Sky has confirmed details of the strengthened line-up of entertainment channels that will bring customers the best pay TV content fromhome and abroad from early 2011. The combination of Sky1 ,the newly re-branded SkyLiving and a brand new channel, Sky Atlantic will ensure that customers have access to a wide range of high-quality content which will appeal to all ages and interests, spanning drama, entertainment, comedy and factual programming.
The three channels will appear side-by-side on the front page of Sky’s electronic programme guide (EPG) so that customers can discover and enjoy their great content even more easily. Sky1 will remain at # 106, with Sky Living at# 107 and Sky Atlantic at # 108. All three channels will also be in high definition (HD) and a selection of their content will be available for customers to watch whenever they want through SkyAnytime+, Sky’s video-on-demand service.
Moves to expand and strengthen Sky’s entertainment line-up are part of the company’s commitment to add value for customers and give people more reasons to join Sky. Sky1, Sky Living and Sky Atlantic will all be available to all existing Sky customers at no extra charge, and are available as part of Sky’s basic subscription package,which starts from as little as £19 a month.
Sky1 – As the most popular pay TV entertainment channel,Sky1 continues to grow in ambition and confidence following popular and critical success with the likes of Thorne , Must be the Music, Got to Dance, Chris Ryan’s Strike Back, An Idiot Abroad and Pineapple Dance Studio. In the coming months, the channel will continue its shift towards drama and comedy. Upcoming drama highlights including Mad Dogs, Martina Cole’s The Runaway, Sinbad and the return of Chris Ryan’s Strike Back, while a brand new strand dedicated to original British comedy will bring Little Crackers,Stella, Mount Pleasant and This Is Jinsy to Sky1 viewers.
Sky Living – Living, the home of programmes such as Britain’s Next Top Model, Four Weddings, Chuck and upcoming UK drama series Bedlam, was acquired by Sky from Virgin Media earlier this year. To build on the channel’s success as one of the UK’s leading pay TV channels, it will re-brand as Sky Living from early 2011 and benefit from a 25% increase in on-screen investment. It will move to a new slot of #107on the Sky EPG from its current position at #112.
Sky Atlantic – From early 2011, the brand new channel will provide an exclusive home to some of the most eagerly anticipated shows intelevision, including all of HBO's new series such as the already critically acclaimed Boardwalk Empire and the forthcoming Game of Thrones, Luck and Tremé. Sky Atlantic will also be the exclusive home of Mad Men from 2011.
SophieTurner Laing, MD of Entertainment, News and Broadcast Operations at Sky,comments: “In Sky1, Sky Living and Sky Atlantic we have three outstanding channels which will sit loud and proud at the top of the EPG. Investment in stand-out content is at the heart of our strategy and we’re delighted to be able to offer customers so much choice and quality across our expanded entertainment line-up. Taken together, these channels will have real cut through. Quite simply, they will be channels worth paying for and will give even more customers reasons to choose pay TV.”
