New Irish TV station decides not to go on Sky platform

The new Irish commercial TV station Channel 6 has decided not to broadcast on the Sky Digital satellite platform.

The official reason is a disagreement with Sky about its position on the new Electronic Programme Guide. It's thought that Channel 6 wanted to be listed immediately after the other Irish stations - RTE, TV3 and TG4. But Sky offered it a position between 280 and 290, meaning it would be separated from its competitors.

However, other sources suggest that NTL and Chorus, who will provide terrestrial delivery of Channel 6 on both analogue and digital platforms, persuaded the station not to go on Sky so as to give their services a competitive boost.

NTL and Chorus both have the same perent company, Liberty Media. The decision means that Channel 6 will only reach 600,000 homes instead of one million.

Source: Sunday Times, Media Network

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