Sony and Disney win approval for UK video on demand

by Staff,, Brand Republic 12-Nov-04, 15:00

LONDON – Sony and Walt Disney are to launch films on-demand to millions of NTL and Telewest cable subscribers after winning approval from the competition regulators.

MovieCo, the alliance between Sony's Columbia Pictures and Walt Disney Studios, will offer video-on-demand, allowing cable customers to choose from a wide selection of films to watch whenever they want, as opposed to BSkyB's pre-determined times for its films.

The European Commission ruled that MovieCo would not cause competition issues, saying that: "It would give the UK cable network operations an alternative to procure video content other than BSkyB, which is currently the dominant player in the market."

The new service is likely to compete with video rental companies such as US giant Blockbuster, as well as digital and postal video and DVD delivery services.

Telewest, the UK's second largest cable operator announced it is to invest up to £45m on launching the new video-on-demand service next year, alongside its slate of interactive services.

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