Virgin Media and Setanta Sports have confirmed they are working together to launch a new TV channel, Setanta Sports News.
Expected to launch soon the channel will be available exclusively, and at no additional cost, to all of Virgin Media’s three million digital TV subscribers and will combine a wide range of sporting action from Setanta’s extensive library of broadcast rights with Virgin Media’s expertise in digital TV to provide the most demanding sports fan with everything they need to keep up to date and informed, in a new and distinctive format.
Michael O’Rourke, co-founder of Setanta Sports, said the channel “will engage directly with fans on their level and bring them stories and issues that really matter to them. It will be a powerful new voice in sports news. With a full spectrum of live location reports, interviews, studio-based experts and discussion shows, this is a channel with genuine appeal to real sport fans.”
Virgin Media has also announced it’s to launch a new sports portal on Monday to create one of the UK’s most comprehensive and original internet sports services.
From this season, visitors to virginmedia.com/sport will be able to watch free of charge highlights from all Barclays Premier League, Coca-Cola Championship, League 1 and League 2 matches. The site will be available to everyone who’s got access to the internet, not just Virgin Media customers.
Commenting on the new site, Malcolm Wall, Virgin Media’s CEO of content, said “with our free online highlights covering every Premier League and Football League club in the UK, football fans will be able to keep up to date no matter which club they support. Sport is all about the fans and the internet is the perfect medium for bringing the beautiful game to life. But no matter what the sport, fans will find our new portal the best place to get their daily dose of what’s going on and off the pitch.”