VMtv sale completed, Virgin Media to carry Sky HD channels

Virgin Media has announced that Sky has completed the acquisition of its channels business VMtv following regulatory approval in the Republic of Ireland. VMtv has now been re-named the Living TV Group.

Sky paid Virgin Media an initial £105m (€125m) and up to an additional £55m will be paid on UK regulatory clearance. Sky has acquired LIVING, LIVINGit, Challenge, Challenge Jackpot, Bravo, Bravo 2 and Virgin1 and their related websites.

The UK cable operator also announced that Five’s new high definition channel, Five HD, has launched on its line-up today.
The launch of Five HD on Virgin Media brings the total number of HD channels on the platform to 13. The operator said it plans to launch a further 20, including Sky Sports HD and Sky Movie HD channels later this summer.

As reported in yesterday’s DTVE Daily, Five, which recently pulled out of the Project Canvas consortium, is also launching Five HD on DTH platform BSkyB. The broadcaster had planned to launch the channel on DTT service Freeview earlier this year but pulled out after it failed to supply a launch date or programme schedule for the channel.