05-06-2023, 10:07 PM
It’s pretty clear that Youview as a platform is on the way out. There is no longer the appetite to invest in it, and it’s annoying that certain Freeview features don’t integrate with it at it is not fully Freeview D Book complaint. Freeview red-button driven IP channels don’t always work with it, for example, and neither does Channel List Management (HD and SD swapping).
Now the remaining options are Freeview Play, as a free option, or something such as Apple TV or Netgem which can be integrated into a Pay TV ecosystem. Clearly, the idea of a custom hardware box with associated custom software is something BT/EE would no longer want to spend time and money on.
It really depends whether BT/EE want to bother keeping up a “quad-play” (landline, internet, pay TV & mobile) option of full packages or not. If they drop TV, then the “risk” to the business is that people interested in pay TV will go with something like Sky Glass or Sky Stream - and this may lead them towards other Sky services, such as Sky mobile or Sky broadband (which, although over Openreach, would be a “loss” of a customer as far as BT Consumer/EE are concerned).
Therefore, as it’s become a re-selling/bundling service already, I would not be surprised if it went to Apple TV bundling as things are already with EE. In this scenario, basically I would imagine that BT would stop selling a TV product. This would be part of the BT=Business push. Plusnet has already dumped TV. Therefore, you would be left with the EE Apple TV product as the last thing standing. BT would then advertise and push this product, while phasing out Youview. Former BT TV customers would be “encouraged” to upgrade to EE TV packages at contract renewal time. Eventually, Youview could be dumped entirely.
I also imagine that EE TV in an Internet Mode could be great as it could bring Freeview channels to Apple TV with no need for an aerial and a number of HD channels at high quality. Clearly, it would be limited to being sold alongside FTTP packages to ensure high performance. However, with Apple already producing high quality hardware and software, this would be an easy way to sell the customer a satisfying TV experience without major investment on BT/EE’s part.
Now the remaining options are Freeview Play, as a free option, or something such as Apple TV or Netgem which can be integrated into a Pay TV ecosystem. Clearly, the idea of a custom hardware box with associated custom software is something BT/EE would no longer want to spend time and money on.
It really depends whether BT/EE want to bother keeping up a “quad-play” (landline, internet, pay TV & mobile) option of full packages or not. If they drop TV, then the “risk” to the business is that people interested in pay TV will go with something like Sky Glass or Sky Stream - and this may lead them towards other Sky services, such as Sky mobile or Sky broadband (which, although over Openreach, would be a “loss” of a customer as far as BT Consumer/EE are concerned).
Therefore, as it’s become a re-selling/bundling service already, I would not be surprised if it went to Apple TV bundling as things are already with EE. In this scenario, basically I would imagine that BT would stop selling a TV product. This would be part of the BT=Business push. Plusnet has already dumped TV. Therefore, you would be left with the EE Apple TV product as the last thing standing. BT would then advertise and push this product, while phasing out Youview. Former BT TV customers would be “encouraged” to upgrade to EE TV packages at contract renewal time. Eventually, Youview could be dumped entirely.
I also imagine that EE TV in an Internet Mode could be great as it could bring Freeview channels to Apple TV with no need for an aerial and a number of HD channels at high quality. Clearly, it would be limited to being sold alongside FTTP packages to ensure high performance. However, with Apple already producing high quality hardware and software, this would be an easy way to sell the customer a satisfying TV experience without major investment on BT/EE’s part.