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Sky streaming launch steps up competition with BT and Virgin Media

Published: 15:02 29 Sep 2022 BST

Virgin Media O2 - Sky streaming launch steps up competition with BT and Virgin Media

Sky, the UK pay-television broadcaster, launched what it said was a cheaper online streaming service designed to keep hold of its customers amid tough competition from BT and Virgin Media O2.

BT already offers customers similar standalone streaming solutions with Freeview channels, via its 4K TV Pro Box, while Virgin Media offers its Stream Box.

Although costing £20 a month, Sky's service is not quite the bargain it may first seem to some customers.

What’s more, the new Sky Stream set-top box does not come with its the full bells and whistles, with popular sports and cinema channels not included.

Released on 28 October and costing £20 a month, it is designed to offer a more convenient experience than the company’s recently launched Sky Glass with the big difference that Stream won’t require customers to purchase a whole new TV set as they can just plug the ‘puck’ into any TV with the right socket and connect to their broadband.

There is still a set-up cost of just under £40, or £20 if part of an 18-month contract.

Charging for a set-up cost is, said which Chris Martin at review service Tech Advisor described as “cheeky” since there is no need for an engineer to visit your home.

The basic package, that includes Netflix as well as 120 Sky Ultimate TV channels will then cost £29 monthly, or £26 for those on contracts.

However, the fact that popular channels like Sky Sports, Cinema, Entertainment and BT will not be included in the basic deal, begs the question of the actual benefits of Sky Stream.

Customers can access other streaming services via the device and apps, such as Disney+, Apple TV+, Amazon’s Prime Video, BBC iPlayer and ITV Hub.

As with other Sky plans, Stream customers will be able to purchase add-ons, but the cost of these is difficult to forecast. On other plans, Sky Sports can start as low as £18 a month but as high as £33.99 for NOW TV customers.

It is also unclear which Netflix plan the basic Stream package offers. Typically, Netflix costs between £6.99 and £15.99, but the lack of clarity makes it difficult for customers to understand the full extent of what Stream will actually include.

Sky Stream will certainly be cheaper to set up than Sky Q and Sky Glass, not requiring a satellite dish or specialist TV set, but since it remains to be seen how much add-ons will be, the actual excitement surrounding Sky Stream will be difficult to gage until its release on the 18 October.

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