In Other News: 09/05/2013.

• Acer are a bit more happy with the changes which Microsoft is readying for the next version of Windows 8 because the whole world isn't quite ready for touch and apparently now Microsoft have realised that!
  Via TheVerge.

• BT and their new sports packages will be coming free to BT Broadband customers in the future! There will be a few hurdles to jump through, but that is an insane deal! Sky customers will have to pay either £12 or £15 to add it to their Sky subscription per month, depending on whether they want standard or high definition on their pictures! For full details check out PocketLint here. 

• The Nokia Lumia 900 on AT&T is finally receiving the update to Windows Phone 7.8!
  Via IntoMobile.

• Apex Launcher 2.0 has hit Google Play and the update involves, amongst other things, a new feature which lets you know how many notifications there are for each app on the shortcut to the app, in much the same way as iOS tackles the problem.
  Via AndroidPolice.

• Facebook Home has finally hit the one million downloads mark on the Play Store!
  Via IntoMobile.

• ITV have updated their Android app for their online catch up service. The update however, is an exclusive to a plethora of Samsung devices, but apparently the APK will work on any hardware from a Sony Xperia X10 through to a HTC One if the reports on our Twitter feed are to be believed!
  Via Eurodroid.

• Rovio have updated their Bad Piggies app with a tonne of new levels, 120 to be exact and there's a few new gadget to power your concoctions!
  Via AndroidCommunity.

And finally, according to the guys over at Engadget the Wii U will have a fair amount of restrictions  in the games it can play in the future because EA's Frostbite 3 engine apparently doesn't play nice. That rules out the next instalment of Battlefield, Star Wars and Mass Effect as well as this seasons Madden. Maybe that's why we've been seeing price drops left, right and centre!

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BT and Sky bicker over the ad campaign for BT's new sports coverage!

   If you live in the UK and you ask anyone in the country who you should go to to get the best sports coverage on TV and their answer will be Sky 99 times out of 100. That's what makes today's news slightly less than savoury.

   Today British Sky Broadcasting has rejected a huge multimillion-pound ad campaign which was booked by BT (British Telecom) to promote their new 38 game Premier League and sports package which will go into full effect at the start of the 2013/2014 seasons.

   BT wants to make the most out of their £738 million investment in 38 Premier League football (soccer) games and a key part of launching their two new sports channels is a marketing blitz which will highlight the options which go live in July. Sky is a natural place to advertise because of the subscriber base which is on the higher side of 10 million paying sports subscribers.

    Today BT confirmed that they have lodged a complaint with media regulator Watchdog, because of Sky's refusal to show their campaign. Sky refused to tell BT on what grounds their campaign was declined and as such Ofcom will take up the matter under the 'grievance under the Code on the Prevention of Undue Discrimination between Broadcast Advertisers'.

   BT described the rejection from Sky as "undue discrimination" and John Petter, BT's managing director of consumer, added that, "We are happy to take Sky's advertising but they seem afraid of taking ours... It's like a rottweiler running away from a newborn puppy."

   Sky in retaliation said that their billions of pounds worth of investment meant that they did not want to run the ad campaign on any of their Sky Sports channels, but they said they were more than happy to approve the campaign if it was aired on the non-sports channels which Sky offers, but that's not quite the point. BT would be wasting their money if they didn't target the obvious audience in what most average consumers see as close to a monopoly on sports coverage. Sky told the Guardian:

"There many other avenues for BT to advertise its sports channels without seeking to take advantage of the investments that we've made to build Sky Sports... It's entirely reasonable for us to choose not to carry advertising for a directly competing service."

   If you were to look to the past to find a resolution then you would find that ESPN do offer ads on Sky Sports channels, but only because they allow Sky to advertise their sporting prowess on ESPN's channels.

   If we were to predict who would come out on top here we expect Ofcom will come down on BT's side, but that is pure speculation and we could be wrong, because it's easy to have a bit of sympathy for both sides in this debate. What do you think? Let us know what you think should be done in the comments below!
Guardian Via TheVerge.

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BT buys ESPN: Sky Sports has a new competitor.

   As well as rolling out 'super fast fibre broadband' to swatches of the country at the moment, but have seemingly opted to try their hand at offering sports coverage to compete with the all powerful Sky Sports!

   In a deal worth £10 million or $15 million ESPN's UK and Ireland channels will be transferred from Disney to BT. BT's channel will inherit ESPN's portfolio of FA Cup, Clydesdale Bank Scottish Premier League, UEFA Europa League, and the German Bundesliga games, which will complement BT's coverage of 38 Premiership football matches, which will are already the main attraction for customers. ESPN's free channel, ESPN Classic, will stop operating.

   If the rumours are correct the new channel will be headed up by TV presenter Jake Humphrey and Clare Balding. For much more information check out the source link and the press release below!
Via Telegraph.

The full press release is embedded below:


BT Group acquires ESPN's UK and Ireland television channels business

BT Group and ESPN announced today that they have agreed that BT will acquire ESPN's UK and Ireland TV channels business. These primarily comprise the ESPN and ESPN America channels and their live sports rights portfolio, including the FA Cup, Clydesdale Bank Scottish Premier League, UEFA Europa League, and the German Bundesliga.

The transaction is expected to complete on July 31, 2013 after which BT will continue to operate at least one ESPN-branded channel which is expected to form part of the BT Sport TV package that will be launched by BT this summer. Additionally, the deal will allow BT to continue to show a host of US sports currently shown on ESPN America, including NCAA College Basketball, NCAA College Football and NASCAR. The ESPN channels will be broadcast from BT Sport's new home in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford. Until completion, the service for current subscribers to the ESPN channels across all television platforms remains unchanged.

The deal will enable BT Sport customers to see live coverage of the FA Cup for the 2013/14 season, the Clydesdale Bank Scottish Premier League until the end of the 2016/17 season and the UEFA Europa League and German Bundesliga through to the end of the 2014/15 season. These join the broadcast rights that BT Sport has previously announced, including 38 live Barclays Premier League matches - including 18 of the top clashes - in each of the next three seasons (beginning August 2013); 69 live Aviva Premiership Rugby matches for the next four seasons; and up to 800 hours per season of live women's tennis, including the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships.

ESPN will continue to own and operate its existing digital media businesses which include multisport news and information portal ESPN.co.uk, ESPNcricinfo (cricket), ESPNFC (football), ESPNscrum (rugby), ESPNF1 (Formula 1) and broadband streaming service ESPN Player. ESPN Classic has been excluded from the proposed transaction.

Marc Watson, chief executive of television, BT Retail, said: "We are delighted to have reached agreement with ESPN for the acquisition of their UK channels business and that we have been able to add some exciting new sports rights to the ones we already have.

"The FA Cup, Scottish Premier League and Europa League rights will allow us to offer customers of BT Sport even more quality live football, including our first games from the Scottish top flight and our first European competition rights. There will also be the best of US sports available courtesy of this deal, which will further broaden the appeal of BT Sport."

Ross Hair, managing director, ESPN – Europe, Middle East and Africa, said: "We could not be more proud of the TV channels built and nurtured by our talented team over the past four years. The value of that hard work is reflected in this deal with BT and the continuation of ESPN on television screens across the UK and Ireland. The same passion, commitment and innovation will be at the heart of how we develop our strong digital media business into the future."

Completion of the transaction is subject to regulatory clearance.

Separate from the agreement with BT, ESPN is proposing the wind down of ESPN Classic throughout the EMEA region and the non-UK ESPN America TV businesses.

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