ITV rebrands online video to ITV Player
After iPlayer, Sky Player, ITV now a 'Player' too
ITV has announced that it will be rebranding its video on demand service ITV Player – as it looks to increase its online presence.
The Catch Up TV service on ITV.com will have a shiny new logo, and ITV are launching a major TV advertising campaign to promote its service.
Just to confuse matters, ITV will refer to the service as ITV Net Player and referred to as ITV Network Player in branding and communications 'intended for consumption across the entire UK'.
They've rebadged it, you fool
Ben McOwen Wilson, Director of Online at ITV, said: "The new logo is part of our aim to create a recognisable and consistent brand for video on demand content across the web and TV.
"It is part of our overall ambition to make our content as widely available for audiences through whichever platform suits them best.
"With the massive growth of on-demand content across our online sites during 2008 it is more important than ever to create a brand that consumers recognise and associate with our content on which ever platform they are enjoying it."
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Kangaroo
The announcement comes in the same week as Sky unveiled its Sky Player TV subscription for all service and another online ITV project – Project Kangaroo, which it was hoping to launch with BBC and Channel 4 – was criticised by the Competitions Commission.
The ITV.com service is beginning to show its age in comparison with the BBC's polished iPlayer and the prospect of a much bigger potential audience for Sky's VOD service has ramped up competition in the sector.
Project Kangaroo was intended to be a major collaborative project to create a platform for all Britain's major terrestrial broadcasters, apart from Five, but the current format has been adjudged to be likely to restrict competition.
However, a recent deal with BT to show ITV content on its catch-up service has indicated the broadcaster's move into new areas.
Patrick Goss is the ex-Editor in Chief of TechRadar. Patrick was a passionate and experienced journalist, and he has been lucky enough to work on some of the finest online properties on the planet, building audiences everywhere and establishing himself at the forefront of digital content. After a long stint as the boss at TechRadar, Patrick has now moved on to a role with Apple, where he is the Managing Editor for the App Store in the UK.