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Essay on Bsb Versus Sky Tv

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Executive Summary British television viewing levels had stagnated in the 1980s due to already high levels of television viewership (3.5 hours per day) and the rapid penetration of the VCR. This caused broadcast companies like BBC and ITV to look for new ways to spurn growth. The British government tried to allocate three of the five high powered digital satellite broadcast (DBS) channels first to the BBC and then to a joint venture between BBC and ITV. Both attempts failed due to high startup costs in building and launching dedicated satellites. The bidding for these channels was then moved to the private sector in April 1986. Additionally, the use of the untried D-MAC transmission standard that was viewed as a move towards HDTV was…show more content…
They immediately set out to raise capital to fund the deployment of two satellites. With the enormous start-up costs and an economic model that expected a market entrant to stay the course of making losses for a minimum of 10 years it was easy to see why BSB refused to view Sky’s movement in the satellite broadcasting business as a serious threat. Sky Television was formed in June of 1988 out of Sky Channel by Rupert Murdoch, of News Corporation. Sky Channel had been using low powered satellite technology for broadcasting since 1983. Although a money loser, this project allowed Murdoch to see the potential for a wider acceptance of satellite technology for broadcasting in Europe. In 1986, News Corp under Murdoch launched Fox in the US and started using satellite technology. News Corp planned for a $150 million in start-up losses for Fox. This prior experience with Fox and Sky Channel definitely gave Sky the upper-hand in understanding the economic of satellite broadcasting and the business requirements. BSB should have expected to witness some activity from News Corp given Murdoch‘s recent success with Fox but when Sky Television was announced in 1988, BSB was actually taken off-guard. Alternative Scenarios for Market Entry BSB on announcing its entry into the DSB market, setout to obtain $222.5 million in financing to fund the buying and launching of the satellites. It also started the recruiting process that took almost 6 months
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