Virgin Media UK Has No Plans to Expand Stream’s Availability
Broadband ISP and TV provider Virgin Media (VMO2) has reiterated to ISPreview that it currently has “no plans” to make its relatively new Stream TV service available to consumers on other internet providers, which is despite Sky opting to make their equivalent Sky Stream product available to users on other ISPs since launch.
The Virgin Media’s Stream service originally launched back in April 2022 (here) and since then we’ve received a steady ‘stream’ (no pun intended) of readers asking when or if it will become available to non-VM broadband customers. So for those who keep asking, we just put that question to the operator. A spokesperson for Virgin Media responded: “At this time there are no plans to make Stream available to non-VM customers.”
The only ray of hope here is their “no plans” language, since that phrase is easily one of the most used and abused in the PR arsenal. Plans can and often do change, frequently at short notice. On the other hand, we’re rapidly approaching two years post-launch and if they were going to open the platform up to more consumers, then it probably would have happened by now.
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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, BlueSky, Threads.net and Linkedin.
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Stream is there to sell Virgin broadband. If you could get it with another provider they would harm their overall business.
Would it? Looking at the latest figures does not seem to have done Sky any bad.. I have Sky Stream and I use Starlink.
Not if like me you live in an area not covered by VM or Next Fibre FTTP. They are missing out on potential sales.
From what I know of stream, I doubt we’ll see it expand beyond VM unless they start selling their full IPTV subscription similar to Sky Stream e.g. Mega TV bundle.
As of now I doubt there’s much financial incentive for them to offer these beyond VM itself, if anything it could cost them more money.
Didn’t they say at launch they would eventually sell it independently
Having more than one puck in a house. VM Stream or variant is going to replace DVB-C TIVO/Horizon boxes at some point and those legacy boxes allow more than one box in a house so seems limiting.
I’d love to change from Sky Stream to Virgin Stream. I’d prefer to stay with my Altnet but if Virgin lifted the one stream device per account limit I’d happily sign up.
All these services need to become Apple TV and Android TV apps. I don’t want a glitchy underpowered device.
What experience of Stream do you have to state that the hardware is glitchy and underpowered? If anything, it should be relatively more optimised between the device and software (within limits as they’re likely based off reference devices).
I suspect that when the HFC is all changed over to full-fibre, then a) VMO2 will hive off all the fixed network assets into nexfibre, so they will purely concentrate on TV, broadband, phone and maybe mobile depending on structure and branding then, and b) Stream will be offered more widely.
Agree, and I could see them seek to have their service carried over Openreach fibre and whatever alt-nets are available in any given area, so that their offer could finally go nationwide.
Virgin is the most complained about provider for good reason. Their customer service is absolutely dire too.
They are terrible on all levels, so i’d advise those with Sky Stream to learn from my mistakes and to stay put.