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Sky prepares launch of SkyQ
Satellite John
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/media/11761944/Sky-prepares-launch-of-new-Apple-and-Netflix-style-set-top-box.html
Sky prepares launch of new 'Apple and Netflix-style' set-top box
Dubbed SkyQ, the new technology aims to take a lead over BT
Sky current set-top box technology first appeared almost 10 years ago Photo: Alamy
By Christopher Williams, Technology, Media and Telecoms Editor
6:30PM BST 25 Jul 2015
Sky is putting the finishing touches to an advanced set-top box, dubbed SkyQ, that it hopes will be a powerful weapon in its defence of its domestic pay-TV business against BT and help it integrate its European operations.
The new hardware is due to be unveiled within weeks and will offer satellite households an “Apple and Netflix-style” experience, according to industry insiders.
SkyQ, developed at maximum speed under the codename “Project Ethan”, is understood to allow subscribers to watch and record at least four programmes simultaneously on multiple devices throughout the home. It will wirelessly beam content to smartphones and tablets around the home, and is ready to receive ultra-high definition broadcasts once Sky follows BT to offer sharper pictures for the latest televisions.
An informed industry source who has seen SkyQ in action said it was “really very slick” and compared its user interface to Netflix and Apple TV, with programmes presented on a carousel in a “much more visual” format than on the current Sky HD+ box.
The software will learn viewers’ preferences to make suggestions of programmes they might like, and blur the lines between live broadcast, recorded content, and on-demand over the internet.
An industry source compared Sky's 'much more visual' new interface to Netflix
In preparation for the launch, Sky has also renegotiated its rights deals with broadcasters to allow it to “side-load” programmes from the SkyQ box onto mobile devices.
The launch will be a landmark for Sky, as it seeks to maintain its pay-TV dominance.
SkyQ is designed to give it a big technological lead over BT, which uses the YouView set-top box for its pay-TV service.
BT executives have acknowledged that the YouView technology, developed in partnership with TalkTalk and Britain’s public service broadcasters, is out of date.
Gavin Patterson, the chief executive of BT, told The Telegraph he wanted to accelerate development.
He said: “Youview is a great product but it is effectively run for the benefit of seven shareholders which can mean some decision making is slower than it needs to be.
“What we can’t do is not keep up with market and not utilise the full benefits the platform can give because of squabbling over investment or prioritisation.”
The launch of SkyQ will come soon after the company reports its full-year results this week. A consensus of City analysts expects like-for-like sales to rise 5pc to £11.3bn and underlying earnings to increase 16pc to £1.4bn. Earnings per share are predicted to dip 4pc, however, as a result of new shares issued by Sky to pay for the acquisitions of Sky Italia and Sky Deutschland.
Moving the three Sky operations to the same set-top box technology is expected to play a major role in delivering the £200m in annual savings chief executive Jeremy Darroch said the double takeover would produce.
A Sky spokesman declined to comment.
Sky prepares launch of new 'Apple and Netflix-style' set-top box
Dubbed SkyQ, the new technology aims to take a lead over BT
Sky current set-top box technology first appeared almost 10 years ago Photo: Alamy
By Christopher Williams, Technology, Media and Telecoms Editor
6:30PM BST 25 Jul 2015
Sky is putting the finishing touches to an advanced set-top box, dubbed SkyQ, that it hopes will be a powerful weapon in its defence of its domestic pay-TV business against BT and help it integrate its European operations.
The new hardware is due to be unveiled within weeks and will offer satellite households an “Apple and Netflix-style” experience, according to industry insiders.
SkyQ, developed at maximum speed under the codename “Project Ethan”, is understood to allow subscribers to watch and record at least four programmes simultaneously on multiple devices throughout the home. It will wirelessly beam content to smartphones and tablets around the home, and is ready to receive ultra-high definition broadcasts once Sky follows BT to offer sharper pictures for the latest televisions.
An informed industry source who has seen SkyQ in action said it was “really very slick” and compared its user interface to Netflix and Apple TV, with programmes presented on a carousel in a “much more visual” format than on the current Sky HD+ box.
The software will learn viewers’ preferences to make suggestions of programmes they might like, and blur the lines between live broadcast, recorded content, and on-demand over the internet.
An industry source compared Sky's 'much more visual' new interface to Netflix
In preparation for the launch, Sky has also renegotiated its rights deals with broadcasters to allow it to “side-load” programmes from the SkyQ box onto mobile devices.
The launch will be a landmark for Sky, as it seeks to maintain its pay-TV dominance.
SkyQ is designed to give it a big technological lead over BT, which uses the YouView set-top box for its pay-TV service.
BT executives have acknowledged that the YouView technology, developed in partnership with TalkTalk and Britain’s public service broadcasters, is out of date.
Gavin Patterson, the chief executive of BT, told The Telegraph he wanted to accelerate development.
He said: “Youview is a great product but it is effectively run for the benefit of seven shareholders which can mean some decision making is slower than it needs to be.
“What we can’t do is not keep up with market and not utilise the full benefits the platform can give because of squabbling over investment or prioritisation.”
The launch of SkyQ will come soon after the company reports its full-year results this week. A consensus of City analysts expects like-for-like sales to rise 5pc to £11.3bn and underlying earnings to increase 16pc to £1.4bn. Earnings per share are predicted to dip 4pc, however, as a result of new shares issued by Sky to pay for the acquisitions of Sky Italia and Sky Deutschland.
Moving the three Sky operations to the same set-top box technology is expected to play a major role in delivering the £200m in annual savings chief executive Jeremy Darroch said the double takeover would produce.
A Sky spokesman declined to comment.
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Comments
While I would well understand that Sky would not want to be seen to have had a march stolen from it by BT, frankly I'll still believe it when I see it. All this talk of information from vague "informed industry sources" does not inspire confidence that this box will suddenly materialise within the next few weeks, bearing in mind that BT are already advertising their 4k capable YouView box as being available soon, presumably in time for the Champions' League 4k coverage. If Sky's new box is being beta tested, there have been absolutely no leaks about it that I'm aware of, and even with strict NDAs I would be surprised if something hadn't leaked out.
It's actually of no great personal interest to me anyway, as I don't have a 4k TV, and have no intention of getting one until the standards have been properly set!
"Project Ethan" is a new Sky box, not Now TV which already has a Netflix-like interface.
Details originally surfaced last year: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/media/10789883/BSkyB-plans-major-overhaul-of-set-top-box-to-meet-Apple-threat.html
I too always took Ethan to be the project to develop a new 4k capable satellite receiver box, but the article refers to Ethan in the context of this apparently soon to be launched box, and IIRC someone here said a while ago that a Sky installer told them that he was testing a Project Ethan box.
I still find it hard to believe that Sky would spend a huge amount of money on hardware design and building for a new satellite box when there are still no standards finalised for 4k satellite transmissions. It would risk being very quickly obsolete!
This imminent new box, if it does appear in the next few weeks, is far more likely to be a 4k capable equivalent of the Now TV box, and as you say, nothing to do with Project Ethan, unless Project Ethan includes that side as well of course, which it may do.
This isn't about Now TV - it's the new Sky (satellite) box that has been talked about for a while, which amongst other things allows recordings to be viewed on mobile/tablets/other non-Sky connected TVs. Now TV doesn't have recordings since it's primarily based around catch-up/boxsets.
Now TV is also releasing a new box in the coming weeks, but this only brings 1080p capabilities. 4K is still a long way off for Now TV!
How about a very poorly written press release that doesn't make anything very clear?
He said it was wireless and multi-room would no longer need cabling running to boxes.
Joking apart, that does sound more like the new Now TV box, which as omnidirectional says, we already knew about
4 simultanious streams is going to start presenting some messy cabling - unless they are using SAT>IP (which would allow a fully wireless) or Unicable?
The Sky report is blatantly a vague leak to the media to placate shareholders at the upcoming results meeting who might be concerned about BT's actual launch and delivery, as we speak, of a working 4K box and channel.
As you say, no dates from Sky, nothing solid that's new.
I'd imagine we'd see Sky Movies 4K content and some of it's upcoming high budget dramas being filmed in 4K in addition to Sky Sports 4K content.
Actually as long as you had good WiFi network bandwidth you could have all the sat feeds on the main sat box and a multiroom box could be wifing off the main box's sat feeds! That's likely what this installer meant.
I would say the main box would need to have 4 sat feeds though and the ability to read more than one transponder on each feed!
Sky will have decided on a standard, the same as BT, Netflix and Amazon have.
It won't be obsolete for Sky or its customers.
if they pay for it... I'd prob be tempted.
That said I normally just wait till my box dies, threaten to cancel unless I get a new one and then get a freebie
Going their own way with their own standard would be ridiculous, and I'm not sure would even be allowed by the satellite operators.
But surely Sky must have decided on a standard they're going to use and the boxes are in production if they're launching soon?
Personally, and I'm quite happy to be proved wrong, I just don't see it being as simple as that if the transmission standards haven't been agreed yet, which I believe is still the case!
If the recording is in the cloud you wouldn't need 4 sat feeds, it would just link the recording to your account and show up in your planner. All recordings would have to be downloaded over a BB connection to view though.
Fair enough but what if you wanted to watch live TV on say more than 2 boxes on the new system?
Eg main box is the only box that has sat feeds, then you have 2 or 3 multiroom boxes with no sat feeds that connect to the main box via WiFi.
Now its understandable that you could record and get anything on demand over the internet, but if you wanted to watch 4 live programs, one on each box, you can't do that over the internet unless sky are suddenly going to stream all satellite channels over the internet!
UHD Phase 1 standards have been agreed, that is what Sky will be adhering too, it's just the standards haven't been finalised, that should come with UHD Phase 2, probably higher framerates. I can't see a problem with upgrading the firmware if/when phase 2 standards are agreed, a few TV manufacturers have upgraded from 4k @ 30hz to 4k @ 50/60hz already without a problem. BT 4k boxes are already being installed and they are not yet HDR compatible, this will be available in the near future by a firmware upgrade.
This project and box was originally planned to be live for the Ashes Cricket series and the start of the premiership football season, Unless things have changed dramatically I expect the 4K service to initially be delivered over IP similar to how BTs work but the box will support also support 4K satellite broadcast as well.
But we got told back in May that it was slightly behind schedule and that the next milestone would be in August it seems that they may be all set to go and expect this is what I will see on the first weekend of the Premier league season when Sky have an event planned I just wish they would let me take one home with me;-);-)
Finally some technical and first hand experience clarification.
We will see what we will see!
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/11764376/Sky-is-unlikely-to-fall-with-switch-to-the-Q-factor.html