TPG who are charging business up to $250 for a broadband connection while flogging cheap conections to consumers is set to launch 10 bottom end Foxtel channels.
The Telco who likes to be seen as a cut price operator is desperate to capture a share of the pay-tv market, what has surprised many is that they have managed to cut a deal with Foxtel who are 50% owned by arch rival Telstra.
Some insiders claim that the deal shows just “how desperate” Foxtel is to build subscribers as they get set to go head to head with Netflix in March.
This is the first time that Foxtel has licensed its content to an internet service provider that is not Telstra.
While the service will not carry any of Foxtel’s premium channels, such as sport, AAPT customers will have access to an international entertainment and news channels that are available on other services such as Fetch TV.
To facilitate the service TPG who are publicity shy, have built their own content delivery platform to deliver the Foxtel content.
Unlike Fetch TV customers TPG customers will not get access to Netflix for $10 a month via TPG who recently approached Netflix to try and secure a content deal.
TPG has not responded to requests for comment.
TPG’s new pay-tv service puts them in the race alongside, iiNet, Telstra, Optus and M2 Telecommunications.
The Australian said that TPG has 750,000 broadband customers to pitch its white-labelled Foxtel offering to.
The move is an important one for TPG, with content expected to become increasingly important as telecommunication providers look to differentiate services over the National Broadband Network.
Streaming is also important for traditional broadcasters, which view the service as a way to capture advertising dollars shifting from free-to-air television to digital platforms.
The number of households that pay to watch television delivered over an internet connection is tipped to outnumber pay-tv households by 2018, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The consultancy predicted that IPTV households would comprise 41.2 per cent of all subscription-TV households by the end of this year – up from 20.8 per cent last year.
