Of com has just released its latest report on The International Communications Market 2008 and it’s packed with lots of interesting and (less than interesting) data on global trends in the use of all things digital, including TV, broadband, telephony and radio.

Here’s our take on what’s most interesting in the report, hope it’s useful. 

The digital world is converging fast!

> There are 26 broadband connections per 100 people in the UK, placing us third behind the Netherlands (35%) and Sweden (31%) and penetration is growing at about 5% per year.

> UK surfers are spending nearly 14 hours per week online, second only to US internet users who spend 15 hours online each week and this is growing at an average annual rate of 30% - so by our calculations, if this continues for another ten years web users will be online 24 hours per day, seven days per week.

> More and more people are viewing TV shows over the web and its growing in the UK at a rate of 69% per year. The US lead the world with 26 downloads per head per year, with UK second at 8 downloads per head per year.

> As a result 15% of UK web users claim to watch less broadcast TV as TV viewing retains its basic appeal (thanks to X Factor no doubt).

> Mobile broadband availability (via HSDPA) is highest in the UK covering 87% of households.

> The age of the CD is well and truly coming to an end - digital recorded music sales are growing at 20% per year and mobile music downloads now account for over half of all recorded digital music revenue in France, Italy and 29% in the UK. Whilst in Japan, mobile accounts for a staggering 90%+ of all digital music revenue!

> Use of social networking sites on mobile phones is growing but still very niche, but broadcasting TV on mobiles has had less success with various service closures around the globe over the last 18 months.

The UK is the world capital of digital television!

> The UK leads the way globally with the 86% of main TV sets connected to digital, followed by the US with 70%. Within digital TV, pay-TV thanks to successful marketing by Sky and Virgin Media continues to grow and is now in 47% of UK households.

> High definition (HD) TV remains niche with approximately 1m homes enjoying HD (out of a total of nearly 25m TV homes) in the UK.

> Nearly one third of UK households have a DVR (digital video recorder). This is the highest penetration in the world. This is largely due to the huge appeal and success of Sky+ which is now in over 4 million households.

> TV is still a major national pass time with viewers in the UK watching over 3.5 hours of television a day, 7 days per week! This is less though than the Americans who watch an hour a day more on average.

Telephony use and spend just keeps on growing!

> Telecoms companies keep on getting richer. In the UK alone their revenues continue to grow at 5% per year, driven by increased mobile use and broadband take-up whilst fixed line revenues fall slightly.

> Broadband take up continues apace in the UK, but as penetration increases it is slowing from 20% in 2006 to 14% in 2007.

> Texting keeps charging ahead with volume of texts sent growing by over 35% in the UK alone in 2007.

> The UK lags the world in the provision of state-of-the-art fibre-optic delivery technology. In Japan an amazing 85% of the population have access to a full fibre-to-your-door service, whilst in the UK this is only 1% of the population. This reflects Virgin Media’s approach of running fibre to the street, rather than your door.

Still want more? Then head on over to the BBC, Daily Telegraph or WebUser for further analysis.

Written by Jonathan

Some more great news on the digital TV front as we hear of a deal signed between ITV and BT to enable all your favourite ITV programmes like Coronation Street and the X Factor to be watched on the BT Vision platform.

That makes BT Vision the only platform in the UK carrying catch-up services for all four terrestrial broadcasters as ITV joins catch-up programming from the BBC, Channel 4 and Five already available. You’ll just need to subscribe to the BT Vision Replay package (£3 a month) to watch content from the ITV library.

So here’s the quick sales bit. For this and other right up to the minute packages that deliver more content to you, give us a call on 0800 988 8148 or head on over to the main Simplifydigital site and see what the best package is for you.

Written by Jonathan

TalkTalk has today announced a new package that offers people the chance to experience superfast broadband. Called myTalkTalk, the basic monthly price at launch is £6.49, with a series of add-ons for £4 including a speed boost of 24Mbps. That’s pretty quick, especially if you’re used to less than 1Mbps which a lot of people are. In addition to the potential for a good old speed boost, you can also double your download limit from 40Gb to 80Gb. 

There’s more too. TalkTalk estimate that only 10-15% of you will be able to get up to speeds approaching 24Mbps, so it’s offering a test upfront for you to check what you’d be getting and a refund if you’re not happy. We think this is a really good thing to do as we’re up for total transparency and super happy customers that get what they wanted in the first place. 

So, what are you waiting for? Don’t just sit there and plod on with your current broadband package. Give us a call on 0800 988 8148 or head on over to the main Simplifydigital site and see what the best package is for you.

Written by Jonathan

We want to let more people know about what Simplifydigital does and how it can help you get the very best deal when it comes to choosing your digital TV, broadband and home phone packages. Up until now this blog has been used mainly to share the latest news from us, along with other useful guides, tips and tidbits to help make finding the very best package and keeping up to speed on the latest deals as easy as possible. Now, we want to up the ante a bit and start using the blog as much more of a conversation platform, a way to talk directly with you, share some of the good stuff people say about us, find out more about what you’re looking for in a service like us and ultimately give us a home on the web that we can link back to and share more useful things with you. So, do get involved and let us know how we’re doing. 

Our Smartsearch comparison tool is free and officially accredited by the industry watchdog Ofcom for providing impartial advice. Indeed, we’ve noted in the past that research has shown that consumers can save on average £160 a year (!) by bundling their services and Simplifydigital is here to offer free consultations with experts! We have a team here that really does know their stuff and you can call them right now (for free!) on 0800 1388 388 or if you prefer, just head on over to our Smartsearch comparison tool and see what package our clever little piece of technology recommends for you. You might be surprised, or just a little bit reassured. Either way, give it a go and let us know what you think. 

And to kick things off, here’s Jon Bentley giving us a big thumbs up on the Gadget Show this week as he went in search of the best broadband deal in Britain. It was a great piece, in fact so good our site went down for a few minutes after being hit by a wave of Gadget Show viewers eager to try us out! We also experimented a bit with Twitter that night (Follow us here) by following people that were watching the Gadget show or talking about broadband-related things and saying hi. This seemed to go down pretty well and one Twitterer John Hood loved it so much, he has since written very nice things about us on his blog, which all you Mac and/or Star Wars fans should check out. 

So, over the next few weeks, expect to hear a lot more from us as we ask you about your experiences and how we can help out. We’d like to get a conversation going and let even more people know about Simplifydigital because we (obviously!), and lots of other people (check out some of our reviews), think it’s pretty smart. Oh, did we mention that it’s free?

Written by Jonathan

Virgin Media customers will once again have access to Sky channels such as Sky1, Sky News and Sky Sports News after the company signed a new channel carriage deal with BSkyB.

Virgin Media subscribers lost access to the channels at the end of February 2007 after a disagreement between the two companies that escalated over the amount that Sky wanted to charge Virgin Media to have access to the channels. 

 Sky and Virgin have since resolved the issue after Virgin agreed to pay Sky £30m per year plus yearly incentives. As such Virgin subscribers can expect to see Sky channels back on their TV’s by the 15^th of November 2008. The channels include Sky1, Sky2, Sky3, Sky News, Sky Sports News, Sky Arts 1, Sky Arts 2, Sky Real Lives and Sky Real Lives 2.At the same time, Sky subscribers will continue to have access to Virgin Media TV’s basic channels, including Living, Bravo, Virgin 1 and Trouble.

Charlie Ponsonby, CEO of Simplifydigital, said: “This is a welcome end to the stand-off between Virgin Media and Sky with the customer the real winner”

Written by chris

We launched an exciting new partnership today with MSN bringing our unique Simplifydigital sales advisory service to a UK portal for the first time.

The new service, which will be hosted at MSN Money, will enable MSN users to save time, hassle and most significantly money on their broadband, digital TV and landline services. It will also provide weekly cash saving tips and advice about choosing the best digital services to suit individuals specific needs.

All the key UK suppliers are presented on the service, including 3, AOL, BT, Orange, O2, Setanta, Sky, Talk Talk, Topup TV and Virgin Media.

Alex Marks, Head of Marketing for Microsoft Advertising said: “The partnership with Simplifydigital means that MSN users will now have access to a single service that helps them find the best deal for broadband, TV and home telephone. This is great news for consumers looking to cut back on costs during the tough financial times.”

Charlie Ponsonby, CEO of Simplifydigital, said: “We are very excited to be partnering with MSN to bring this service to a major UK portal for the first time. Our unique online service supported by our experts over the phone will immediately help MSN users cut through the confusion and save money on their digital services.”

Written by lee

IT’S SHAPING UP TO BE AN HD CHRISTMAS DESPITE THE CREDIT CRUNCH

Sky recently announced record growth of customers subscribing to their high definition TV service, reflecting the increasing attractions of the format

High definition TV broadcasting is still very young in the UK, but its attractions are starting to attract record numbers of paying customers despite the credit crunch.  Sky recently announced a record increase of 93,000 in HD subscribers in the last quarter ending 30^th September, bringing their total to just over 590,000.   They offer by far the most HD programming in the UK, but HD subscribers are also growing at Virgin Media and on the new Freesat service from the BBC.

The big players see HD as the “next big thing” for television in the UK and, despite the current economic environment, are investing heavily to greatly increase the variety of high definition (HD) content available to watch.  They are also offering some terrific deals to entice consumers to make the switch to HD viewing in time for Christmas.

So aren’t I already watching in high definition as I have an “HD Ready” TV set?

An “HD Ready” TV set alone will not allow you to watch TV in high definition.  Indeed there are many thousands of households up and down the land convinced that they are watching TV in high definition, when in fact they are not. 

The “HD Ready” TV set has many more pixels per square inch (4 times more than a standard set) allowing it to show pictures in far greater detail and with much more vibrant colours, but only if the content that it is showing is being broadcast and transmitted in high definition.  So you will need the right TV and a set top box able to receive and decode a high definition signal.  HD signals are also broadcast in surround sound making for a much richer sound as well as visual experience.

All the main manufacturers produce HD Ready sets and the chances are that if you have bought a TV recently (especially a flat screen) it will be HD Ready.  But it is very important to check this before subscribing to an HD service.

So is HD worth the additional spend?  If you walk past a TV showing content in HD you will notice a big difference – in fact so proud are new HD viewers that they often ask their friends round to gawp at the clarity of the picture.  Most viewers find that HD is particularly impressive for sporting events, documentaries and to a lesser extent movies and dramas.  Football in HD for example is a huge improvement on the standard TV experience – with players (and the crowd!) visible in extraordinary clarity.  

So in a nutshell, to enjoy HDTV you will need to make sure you have the following:

1. a TV capable of displaying high-definition pictures
2. a receiver that can decode the high definition signal, such Sky’s HD box or Virgin’s V+ box
3. a TV package that includes high definition programmes.

Who is broadcasting HD content and how do I access it?

Sky and the BBC have really pioneered the broadcast of HD content in the UK, but Virgin Media has joined the HD party also. 

Sky offer by far the widest range of HD channels, having recently increased their total to 28 channels offered.  The table below shows who currently shows what in HD….

So how do the various alternatives compare in terms of value for money?

It is shaping up to be an HD Christmas with the providers recognising that as households cut back on going out, staying into to watch a cinema quality movie in high definition and surround sound, is fast becoming a cheap and more attractive alternative.   

For anyone who is serious about watching HD, Sky offers by far the largest selection of HD channels and programming in the UK, covering the whole spectrum of content – from all the premium sporting action, to a large range of movies and documentaries.  The Sky+HD box also has all the features of a Sky+ box so that you can pause and record live TV.  What’s more Sky recently cut the price of their HD box in half to £75 when bought through selected retailers  < www.simplifydigital.co.uk/msnmoney>. 

As Chris Williams, Head of Products at the comparison service Simplifydigital comments “For families looking to watch a wide range of content in high definition  - from drama, to documentaries, sports and movies – then Sky is the only realistic choice.  Sky’s commitment to the HD revolution is really starting to show in terms of the breadth of content that they offer relative to the competition” 

Virgin Media only offer one HD channel, namely the BBC HD channel, but they do have quite a wide variety of on-demand content in high definition.

For the budget HD viewer who is happy to watch only BBC and ITV programming in HD, then Freesat is a possible choice, but the HD content will feel very limited.   Freesat does also have additional Freeview channels to watch in standard definition.

*Prices correct as at 7/11/08

For an impartial consultation and access to the best deals, to help you find the very best high definition package for you, click here or call 0800 138 8090.   

Written by chris

To help out cash strapped consumers, we’re offering £10 cashback for customers buying online. Hurry - offer ends 30th November!

·         The cash-back deal applies for digital TV, broadband and home phone deals bought online at the Simplifydigital website www.simplifydigital.co.uk

·         The cash-back deal is in addition to the market leading offers available on the site

To celebrate the launch of new user friendly tools on our unique online digital TV, broadband and home phone comparison service, Simplifydigital is offering all customers who sign-up to a market leading deal on our website, an additional £10 cash-back. 

Charlie Ponsonby, CEO of Simplifydigital says:

 “Simplifydigital already offers the pick of the online digital TV, broadband and home phone deals – and now we are offering an additional £10 cash back to our customers who buy online. We know everyone is counting the pennies at the moment and we are responding with this special deal.”

Written by lee

LONDON - BSkyB has passed the 9m subscriber mark after it added more than 400,000 taking Sky + and a record number signing up to Sky+ HD service.

Sky has finished the quarter ended September 30 with 9,067,000 customers.

Sky+ HD subscribers grew by 93,000 to 591,000. The company credited growing awareness of HD and availability of content such as the Olympics for the growth, in addition to its price cut on the service by £99 to £150.

Sky’s broadband and telephony services attracted more sign-ups, with broadband now in 20% of Sky homes thanks to 164,000 new customers and telephony in 15% of Sky homes with 120,000 new customers.

Jeremy Darroch, chief executive of Sky, said: “This is a good set of results in a challenging environment. Over nine million customers now enjoy the best in entertainment through Sky and, in tougher times, we’re helping more people to save money on broadband and telephony as well.”

To find out how you can join the growing Sky family give one of our digital experts a call on 0800 1388 388 or click here to compare sky to other suppliers.

Written by chris

Written by chris