Kangaroo Assets Sold to Arqiva

LONDON: The British broadcast transmission outfit Arqiva is set to launch a new VOD service in the coming months, after acquiring the assets of Project Kangaroo, the defunct broadband venture initiated by BBC Worldwide, ITV and Channel 4.

In February, the U.K.’s Competition Commission decided to block the proposed platform, arguing that it presented too much of a threat to competition in the British VOD market. Arqiva is acquiring the Kangaroo assets for an undisclosed sum. The deal includes hardware and software technology and related intellectual property developed for the service, which was close to being ready for market launch before being nixed by the Competition Commission.

Arqiva will use the assets to launch its own online VOD service for British consumers, delivering content from leading broadcasters and independent distributors. No further details have been provided regarding the new platform.

"Arqiva and its direct predecessors have been delivering linear analogue and digital TV services to U.K. viewers for many decades and we’re currently upgrading the TV network to deliver DSO," said Steve Holebrook, the managing director for terrestrial broadcast at Arqiva, "We believe that online video-on-demand is an exciting and complementary development, and a natural extension to our traditional broadcast business."

Arqiva is the owner and operator of the U.K.’s terrestrial TV infrastructure and licence holder of two of the six digital terrestrial TV multiplexes.