Pay-television operator Virgin Media has launched the UK’s first sports television season ticket service.
Season Ticket will allow Virgin Media customers to access five of BSkyB's Sky Sports channels, which Virgin Media carries under a carriage deal with the pay-television broadcaster.
For a one-off upfront cost of £150 (€187/$255), Season Ticket subscribers can access the Sky Sports 1, Sky Sports 2, Sky Sports 3, Sky Sports 4 and Sky Sports News channels.
Season Ticket will operate throughout the 2014-15 English Premier League football season, which runs from August until May. The offer is available until September 1 to new and existing customers.
Virgin Media said the upfront cost would allow customers to save more than 40 per cent compared to paying month-by-month for the Sky Sports channels.
Dana Strong, chief operating officer at Virgin Media, said: “Virgin Media is now the home of all the major live sports in the UK in HD or on the go. This is the first time all the Sky and BT Sport channels will be available in one place, backed by superfast broadband, for a single great value price.”
In May, Virgin Media extended a deal to carry BSkyB’s pay-television channels, including the Sky Sports channels. The deal runs for at least five years, from 2014-15 to 2018-19, and is an extension of an existing three-year agreement between the two companies.