When project Kangaroo, a venture between the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, was blocked by the regulatory authorities it seemed that on demand TV would be set back a number of years in the UK. The initial indication that the venture between the three powers of the UK television sector would give them far too much control was rubberstamped by the regulators and the project has effectively been mothballed.
However, mobile phone operator Orange has been mentioned as a possible suitor for project Kangaroo which has already taken £20 million of investment from the three partners. With their hands effectively tied from pushing ahead with the project in the short term, due to the competition commission, Orange may well be able to take over the operation for a relatively small amount of money. But what would Orange do?
Many people may not be aware but Orange already runs an Internet television service in France and the addition of project Kangaroo would make a perfect fit. Orange would be unlikely to attract the same competition issues as the original vendor's but at this moment in time nothing is certain. On demand TV is something which seems almost inevitable in the UK, with Sky already operating a similar service, but whether Orange will be the one to take this one forward remains to be seen. |
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