5 December 2006
BT has announced its latest weapon in its bid to rival Sky's dominance in the TV arena with the news that it has signed a deal with Irish sports broadcaster Setanta that will allow BT Vision customers to access 46 Premiership matches live next season.
The telecom giant has already gained access to broadcast 242 Premiership matches "almost live", meaning that its customers will be able to watch 75% of top British football action, in addition to several European, Nationwide Conference and Scottish Premier League matches.
"This partnership with Setanta means BT Vision will provide customers with unparalleled coverage of both live and on-demand sport and we're looking forward to exploring many more sports opportunities together," said Dan Marks, chief executive officer at BT television.
Where BT's rivals at Sky beat the new contender, however, is with the sheer scale of the amount of programmes available to its customers, with Sky offering over 600 channels.
BT claims it is aiming its Vision service at viewers who want a more than the 40 channels offered with a Freeview box but don't want to pay a monthly subscription charge.
To sign up with BT for their Vision television service, consumers will be required to join BT Broadband on their £17.99 a month subscription for a minimum of 18 months as well as paying a connection charge of £90.
Steve Weller, head of communication services at uSwitch.com, welcomed the initiative, saying: "We expect Orange and Tiscali to be hot on BT's heels with competing content services, with other broadband rivals following suit in 2007."