Foxtel tends to roll out its annual price rises in November, and this year is no exception. TV Tonight reports that basic package prices will go up by $1 from November 1, while Platinum pack prices will rise by $2 a month.
Clearly our prediction that all Franklins stores would soon be rebranded as IGA was a little premature. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) just announced it is going to appeal the Federal Court decision which said that Franklins could be sold off to Metcash despite ACCC objections, and it looks like the Foxtel/Austar merger is a factor.
A common complaint amongst TV-watching Lifehacker viewers is that not enough sporting events get broadcast in HD and that coverage is often selective and incomplete. Both seem unlikely to be an issue with Foxtel’s broadcast of the 2012 London Olympics, which will include 8 dedicated 24-hour HD channels covering the event.
In practical terms, pay TV seems simple in Australia: you get Foxtel if you live in a big city, Austar if you live in a rural area, and essentially the same channels on offer through either service. Despite that, the ACCC doesn’t seem too keen on letting Foxtel pursue its plan to take over Austar — and the NBN plays a key role.
When Foxtel launched its Xbox 360 service last October, we couldn’t help but point out that it would be an expensive undertaking given that all the data you used to watch would come out of your monthly cap. That has now changed for Telstra BigPond customers, who will get unmetered access to Foxtel on Xbox 360 TV services as of today.
There’s been an iPhone app for scheduling recordings on a Foxtel IQ since 2009, and now Android users have the same options. The Foxtel Android app is now available in the Market, and enables scheduling if you’ve got an iQ or iQ2.
Since 2009, Optus hasn’t been selling new pay TV services, and has been stripping back the options for its existing customers. However, from next year it will again begin selling pay TV options from Foxtel to customers using its cable network, as well as offering satellite services in areas where its cable doesn’t offer.
Foxtel today launched its Foxtel on Xbox 360 service, which lets you access the pay TV channel via an Xbox 360 console without needing a set-top box. While the basic $20 a month price might sound appealing compared to full-blown pay TV, there’s a big risk involved, as Foxtel doesn’t have any unmetered partnerships with ISPs.
Foxtel’s new video-on-demand services are priced pretty similarly to other offerings. That hasn’t stopped Foxtel altering some of its pricing in the wake of the new services.
