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Press Releases
Virgin Media and 91Èȱ¬ partner to bring 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer to TV
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This is a joint press release from VirginÌýMedia and the 91Èȱ¬
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First time 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer is available on a TV platform
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Virgin Media (NASDAQ: VMED) today announced a partnership with the
91Èȱ¬ to launch 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer onto its platform, making its 3.5 million
TV customers the first in the UK to get the popular service via a
TV platform.
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Viewers using 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer on Virgin Media will be able
to watch full screen pictures at full quality on their television
set without the need for downloading.
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As of today, Virgin Media customers will be able to catch up on
their favourite 91Èȱ¬ programmes by pressing the red button on any
91Èȱ¬ channel.
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Access to 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer through Virgin Media's EPG (Electronic Programme Guide) menu is due this summer.
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91Èȱ¬ iPlayer allows viewers to catch-up on over 350 hours of TV
programmes from the past seven days, at no extra cost.
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This
includes shows such as EastEnders, Doctor Who, Gavin And Stacey,
Top Gear and The Apprentice as well as documentaries such as Louis
Theroux.
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Malcolm Wall, CEO of Content at Virgin Media, said: "We're
delighted to be the first TV platform in the UK to offer our
customers 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer as part of our on-demand service.
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"The
enormous success of iPlayer online has demonstrated the desire TV
viewers have for viewing quality programmes at a time that suits
them, and now it's available from the comfort of the living room.
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"Virgin Media is proud to be working with the 91Èȱ¬ to continue to
lead this revolution in TV viewing."
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Ashley Highfield, 91Èȱ¬ Director of Future Media and Technology, said:
"We have always envisaged 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer on a TV platform and in the
living room and are delighted that by working with Virgin Media,
this ambition has today been realised.
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"This partnership takes us a
step closer to transforming the way our audiences watch TV.
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"It
also further underlines our commitment to making 91Èȱ¬ÌýiPlayer a
multiplatform offering that appeals to a wide range of audiences."
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Virgin Media has pioneered on-demand television in the UK with
almost half (47%) of its 3.5 million TV customers regularly
using this service.
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The number of views per customer has grown in
the last year from 10 to 23 times-per-month and in the last three
months of 2007 there were 99 million views alone.
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To find out more about Virgin Media's products and services visit
www.virginmedia.com.
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Notes to Editors
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1. 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer on Virgin Media
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The number of hours of available programming on Virgin Media will
increase as the iPlayer service grows. Further enhancements such as
the integration of the highly successful 91Èȱ¬ Radio Player are
planned to be added in due course. Ìý
2. 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer online
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91Èȱ¬ iPlayer online continues to show significant growth with the
total number of requests for downloads or streams of 91Èȱ¬ programmes
in the first three months of the year reaching 42 million. The
average number of weekly users of 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer reached 1.1 million
in March, up from January's average of 75,000. Ìý
3. About Virgin Media
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Virgin Media is an innovative and pioneering UK entertainment and
communications business. For the first time consumers can get
everything they need from one company – the UK's only quad play of
TV, broadband, phone and mobile plus the most advanced TV on demand
service available, the UK's first high definition TV service and
V+, our high specification personal video recorder. We're the UK's
largest residential broadband provider, the largest virtual mobile
network operator and the second largest provider of pay TV and home
phone.
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Virgin Media owns two content businesses – Virgin Media Television
(VMTV) and sit-up. VMTV owns seven entertainment channels – Virgin1, Living, Living 2, Bravo, Bravo 2, Challenge, and Trouble –
and is a 50% partner in UKTV which consists of nine channels
including Dave, UKTV Gold and UKTV History. sit-up runs retail TV
channels bid tv, price-drop tv and speed auctiontv.
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Virgin Media is the largest Virgin company in the world and has
almost 10 million customers. To find out more visit
www.virginmedia.com/presscentre. Ìý
4. About 91Èȱ¬
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The 91Èȱ¬ exists to enrich people's lives with great programmes and
services that inform, educate and entertain. It provides a wide
range of distinctive programmes and services for everyone, free of
commercial interests and political bias. They include television,
radio, national, local, children's, educational, language and other
services for key interest groups.
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The 91Èȱ¬ is financed by a TV
licence paid by households. It does not have to serve the interests
of advertisers, or produce a return for shareholders.
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CP
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