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Innovation, programming and content OUR PRODUCTS GREAT NEW TECHNOLOGY, MORE CHOICE THAN EVER BEFORE, INVESTMENT IN QUALITY ORIGINAL PROGRAMMING, ACCESS TO THE BIGGEST MOVIES, AWARD-WINNING NEWS COVERAGE AND THE PLACE TO WATCH SPORT ON TV. OUR PRODUCT NEVER STANDS STILL, BECAUSE OUR CUSTOMERS WANT THE BEST. British Sky Broadcasting Group plc Annual Report and Accounts 2004 15 Innovation, programming and content NEWS In the past 15 years, Sky News – Europe’s first 24-hour news broadcaster – has changed the face of UK news broadcasting by creating an expectation among viewers of seeing breaking news live. SKY NEWS AUDIENCE PROFILE Sky News first to the problem of covering judicial Pakistan, to India, to Bangladesh. Earlier Jan–June 2004 Valued for its fairness, balance and proceedings, where cameras are banned, this year, presenter Lisa Aziz and award- Sky News 46% 27% 27% journalistic objectivity by both viewers were both “radical and imaginative.” winning correspondent, David Chater, Total TV 45% 23% 32% and regulators, the award-winning broadcast live from Mecca and Jeddah channel has earned a reputation for the The awards underline Sky News’ reputation on the Hajj, bringing viewers the most ABC1 C2 DE Source: BARB speed and flexibility of its coverage. for both breaking news and innovation. comprehensive coverage ever shown by a Other innovations introduced this year non-Muslim broadcaster of the largest Throughout the year, Sky News performed include the SkyCopter, a helicopter which religious ceremony in the world. strongly and, for the third year running, allows the Sky News team to cover major was named RTS News Channel of the stories where scale is important. It was On 10 May, Sky News launched a new Year. At a time which saw all the 24- used to great effect at last year’s Notting service for Ireland. Sky News Ireland, hour TV news channels striving to raise Hill Carnival, to cover the England Rugby anchored by Gráinne Seoige, provides their game, the RTS judges felt, “none Team’s homecoming parade, and by two nightly bulletins of news for Ireland. yet matched the winner who had presenter Kay Burley to report, in a single The output is also carried on a loop on continued to innovate in their coverage day, from various UK cities as part of Sky News Active, allowing viewers in of the war and elsewhere and, as a news Sky News’ Budget coverage. Sky News’ both the UK and Ireland to catch up on channel, remains – simply the best!” fleet of satellite trucks has been adapted Irish news. to receive pictures from the SkyCopter. Sky News also won the RTS Innovation Last autumn, Sky News’ Westminster Award for both its Hutton Inquiry coverage, In addition, Sky News opened a new studio and gallery at Millbank were which used actors to provide daily bureau in India in January, underlining revamped into state-of-the-art facilities reconstructions of the proceedings, and its commitment to international coverage. from which set piece events, news its near instantly-aired transcripts of the The bureau, headed up by Sky News’ coverage and ‘Sunday with Adam Soham trial – a television first. The RTS Richard Bestic, covers breaking news Boulton’, are broadcast. judges said Sky News’ solutions across the Indian sub-continent, from “A pioneering service of 24-hour core news with interactive spin-offs.” Patricia Hodgson Former Chief Executive of the Independent Television Commission, ‘Broadcasting and Democracy’ speech, November 2003 Breaking News With bulletins every hour, 24-hours a day, Sky News keeps 130,000 viewers around the FOR THE PAST 15 YEARS, SKY NEWS HAS world fully informed. PROVIDED MORE THAN 130,000 HOURS OF UP-TO-THE-MINUTE GLOBAL NEWS COVERAGE AND EXPERT IMPARTIAL ANALYSIS. All TV viewing figures sourced from BARB 16 Annual Report and Accounts 2004 British Sky Broadcasting Group plc In March, Sky News was awarded the contract to supply five with its news service beginning on 1 January 2005, the first time that Sky News will supply No.1 AWARD a full news service to an analogue terrestrial broadcaster. MORE AWARDS FOR SKY NEWS: DURING RTS AWARD JUDGES: SKY NEWS 2004 SKY NEWS WON THE RTS NEWS “AS A NEWS CHANNEL, REMAINS CHANNEL OF THE YEAR AWARD FOR THE SIMPLY THE BEST!” As well as a dedicated team of 60 THIRD YEAR RUNNING. reporters, producers and technicians, the service will include access to Sky News’ existing 24-hour operation, including five regional bureaux and the seven international bureaux in Washington, Moscow, Jerusalem, Beijing, Johannesburg, Brussels and Delhi. News anchor Kirsty Young will continue to present five’s flagship bulletins at 17.30 and 19.00 but from a purpose-built, state-of-the-art studio at Sky News’ base in West London. MORE INNOVATION The five contract, combined with both Sky News’ continuing innovations and Hutton Inquiry reconstruction/ its unrivalled expertise in breaking news, Soham trial transcripts will ensure that Sky News remains at The RTS Innovation Award judges said Sky News’ solutions the forefront of news provision in the to the problem of covering 21st century. individual proceedings, where cameras are banned, were “radical and imaginative”. India bureau Launched in January 2004, Sky News’ SkyCopter India bureau covers The SkyCopter allows the breaking news Sky News team to cover across the Indian major stories where sub-continent. scale is important. British Sky Broadcasting Group plc Annual Report and Accounts 2004 17 Innovation, programming and content continued SPORTS In the year, Sky Sports secured new broadcast rights, witnessed historic live events and set a new audience record. SKY SPORTS AUDIENCE PROFILE Sky Sports offered over 36,000 hours Sky Sports’ first season of live UEFA Sky Sports also holds a new near-live Jan–June 2004 of coverage across five dedicated sports Champions League coverage attracted package of rights. These will be Sky Sports 67% 33% channels, secured new programming strong ratings, critical acclaim and broadcast in a new ‘Football First’ Total TV 47% 53% contracts and extended interactive praise from governing body UEFA. Sky programme, which will offer extended coverage to new sports events. digital customers could use interactivity highlights of every Premiership match Men Women Source: BARB to choose from up to 8 live matches played that day, with viewers able to It gave subscribers a diverse schedule being played simultaneously. choose which match they watch through of live sports programming throughout Sky Sports’ interactive service. the year and from around the world, During the year Sky Sports also won including victory for England’s cricketers new deals for live Spanish La Liga The year was also the busiest ever for in the Caribbean and teams from every football, live Welsh home international rugby union production, with over 100 participating nation in rugby union’s football, and secured new agreements live matches stretching through every Heineken Cup. with the English Football Association month of the year. A new deal for and the FA Premier League. Exclusively- European Heineken Cup Rugby brought Among the year’s landmarks were live rights to a number of World Cup comprehensive coverage, with up to five Sky’s first live UEFA Champions League qualifiers were also secured, including live matches from each round. matches and a new record audience, the opening matches for England and when England’s Euro 2004 Qualifier Wales in September 2004. Live cricket was also broadcast against Turkey, in October 2003, throughout the year and featured every attracted Sky’s largest-ever audience, The 2004-05 season will be the most domestic county and every Test nation. with an in-home peak of 4.2 million televised football campaign ever on Sky England’s tour to the West Indies viewers. Sports, with over 450 live games from produced their first tour victory in the a range of competitions. Caribbean for 34 years and the highest Other rating successes of the year included cricket audiences for two years. the Super League’s Play-Offs, Spanish La Following the award of four live Liga football, NFL American Football and packages of FA Premier League rights At home, the domestic Twenty20 Cup, the World Darts Championship. to Sky in August 2003, Sky viewers will a new event in 2003, was a ratings now be able to watch more live matches success, attracting audiences three times from the Barclays Premiership. Sky the size of its predecessor, the B&H Cup. Sports will show 88 live matches, 22 more than previously, with an extra 50 live matches offered on the pay-per- view service, PREMPLUS. MORE LIVE SPORT THAN EVER Sky Sports offered more hours, more live matches and more interactivity than ever before. 18 Annual Report and Accounts 2004 British Sky Broadcasting Group plc In rugby league, a new deal was concluded for the domestic Super League, Great Britain internationals 5th ANNIVERSARY and a new Tri-Nations tournament. In boxing, a new deal with Sports Network SKY SPORTS NEWS MARKED ITS saw British World champions, Joe FIFTH ANNIVERSARY IN OCTOBER Calzaghe and Ricky Hatton, continue to “Never before have the turned-on 2003, WITH RECORD AUDIENCES UP be covered on Sky Sports. Meanwhile, 100% YEAR-ON-YEAR Sky Box Office offered world title fights masses been presented with such featuring Lennox Lewis, Oscar De La a choice of football matches.” Hoya and Bernard Hopkins. The Independent 22 September 2003 Sky Sports News marked its fifth 4.2MILLION VIEWERS anniversary in October 2003, with record audiences, which had doubled ENGLAND’S EURO 2004 QUALIFIER AGAINST TURKEY ATTRACTED SKY’S year-on-year. The channel, which was BIGGEST-EVER AUDIENCE, AN IN-HOME the first all-new digital channel at PEAK OF 4.2 MILLION VIEWERS launch, is now available on digital terrestrial and cable services as well as on the Sky DTH platform.