4OD a success

[BGonaSTICK]

The BBC will be hoping to emulate C4’s VOD success with its iPlayer. More than one million people have watched a total of 20 million programmes over 4OD since its launch six months ago, far exceeding expectations.

"It has definitely taken off," said Sarah Rose, head of video-on-demand at Channel 4. "We were pleasantly surprised by people's willingness to pay." 4OD, launched in October, is available online and via Virgin Media, BT Vision and Tiscali, and Channel 4 is holding discussions with British Sky Broadcasting to be included in the Sky Anytime on-demand service. According to independent producers, Channel 4 guaranteed them a minimum of £500,000 (E724,000) in revenues in the first year of the service but this was achieved after just four months.