YouSee has begun to offer customers free access to 30 of Denmark’s most popular TV channels through their PC.
In a strategy that has similarities to the TV Everywhere concept trialled in the US by the Cable MSOs Time Warner and Cox, the YouSee service ultimately intends to mirror the contents of its three digital TV packages, giving access to over 50 channels.
“Competition in the broadband market is largely determined by who can offer the best content. Here we are already strong with the TDC Group’s Play music service, which provides free access to more than five million music tracks. Now we go one step further by also giving YouSee’s broadband customers unlimited access to the best channels without extra cost,” says vice president Ulf Lund.
In addition to the linear channels, YouSee’s broadband customers will also be able to rent the latest films from the 600-title YouSee Cinema library. The cablenet has agreements in place with Warner Home Video, Paramount, Disney, DreamWorks, Universal and Nordisk Film.
Customers without YouSee’s own broadband can subscribe to the web TV service for an additional fee – arguably a strategy to drive more customers towards the triple play proposition – while the Flash-based player means it is available to Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems. A 2 Mbps internet connection is recommended.
“Here and now we can offer our customers a unique combination of broadband, music and television with which nobody else can compete. In the longer term, it is about preparing ourselves, it is gradually becoming more and more common to watch TV or rent movies via computer. Our goal is to create the strongest Danish video portal on the web,” says Lund.
Included in the web TV line-up are all the channels from public broadcaster Danmarks Radio with the exception of DR HD; National Geographic, Eurosport, Discovery, Disney XD and MTV.
