Coming Soon to Virgin TV

[Media Boy]

Rumour:

TEN HD Channels is rumoured to be coming in January 2009 to Virgin Media.

https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?bl...08277971341808

---------- Post added at 10:55 ---------- Previous post was at 10:46 ----------

I have been told this week that something MAY happen on Virgin TV next week.

[Felim_Doyle]

Originally Posted by Media Boy

Rumour:

TEN HD Channels is rumoured to be coming in January 2009 to Virgin Media.

https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?bl...08277971341808

---------- Post added at 10:55 ---------- Previous post was at 10:46 ----------

I have been told this week that something MAY happen on Virgin TV next week.

Anyone care to speculate which HD channels they might be? If they were Sky, you would expect all 15. Could they be mostly On Demand channels? If they are linear channels, could they be made up entirely of the non-Sky channels (e.g. BBC, ITV, C4, Discovery, History, Bio, FX etc.)?

---------- Post added at 11:20 ---------- Previous post was at 11:16 ----------

Originally Posted by Dee4leeds

When BBC One received a new look it was "rebranded". Same concept.

See my rant on rebranding elsewhere in the forums.

[Media Boy]

Originally Posted by Felim_Doyle

Anyone care to speculate which HD channels they might be? If they were Sky, you would expect all 15. Could they be mostly On Demand channels? If they are linear channels, could they be made up entirely of the non-Sky channels (e.g. BBC, ITV, C4, Discovery, History, Bio, FX etc.)?

The info I have is from that blog but Virgin CS can tell you lies just to get you off the phoneline.

[Felim_Doyle]

Originally Posted by Media Boy

The info I have is from that blog but Virgin CS can tell you lies just to get you off the phoneline.

I prefer to think that some CS personnel are better informed than others rather then accusing anyone of lying. Some staff may be over enthusiastic or over optimistic too, jumping the gun with announcements that they can't substantiate in a bid to please.

I have had multiple experiences of this over the years with C&W/NTL/VM, Currys/Dixons/PC World, Midland Bank/HSBC and many more. You ask one member of staff and they tell you emphatically that you can/can't do something with a product or service, even if you tell them what you know to be true for a fact, but someone else will tell you the opposite with equal conviction.

I'll let you all know the outcome of my conversation later today about CLI on my VM 'phone line. It may seem slightly off topic but it may serve as an example of condradictory information from different VM CS personnel.

[badsoupday]

Is there a universal acceptance on this forum that "at some point" Sky's HD channels will all end up on VM?

I require Sky Sports in HD very soon in order to retain sanity.

Thanks
BSD

[demented]

You'd have to ask people that badsoupday, perhaps a poll in a new thread. My view is that it's highly likely VM will get the basics HDs, even if it is in 2011 when the next contract comes out or the distance future 2015. Movies and Sports I certainly don't see in their entirity on VM before analogue switch off is complete i.e. end of 2010 (unless it changes). In Ofcom's paytv consultation there is a section where they try and model what would happen to VM if sky removed sports/movies from VM. I think that partially answers your question.

It'd be very nice if we had an annoucement before christmas about any of them, even just C4HD coming.

[braysoj1]

i have just been looking on wikapedia and it says these channels are testing

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...s_on_Virgin_TV


Channels that are testing
EPG No. ↓ Channel Name ↓ Notes ↓ Owner/parent company

801 Daystar TV No video, no EPG Daystar Television Network
159 Sci-Fi +1 Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
161 Paramunot Comdey 2 +1 Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
115 ITV2 +1 Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
160 ITV3 +1 Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
162 ITV4 +1 Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
201 Discovrey Channel HD Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
163 BEN Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
165 Channel 4 HD Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
164 ITV HD Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
198 BBC ALBA Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
199 OBE Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
200 Nuts TV Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
243 Discovrey Knowlegde +1 Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
197 S4C HD Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
244 Discovrey Travel & Living +1 Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
245 Infoiman TV Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
196 Vrigin 1 HD Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
195 Zone Thilere Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
194 Zone Reailty +1 Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
193 Zone Rotciomna Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
192 Zone Horror +1 Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
758 TV Travel Shop Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
759 Sreenshop2 Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
860 ITV1 North East Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
861 ITV1 North West Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
862 ITV1 Lodon Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
863 ITV1 West Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
864 ITV1 North Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
865 ITV1 Angila Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media
367 MTV One +2 Tests of 3 new Transport Streams Virgin Media

[demented]

Nice find. Virgin1 HD, I'll believe that when I see it .

[JMcB]

Originally Posted by demented

Nice find. Virgin1 HD, I'll believe that when I see it .

Some People said the same thing about Virgin 1 after sky was removed.

[moroboshi]

The problem Virgin are going to face when they finally start adding HD channels is just how damn huge those archaic MPEG 2 streams are. They'll be constantly struggling for space, and may end up over compressing things to fit more channels in, at which point they may as well not bother. HD doesn't just mean more resolution, it also means vastly fewer compression artefacts. BBC HD is over compressed as it is.

[Media Boy]

Someone on Wikipedia is just posting an channels they like to appear on Virgin TV.

[demented]

Originally Posted by moroboshi

The problem Virgin are going to face when they finally start adding HD channels is just how damn huge those archaic MPEG 2 streams are. They'll be constantly struggling for space, and may end up over compressing things to fit more channels in, at which point they may as well not bother. HD doesn't just mean more resolution, it also means vastly fewer compression artefacts. BBC HD is over compressed as it is.

Yes, but there are other ways of overcoming it. It's depressing how many +1s seem to appear.

Off topic but it's a bit little cheeky talking about VM overcompressing the day after Ofcom announces they'd like 4 HD channels running on freeview rather than 3 at the grand mindblowing bitrate of 8.4Mbs. Unfortunately I think we're all doomed .

[Thebenster]

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/digitalt...-channels.html

[hodgie99]

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/digitalt...-channels.html
just seen this over on ds

[12noon]

Lets hope they get the HD channels for the first part of 2009. I'd pay an extra tenner now if they could add the HD channels for the new year.