Business

Remember how Netflix's streaming rival LOVEFiLM dropped their prices on the day of the service's UK and Ireland launch last month? It turns out that Sky aren't playing around either.

Shares in Netflix dropped yesterday by 5.3 per cent as BSkyB announced a plan to challenge the US streaming juggernaut. Within the next six months, Sky have announced that they will launch a Sky Movies streaming service with unlimited access to the broadcaster's superior range of movies at a similar monthly subscription fee.

In an even more aggressive move, Sky mentioned that the service will eventually feature entertainment and sports broadcasts, which could mean that either live or previously aired Sky Sports content could move onto the service too. Suddenly Netflix's exclusivity rights to MGM and Miramax's back catalogue of films doesn't seem quite so impressive in comparison.

"This will be a new way for us to reach out to consumers who love great content, but may not want the full Sky service," Sky's chief executive Jeremy Darroch said in a statement. "Bringing a distinctive, new choice to the marketplace will help us meet the needs and demands of an ever wider range of consumers."

Details of the forthcoming service are thin on the ground for now, though Sky have mentioned that there will be no minimum contract for the streaming platform and that a variety of pricing options will be available. For example, customers will be able to avail of unlimited access to Sky Movies or instead rent a single movie on a pay-as-you-go basis.

Your move, Netflix...