Sky Italia CEO Tom Mockridge has told journalists he is not worried by the removal of channels by RAI and Mediaset from the satcaster. Speaking at the launch of the new Sky Sport schedule in Milan, Mockridge said Sky would respond with events, original programming and new ideas.
Although its national networks remain, RAI removed its RaiSat channels on August 1 after failing to reach a new agreement with Sky. However, the move coincided with the debut of the free-to-view platform TivùSat that the public broadcaster has launched in partnership with Mediaset and Telecom Italia.
Mockridge is hoping that the forthcoming schedule that includes exclusive coverage of the World Cup in South Africa, Six Nations Rugby, the Winter Olympics and Paralympics will take Sky Italia through the five million subscriber barrier. The News-Corp owned operation stalled in the quarter to June 30th on 4.8 million subs.
