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Virgin Media Adds 14 New Themed TV Channels At No Extra Cost
Tuesday, Aug 1st, 2023 (2:18 pm) - Score 3,096
Customers of UK broadband ISP Virgin Media (VMO2), specifically those who take their pay TV service via one of the operator’s TV 360, STREAM or v6 box platforms, may like to know that the provider has today launched 14 new “themed” (FAST) TV channels for no extra cost.
The additions all reflect Free Ad-Supported Streaming Television (FAST) channels, which are special dedicated channels that tend to only offer content and schedules based on either a single TV show or theme.
The new channel launches will see Virgin Media work with Amagi and Magnite, including its video ad server SpringServe, to manage and develop FAST services on Virgin TV, with the opportunity for Virgin Media and its channel partners to monetise FAST through targeted, dynamic advertising. More FAST channels are being planned for the future.
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The 14 New FAST Channels
| Channel | Name | Description |
| 220 | Inside Crime | Get behind the headlines of some of the UK’s most infamous crimes. Shows include Crimes That Shook Britain and Britain’s Darkest Taboos. |
| 221 | Real Wild | From lush rainforests to sparse deserts, our planet is an extraordinary place teeming with life & beauty. Join us on Real Wild to explore the wonders of earth – and the cute, colourful & wild animals inhabiting it. |
| 222 | Mystery TV | Delve into a world of mystery, the supernatural and the unexplained. Shows include Weird or What? with William Shatner and UFOs Declassified. |
| 223 | HauntTV | Love scares and ghosts that go bump in the night? You’re gonna love this channel. Shows include Paranormal Survivor and Bogeymen. |
| 224 | History Hit | The home of History. Share our enthusiasm for History capturing key moments in world history and linking them to present day. |
| 230 | Homes Under the Hammer | Follows home buyers as they uncover the various tricks of the property auction trade. |
| 231 | Great British Menu | Top chefs from across the UK put their hearts on a plate and showcase amazing culinary talent. |
| 232 | Tastemade | Upgrade your taste through fantastic food, travel and lifestyle shows. Including Britain’s Biggest Adventures with Bear Grylls. |
| 242 | NextUp Live Comedy | The home of UK stand-up comedy. From the Edinburgh Fringe to London’s Comedy Store. |
| 243 | The Chat Show Channel | Your favourite stars on the sofa! Shows include Chatty Man with Alan Carr and Friday Night with Jonathan Ross. |
| 244 | Baywatch | On a Los Angeles beach, a team of lifeguards led by Lieutenant Mitch Buchannon saves lives, deals with personal tragedies, fights crime, and participates in extraordinary adventures every day. |
| 250 | Deal or No Deal | 26 sealed briefcases – ranging from a penny to $1 million – contestants must decide whether to accept an offer of cash from the mysterious entity known only as “the Banker,” in exchange for what might be contained in the contestant’s chosen briefcase. |
| 251 | Fear Factor | Imagine a world where your greatest fears become reality. Contestants battle in extreme stunts designed to challenge the contestants both physically and mentally. |
| 252 | Wipeout Xtra | Crashes, smashes and hilarious mud splashes are on the cards as twenty contestants take on one of television’s largest and most extreme obstacle courses. |
By Mark Jackson
Mark is a professional technology writer, IT consultant and computer engineer from Dorset (England), he also founded ISPreview in 1999 and enjoys analysing the latest telecoms and broadband developments. Find me on X (Twitter), Mastodon, Facebook and Linkedin.
Mark is a professional technology writer, IT consultant and computer engineer from Dorset (England), he also founded ISPreview in 1999 and enjoys analysing the latest telecoms and broadband developments. Find me on X (Twitter), Mastodon, Facebook and Linkedin.
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Shovelware to get the channel count number bigger, what a waste of resources
You know these extra channels are garbage. Virgin Media know they are garbage. But it’s the sort of thing marketing departments insist upon to support a claim the intend to make in an advert “more channels than any other pay TV provider”.
With the rapid spread of Openreach FTTP across large swathes of VM’s existing footprint, the old cable superiority of speed is disappearing, and that’s why we’re seeing moves like this, or the “fastest wifi of any major provider” claims. There’s a desperate search on at VM Towers to find some new basis for a USP, and with nothing of substance they need to clutch at straws.
and usually in highly over compressed pictures with inferior sound.
SO basically FreeVee aka Amazon on the cheap…
No this is likely to be from the same sources platforms like Pluto use –
Correct. For them to appear in the EPG alongside traditional channels they need a Ofcom broadcast licence, which VM sourced.
Mind you, these kind of channels make up the “premium” NetGemTV content!
The days of traditional quadruple-play are dead
A whole channel of Deal or No Deal and a whole channel of Baywatch, wow, so excited, I really wish I could get virgin. 🙂
BT have sent me another leaflet, their TV package looks like it is now TV these days. Seem to be getting more BT leaflets since FTTP went live around here. They will never get me as a customer again.