Teletext Scraps Digital Cable And Internet Services
Teletext has announced it will cease operating its internet site and digital cable services by August, resulting in around 45 redundancies at the Daily Mail & General Trust owned company.
In a statement Teletext claimed that both its internet site and “walled garden” digital cable services would be discontinued due to “little potential for commercial success”. The company stated that, although the teletext.co.uk website has attracted audiences of several hundred thousand monthly users, it does not see a realistic prospect of it delivering an acceptable return.
Similarly Teletext claimed that “walled garden” cable services do not show potential for sufficient commercial gains, blaming “lack of growth and investment in the platform itself” as the principal reason for the sectors failure.
The company also hinted that sections of its Scottish operations could be next to face the axe, claiming to be “reviewing the way in which news and sport is delivered for Scottish viewers to ensure its audience continues to receive a high quality service in the most cost efficient manner.”
Earlier this year Teletext began an expansion programme for its popular Teletext Holidays brand, launching Teletext Holidays TV on Sky Digital, backed by a £500,000 advertising campaign (see Teletext To Launch Travel Channel On Sky Next Month).
The company has stated that the brand will continue as is, and will be present on all of the company’s platforms and via its teletextholidays.co.uk website as well as being available via Teletext Holidays TV.
The company is currently beginning a consultation period with staff affected by the closures and expects to have completed its website and interactive cable decommissioning by August.
Teletext: 0870 731 3000 www.teletext.co.uk
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