Australian First: iiNet Gets Set to Play FetchTV

iiNet (ASX: IIN), Australia’s third largest ISP, today announced its partnership with FetchTV, confirming it will be the first ISP to deliver the world-class digital TV service directly to Australian lounge rooms over an iiNet customer’s ADSL2+ broadband connection.

“iiNet and FetchTV are set to change the face of Australian television forever. FetchTV allows people to easily tailor their viewing experience, making it the perfect transition into the world of digital TV. It’s amazingly practical, but simply put, people will love it because it’s really cool,” says iiNet CEO Michael Malone.

The partnership means iiNet customers will soon be able to access Free-to-Air digital channels, a range of subscription channels, a Personal Video Recorder (PVR) and an Electronic Program Guide (EPG); all completely quota-free as part of the iiNet Freezone.

On top of all that, the FetchTV service offers unmetered Video on Demand (VOD) content with a basic subscription. The VOD content includes a continuously updated library of movies, TV shows, documentaries, kid’s programs and more. The service also offers Pay-Per-View new release movies – ready for instant viewing.

Truly the icing on the cake, iiNet’s FetchTV offering includes market leading features including 3D TV capability, in-built single and multi player games, access to a selection of social networking web applications and even the ability to receive messages regarding your iiNet services to your TV screen via the set-top box – all for a very low monthly cost.

iiNet will now offer customers broadband, phone and TV from a single provider, with all their communication and entertainment services included on one convenient monthly bill.

FetchTV CEO, Scott Lorson said: “FetchTV has been developed to satisfy the entertainment needs of the 70% of Australians who have elected not to take up the existing and expensive subscription TV alternatives.

“We are delighted to team up with iiNet to introduce FetchTV to the Australian market, given their proven network reliability, reputation for product innovation and award winning customer service. The team at iiNet has been heavily involved in the development of the FetchTV service, and they share a common passion and commitment to innovation and differentiation.”

Mr Malone added: “Digital TV delivered over broadband has proven extremely popular in France, the UK and Hong Kong and Australians are going to love it too. We’ve beefed up the capacity of our iinetwork to handle multicast transmissions; team this with top notch network reliability, superior infrastructure and a guaranteed Quality of Service and we’ve got all the right ingredients to deliver this new breed of entertainment experience.

“iiNet, like FetchTV, is an Australian-founded and owned business with a passion for giving the big guys a run for their money. We’re all for competition in the market – it drives further development and improvements in any industry”.

Trials are set to take place over the next month or so, iiNet’s TV service will be available to customers shortly thereafter.

FetchTV is an Australian founded and owned business, with backing from the Malaysian based Astro subscription TV group.

More: FetchTV announces content offering