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Industry News
Interactive revenues have emerged over the past few years to become a major source of revenue growth for digital television:
  • Interactive TV services accounted for 8.7% of BSkyB's turnover during 2004/5, up 15% from the previous year and represented approximately £46 per subscriber per annum (BSkyB 2005 Annual report)
  • There are currently no significant interactive revenues earned from Freeview platforms, mainly due to limitations in their specification and the poor availability and utilisation of bandwidth.
Press

Electra Partners with YooMedia for Richer Interactivity on Freeview

21 October 2005

YooMedia plc, the AIM traded interactive media and games group, has signed a partnership agreement with Electra Entertainment Limited ("Electra"), a provider of next-generation interactive entertainment services for Freeview set top boxes, to supply a collection of free and premium interactive services on Freeview.

The new interactive services accessible from any channel will feature richer functionality, graphics and sound than that currently available on Freeview interactive content. The new content will be supplied to households nationally using YooMedia's newly-launched datacasting service as announced in its interim results on 26 September 2005. The technology required to receive the Electra service will be licensed to consumer electronics manufacturers for incorporation in devices such as digital set top boxes, integrated digital televisions and personal video recorders.

Additionally, YooMedia and Electra will collaborate to develop advanced fixed odds gaming and dating services for inclusion in the Electra Freeview service platform.

YooMedia's Group Managing Director, Neil MacDonald, said: "We are delighted to announce our first datacasting service on Freeview, working in partnership with Electra. We developed the datacasting service to provide a sophisticated and state of the art interactive delivery mechanism for the rapidly expanding digital market. Freeview is the fastest growing digital TV platform in the UK with over five million households. Many industry commentators believe that Freeview will emerge as the largest single platform over the coming years and we believe that the time is right for high quality interactive services to be made available on it."

Electra's Chairman, Jasper Smith, said: "The Freeview world is evolving fast with new channel launches, enhanced boxes and rapid take up. We believe Electra's technology and services are the next stage in transforming the Freeview entertainment experience. As the UK 's largest independent interactive provider, YooMedia is an ideal partner for our business."

Electra Services