Virgin Media offers STB upgrade

UK multiplay telco Virgin Media is offering existing Virgin TV customers a free upgrade to its V6 box, giving them access to what the operator says is the very-best connected entertainment experience alongside ultrafast broadband.

In what is one of the largest customer upgrade programmes ever carried out in the UK, Virgin Media is accelerating the rollout of its best-ever box and will end the year with the majority of its TV customers using the next-generation, 4K-ready V6.

The upgrade programme comes as Virgin Media installs its millionth V6 box TV customer; just over one year since it was first launched.

Customers who take a TV and broadband bundle will be able to upgrade their older set-top box for Virgin TV’s smallest, smartest and fastest V6 box at no additional cost and with no re-contract requirements.

Eligible customers will be contacted in the coming weeks with details of how they can request their V6 box. The vast majority will be able to self-install avoiding the need for an engineer visit.

Since the launch of the Virgin TV V6 box in December 2016, and investment in a variety of exclusive programming, Virgin Media has continued to grow its TV subscriber base and has seen increased satisfaction from customers with the V6. Approximately one in four Virgin TV customers already have the latest box.

The V6 box is half the size of the previous TiVo box with 10 times the power and allows people to record six programmes while watching a seventh recording or stream. Virgin TV V6 boxes support 4K Ultra-High Definition (UHD) TV with Netflix and YouTube already available in 4K.

These new features, alongside a slick and smooth interface, allow Virgin TV customers to do more. V6 box customers spend, on average, two hours longer watching TV each week and are more than twice as likely to watch a Box Set and record twice as many programmes as customers using a TiVo box. V6 customers are also three times as likely to launch Netflix and twice as likely to launch iPlayer.

“We believe that our finest kit shouldn’t just be for new customers,” said David Bouchier, Chief Digital Entertainment Officer at Virgin Media. So today we’re kicking off one of the largest existing customer upgrade programmes ever seen in the UK, accelerating the rollout of our best ever set-top box.”

“Our customers tell us how much they love using the V6 box and watch more TV when they have one. As a central entertainment hub, fired by our superior ultrafast broadband, the V6 is built for apps and the best on-demand TV experience – whether it’s iPlayer, Netflix or thousands of Box Sets.”

“Rightfully, our customers expect the best, and with top-notch TV to lightning-fast broadband, that’s exactly what they are getting.”

Virgin Media continues to build on its vast selection of Exclusives with nine box sets now available on-demand for Virgin TV Full House customers – ranging from comedy horror series, Ash vs Evil Dead to Good Behavior. Working in partnership with parent company, Liberty Global, Virgin Media will also release new original programming in 2018, with more details to be announced soon.

The company says the combination of innovative TV technology, incredible programming and the best ultrafast broadband, with speeds of up to 300Mbps for consumers and 350Mbps for small businesses, will mean Virgin TV customers are well equipped to enjoy connected entertainment all around their homes.

“This is great news for consumers,” commented Paolo Pescatore, VP, Multiplay and Media, CCS Insight. “And you have to give Virgin Media a lot of credit. Until the launch of the V6 set-top-box, it was losing TV subscribers. Since its introduction, the box has turned around its fortunes in a cut throat market.”

“Beyond the slew of features that the V6 box offers, Virgin Media is well positioned to aggregate all of the OTT video services that are rapidly emerging in the UK. With this in mind the company should be more aggressive in securing more content with OTT providers to further strengthen its overall offering and complement its extensive cable broadband network. Its customer centric approach will resonate strongly with users and allow the company to stand out over its rivals.”