Foxtel CEO Kim Williams appeared on a show called Media Week which airs on the Sky News business channel yesterday (Thur Oct 1) discussing Foxtels’ new channels, new download service and new packages.
When asked about the free to air channels being part of the Foxtel platform we were told the following:
1. GO will be on Foxtel on channel 129 for cable customers from November 24.
2. Channel Sevens’ new channel with the working title of “72” will also be on Foxtel for cable subscribers from November 24 subject to any contract difficulties with the Seven network. Seven have already lodged the channel with OzTam from November 22 so that its ratings can be counted separately to their main channel.
3. Channel Seven itself would be on Foxtel for all satellite subscribers from November 15 when the new Foxtel channels launch.
4. ONE is already on Foxtel for those who have cable. Channel 531.
5. As for satellite, whether ANY of these new digital channels will be made available for satellite customers is up to the individual provider networks to pay for the satellite usage, the same way that Foxtel itself has to pay for the satellite usage of its own channels.
That means if channels Seven, Nine and Ten do not opt to pay the fee the satellite fee for their secondary digital channels to be made available via Foxtel satellite, then satellite subscribers will not see these channels at all and will have to view them via standard set top boxes or devices with free to air digital receivers built in.
6. ABC3 which launches in December will most likely be on Foxtel both satellite and cable from day one.
Source: Media Week - Sky Business channel 602 2.30pm Thursdays.
