British cable operator
Virgin Media has completed
its trial of offering
Netflix on 40,000 of its set-top boxes, opening it up to all customers. Subscribers with a
TiVo box, in over 1.8 million UK homes, will not only gain access to the streaming video service on the device, but will also gain six months of Netflix service for free to Premiere or VIP Collection customers.
Though on the face of it, the deal allows for users to ignore current live and on-demand offerings from Virgin Media itself, the fact that users can skip between normal cable service and Netflix without switching to a different device could lead to more viewings of broadcasted content. Though as a paid extra, adding Netflix to the box also provides Virgin Media with more to offer potential customers, as it competes from the extensive on-demand services provided by rival broadcaster
Sky.
Customers from other cable services in countries where Netflix operates could also see similar deals occur in the future. The streaming service is said to be in
early-stage negotiations with various cable services in the US to provide the same app, be it through an app on TiVo DVRs or through other platforms.
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