June 11, 2010

Virgin cuts prices on Sky Sports and Movies

official press release:
Virgin Media customers can now save a bundle on Sky Sports & Sky Movies channels
 
  • Sky’s premium channels now available for as little as £13.50
  • Customers can save up to £108* per year
  • Reductions available on both Sky Sports & Sky Movies packages
Virgin Media is to pass on big savings to customers this summer, by offering Sky’s premium channels at simple, newly reduced prices. From the 1st July, Virgin Media customers – both new and existing - will be able to save up to £108 per year on Sky Sports and Sky Movies packages, provided by Virgin Media Entertainment.
With the premium channels now available for as little as £13.50 per month, it’s never been a better time to be a Virgin Media customer. For those wanting to add or keep a single Sky Sports (Sky Sports 1 or 2) or Sky Movies (Sky Movies 1 or 2) package, the cost is now only £13.50 for Virgin Media TV customers on M+, L or XL TV packages – offering regular savings of up to £9 per month.
  Virgin Media is helping to kick-off the brand new premier league football season with a bang, offering all of the sports channels in the Sky Sports Collection (Sky Sports 1, 2, 3 and 4) for just £20.50** per month. This new pricing offers football fans a discount of up to £42 per year – enough to buy their favourite team’s new season shirt!
Film fanatics will also benefit this summer from the new prices, saving up to £84 per year on Sky Movies channels – enough to indulge in pizza and popcorn to accompany their favourite films. Virgin Media is offering all of the Sky Movies channels in the Sky Movies Collection (Sky Movies 1 and 2, plus Sky Movies Premiere, Sky Movies Premiere +1, Sky Movies Showcase and Disney Cinemagic) for only £19.50 per month.
For film and football fans under one roof, Virgin Media is also offering big savings on the top Sky Sports and Movies Collection – making all of the premium channels available in one package for only £27.50 per month. This top of the range bundle will now save Virgin Media customers up to £72 per year.
No word yet on the availability or pricing for the HD sports and movies channels. In fact, Virgin has appealed to OFCOM that Sky also make Sky Sports 3 & 4 HD available to us, and have also asked that the cost of the movie channels be reduced.
And just when we thought they were all becoming best buddies again...
Looking through the actual details on these price changes, if you're on TV XL with VIP package I can't see any change whatsoever: full sports and movies for us is exactly what it was before. Maybe someone from Virgin reading this can explain why other customers are benefiting from the OFCOM price cuts, but the highest paying customers are seeing nowt?
Of course, if Virgin increases the number of subscribers to the Movies and Sports channels they'll be hitting a bigger base when launching the HD channels in the coming weeks, but it seems like us poor VIPs are paying a premium these days and the overall VIP package has changed little since the launch of the V+. Certainly, the 20mb broadband is no longer the "VIP" offer it once was, the phone price has actually increased and we now get Sports and Movies for the same price as everyone else. Or am I missing something?
More on TechRadar.

10 comments:

LewishamLovely said...

is it just people on packages below XL who benefit? i already pay £19.50 a month for sky movies

Kevin Gollop said...

Totally agree with your comments re the VIP Pack Nialli. Will be majorly disappointed if we don't get the Sky HD channels in this package at no extra charge.

Nialli said...

I have now posted the full table of price changes in the post above. Click it to enlarge

Anonymous said...

Total joke,Nothing to benefit for us on xl pay £19.50 for movies already.Was going to add on Sky Sports but not at that price

Unknown said...

I just asked @virginmedia on twitter what the score with VIP was.

They responded with:

"VIP/XL customers already get the best price - we've just made it better value for some of our other customers too :) .AA"

So, VIP benefits pretty much eroded away completely in one morning. Nice work, VM!

goonergaz said...

I predict HD will be free to XLTV and anyone below will have to pay extra...so our "saving" will be more HD channels.

LewishamLovely said...

fingers crossed about HD being the sweeteners for XL customers, but if true it's typical Virgin to announce only half the story now, getting XL/VIP customers angry and feeling short changed.
why not wait till including HD sports/movies in XL can be announced at the same time and keep everyone happy?

Square eyes said...

This is the first time after reading this these blogs, that some of the people that have VM services must be wanting everything for nothing.

Everyone moaned about VM getting HD, it is finally here and now people are moaning about the possibility of having to pay extra for HD movies & sports. How much did most of you pay for your V+, because I will bet the answer for most is NOTHING. Do you get a discount on your services, again the answer from all will be YES.

Don’t forget at the end of the VM is a business, just like Sky. However when Sky charged £10 for the HD content on their service nobody battered an eye lid.

As for the VIP not being value because there is no cost reduction on the SD sports & movies, again it is more wanting more. These packages are the same cost as Sky. The top package with Sky to be in line with VM VIP would cost around £94, but if you are someone who uses over 40gb a month on the broadband that cost is now £104 + £10 for every 40gb above that and so on. The VIP package costs £89 & if you have had the V+ cost removed £80, so how can you say that it is not value for money.

Also let’s not forget that with VM you have an on-demand service, plus a 20mb broadband or even 50mb if you have upgraded, neither of which you get with Sky or any other provider.

Yes I do work for VM, however I have not always agreed with the changes they introduce, but on this occasion they are right. A customer of VM who has the sports or movies will now pay less for the packages if they have M, M+ or L-TV, remember these people don’t get as big a discount as those on the XLTV bundles or VIP packages, to me this is only fair.

I know all of you will not agree with what I am saying, but if we were all sheep we would get nowhere.

Anonymous said...

Whilst i agree with some of what you are saying square eyes,I do think its wrong to announce price decreases due to ofcom report.Then only do it on certain packages,I have never thought it was fair to charge different prices for Sky Premium Packages depending on what tv pack you have got.Sky have allways charged the same for there premium channels regardless of what or how many packs you get off them,So at least the latest annoncement puts them on par,But you must understand that XL/VIP customers feel cheated out of a promised/Expected discount.I can hope the promised no extra fee for hd continues and that if you are on XL/VIP when HD premium channels version come available they are included as long as you are already recieving/paying for sd versions already,I have at this time just the movies.But if they do get including i will be upgrading to sky sports it would also explain why no decrease for XL/Vip customers.

Nialli said...

I do not expect we will get the Sky premium HD channels for nothing unless Sky drops its monthly £10 sub for the same. But you never know. If I do pay a monthly sub, I'd like the option of a bigger disc on my V+ please.
I hear what Square Eyes is saying and I have never expected something for nothing from VM, and have been delighted with the VoD and HD service improvements in my time as a VIP customer. But I pay around £100 a month at the moment (VIP and a few films from Filmflex and a teenage daughter's phone calls) and to stay competitive with other providers Virgin has to keep adding more services/value to keep the high end happy.