Finally. YouView – the service that brings together on-demand shows from the BBC, ITV, and Channel 4, as well as regular Freeview – will launch later this month, two years later than expected.
The bad news? The set-top box will set you back a wallet-denting £300. That’s way too high in our opinion, read on to find out why.
Lord ‘Siralun’ Sugar unveiled the box at an event in London this morning. The service is a joint venture between the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel Five, BT, TalkTalk, and Arquiva. You won’t need a subscription to watch on-demand shows and movies, but the standard Humax set-top box will cost you a not at all cheap £300. Though subsidised versions will go on sale later in the year, if you choose to take out a broadband package with TalkTalk or BT.
The service was originally supposed to launch in 2010, but was beset by delays.
Considering it’s supposed to be a more affordable rival to Sky, I think £300 is taking the biscuit somewhat. Set-top boxes are ridiculously cheap nowadays, so for £300 I’d expect all the bells and whistles. Undoubtedly the price will come down, with Lord Sugar predicting the box will cost £99 in a couple of years, but that’s no good to us now. In fact, it just makes us even less likely to hand over 300 notes.
Lord Sugar also admitted the current offering is a “carcass of the real experience,” with a “minimum amount of features” at launch, according to TechRadar.
“There are a minimum amount of features on board at the moment but what will happen in the next few years [we] will see many more providers come on board,” the bearded one said.
Not the most auspicious of starts, especially considering how long we’ve been kept waiting. Here’s hoping the prices come down and more features see the light of day.
