Friday, 16 September 2011
Sky has seen 1m downloads across its Sky Go service only two months after its launch.
The satellite broadcaster merged its video-on-demand (VOD) service Sky Player and mobile services under the Sky Go brand earlier this summer.
A total of 40m pieces of content, both live and on-demand, were watched during August across the platform, which runs across online, XBox games consoles, PCs and Apple smartphone and tablet apps. The majority (85%) of the 40m pieces of content viewed was live channel streaming, with the remaining 15% VOD.
Sky has attributed the surge in downloads to demand for sports streaming. Sky Sports 1 was the most popular live linear channel, followed by Sky Sports News and Sky Sports 2. Sky and the BBC jointly secured the rights to live stream Formula 1 motor racing this summer in a seven-year deal. Sky subscribers can watch all the races across Sky Go online, mobile and tablet services.
In a Sky blog post, head of Sky Player and Mobile TV Holly Knill said the Premier League football match between Arsenal and Liverpool attracted the largest viewing figures since launch.
Meanwhile, VOD viewing was highest on PCs, where movies including Shrek Forever After and Piranha 2010 were the most downloaded.
Knill said Sky Go will be made all the more accessible once it integrates with The Cloud. “Sky Go’s integration with The Cloud will allow customers to enjoy free access via thousands of wireless hotspots throughout the UK and Republic of Ireland, so they can enjoy the highest-quality streaming of the content they love while out and about,” she said.
It acquired The Cloud, a network of public access wi-fi hotspots, earlier this year .
