest auction -- which takes effect from the 2018/19 season -- gives BT true exclusivity. That means no matches or highlights will be shown through the free-to-air broadcaster ITV. In return, BT has promised to "enhance its social media coverage" with shareable clips and weekly roundups. It will also continue showing the finals on YouTube.
Sky Q's Split Screen puts two matches on one TV
If you love sport, picking a match to watch on TV can be a nightmare. Murray's semi-final against Wawrinka? Or Nadal's clash with Djokovic? When both are happening simultaneously, you have to pick one or the other (or find a second screen and keep it nearby). Sky is trying to fix this problem with "Split Screen," a new feature for Sky Q which lets you watch two games side-by-side. It should work for "any multi-match or multi-camera event" broadcast by Sky through its Red button service.
Drone racing is coming to Sky Sports next month
Drone racing's rise to prominence is hardly a surprise. The sport combines a new, rapidly improving technology with skilful pilots and bombastic, three-dimensional courses. If you've ever watched a heat, either in person or online, you'll know it's an exhilarating spectacle. With this in mind, it's no bombshell to hear that Sky has made an investment in the Drone Racing League (DRL), a professional outfit backed by Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross. As part of its $1 million cash injection, Sky will be showing the entire tournament on its new Sky Sports Mix channel in the UK.
Sky will stream tomorrow's Soccer Saturday on Facebook and YouTube
When broadcasters put down billions of pounds to secure rights to the world's biggest sporting competitions, consumers who aren't able to afford or don't want pay-TV subscriptions often miss out. In the past, companies like Sky and BT have laid on a free day or weekend of access to show people what they're missing, but more recently, online video services have proved to be popular alternatives. With the Premier League season kicking off tomorrow, Sky has confirmed it will stream its Soccer Saturday show completely free of charge on Facebook and YouTube.
Sky Sports will share Premier League goals on Twitter as they happen
After spending a record £4.2 billion on securing the rights to 126 live games over the next next three Premier League seasons, Sky wants more people tuning into coverage regardless of where they are (as long as it's not on Vine). It's already announced that it will show highlights on-demand from this season -- including extended replays on TV, the web and mobile through Sky Go -- but the broadcaster confirmed today that it will soon push real-time video clips direct to Twitter for anyone to view.
Sky gets exclusive Formula 1 TV rights from 2019
The BBC's decision to abandon its Formula 1 coverage has paved the way for an exclusive TV deal with Sky. Starting in 2019, Sky Sports will be the only place where Brits can watch each championship race. If you're a motorsport fan, that means you'll need a subscription to watch every blistering lap and crash. As part of the new deal, however, Sky has promised to show the British Grand Prix and other race highlights on a free-to-access Sky Sports channel. It will likely operate in a similar manner to BT Sport Showcase, which BT uses for free-to-watch football fixtures.
Sky to offer Premier League matches on its basic TV packages
In its latest bid to stand out from broadcasting rival BT, Sky is launching a new sports channel that will be available to subscribers who don't pay for a Sky Sports bundle. It's called Sky Sports Mix and it'll feature live football, golf and international cricket, as well as more coverage from women's sporting competitions.
Sky takes a first step into eSports tournament coverage
With millions of fans regularly tuning into services like Twitch and YouTube Gaming to watch their favourite titles being played at the highest level, traditional TV broadcasters are starting to take note. Last year, BBC Three dipped its toe into the world of eSports with live League of Legends tournament coverage, and today Sky will become the latest UK provider to tap into this growing audience. Airing at 10PM tonight on Sky 2, a two-hour show will cover highlights from the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, League of Legends and Starcraft II tournaments that've taken place at the ESL Intel Masters World Championship over the past five days.
Formula 1 coverage moves from BBC to Channel 4 next season
As the latest Premier League auction has shown, obtaining live TV rights to prestigious sporting events is expensive. It's unsurprising, therefore, to hear that the BBC is cutting back on its coverage to meet its new savings targets, starting with Formula 1. The broadcaster currently shows 10 races each season, as well as highlights from the other nine aired by Sky. It's now prematurely ending its contract, however, and giving Channel 4 the opportunity to take over from next year. Channel 4 is getting a three-year deal -- the amount that was left on the BBC's contract -- and has promised zero advertising breaks like its predecessor during each live race.
Sky told it doesn't have to give BT a discount on Sky Sports
BT Sport is no longer the David to Sky Sports' Goliath. When it launched in August 2013, the underdog TV service weighed heavily on less popular football leagues such as Serie A in Italy and Ligue 1 in France. But BT has slowly expanded, spending large amounts for the Champions League, the Europa League and a highly sought-after batch of Premier League fixtures. That's triggered Ofcom to re-evaluate what's known as a "wholesale must-offer" between Sky and BT. Its final decision, announced today, means that Sky is no longer forced to offer its flagship sports channels, Sky Sports 1 and 2, at a discount to BT.
Sky will show Premier League highlights on-demand next season
It might have lost the Champions League and Europa League to BT, but Sky still dominates when it comes to the Premier League. Along with live coverage for 126 matches, the broadcaster has announced that it'll be offering "extended highlights" for every game on-demand starting next season. While Sky has offered these condensed replays before, they've been limited to its traditional TV channels. Now, starting with the 2016/17 season, football fans will be able to watch abridged matches whenever they like. Almost whenever they like, that is. Sky will release one full match -- with no edits whatsoever -- at 8pm each Saturday, followed by "extensive highlights" from the remaining fixtures at 10:30pm. Similarly, highlights from weekday fixtures will be available after 10pm.
Sky Sports will show 100 extra La Liga matches this season
To make up for its lack of Champions League and Europa League football, Sky is doubling down on La Liga. The broadcaster will be showing over 300 matches from the Spanish division this season -- up from its usual tally of roughly 200. British interest in the league has always been high, given the quality of teams such as Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. With the extra games, however, Sky Sports customers will get to see more of football superstars Messi, Ronaldo, Suarez and Bale on their TVs. Are the fixtures enough to counterbalance the loss of the Champions League? No, but it's better than nothing. BT Sport is steadily growing its stockpile of live TV rights, so it's in Sky's interest to do the same. The company still has the lion's share of Premier League rights, but expanding its La Liga offering could stop a few unhappy subscribers from jumping ship.
Sky Sports customers can now watch goal replays on their phones
With its live Champions League and Europa League TV rights, BT has proven to be a worthy sports broadcasting rival to Sky. The latter is now playing defence with renewed La Liga rights and a new deal with The Sun for mobile goal highlights. Sky TV customers with a Sky Sports subscription will get free access to Sun Goals, a mobile app that shows every back-of-the-net moment from the Premier League, Champions League, Europa League, FA Cup and Scottish Premiership. Of course, it's not quite the same as watching the full match on your telly, but the app should be a nice extra for sports fans nonetheless.
Sky's Now TV gets a £32 monthly sports subscription
If you want to watch Sky Sports without a satellite TV subscription, Now TV is one of your best options. In addition to its daily and weekly passes, the broadcaster has now launched a monthly streaming subscription for £31.99. As usual, that gives you access to all seven Sky Sports channels: Sky Sports 1-5, Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports News HQ. The package arrives just a few weeks before the new Premier League season and in the midst of England's feisty Ashes Test cricket series against Australia. The broadcaster faces tough competition from BT though, which is still pushing BT Sport 1 as a free perk for broadband customers. Now that it's snatched the exclusive rights to European football, however, its pricing model is evolving to look a little more like Sky's. No matter which you way tackle it, acquiring both (legally) is still going to cost you a serious sum each month.
Sky's new full HD Now TV box will launch in August for £15
Sky is shedding a little light today on its next-generation Now TV box and a new monthly streaming plan for Sky Sports. Its refreshed hardware, which slipped out earlier this year in an investor presentation, will debut this August for £14.99 with an ethernet port and a five times faster processor. It's based on the Roku 3 player, the same as the company's "Sky Online TV Box" in Italy, which means it should finally support 1080p streaming too.
Virgin Media customers can now log into Sky's Movies and Sports iOS apps
Virgin Media said last month its TV subscribers would soon be able to use Sky's iOS apps for getting their film and sports fixes on the move, and as of today, that's now possible. If your Virgin TV package includes Sky's Movies and Sports channels, then their respective iOS apps should let you log in with your Virgin account details. Furthermore, the same sign-in option is now available through Sky's websites, which should placate Android users while they wait for the same functionality to be added to Sky's apps on their platform.
Sky Sports added to Apple TV in the UK thanks to Now TV app
One of the downsides of making the transition to a streaming online/cable-free home is the lack of sports options available. Thankfully for UK Apple TV users, these options have just gotten a little better with the addition of the Sky Sports channel from Now TV. Sadly, the channel doesn't come cheap. A day pass costs £9.99 and grants the user access to all six of Sky Sports channels, including its Sports News and F1 Racing options. Compared to the cost of a cable package, watching a few games a month starts to really add up, but for fans who only want to watch the odd event, it may make sense. Apple TV has been making steady improvements in the last year. Just last week, the service added ABC, Bloomberg, Crackle and KORTV to its stable of channels.
