There’s an impressive selection of TV available on BT, but it’s about to get a little thinner.
BT has confirmed that it will lose both FOX and FOX HD from its roster of channels, meaning the TV service will no longer be able to offer a number of popular shows – update: including hit zombie series The Walking Dead.
The company today revealed that BT TV programming for both channels will halt as of March 1, 2016.
In an e-mail sent to customers – and first published by TrustedReviews – BT pinned the blame on Fox.
The e-mail sent to BT customers
“From 1 March 2016, you’ll no longer be able to watch FOX and FOX HD on BT TV,” writes BT. “That’s because Fox have changed the way they offer their TV channels to TV providers.”
It added: “We’re sorry about this but we’ll keep bringing you great TV – including loads of top channels like Comedy Central, GOLD and Universal – as well as a number of ways to watch the latest and greatest US dramas.”
Fox currently offers a number of popular shows in the UK, including The Walking Dead, NCIS, American Horror Story, Wayward Pines, Family Guy, American Dad!, Robot Chicken, and Rick and Morty.
Fox UK programming includes Family Guy
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When prompted for comment, a BT spokesperson told us:
“BT is sorry that it will no longer be able to offer the FOX and FOX HD channels on BT TV. Unfortunately, Fox is no longer offering its channels to all UK TV platforms, so BT TV customers will no longer be able to view the channels from March 1. We will continue to provide our customers with all our other great TV channels, including Comedy Central, GOLD, MTV and the AMC channel, which is exclusive to BT customers.”
The decision to scrap the channels means that UK viewers will miss out on the second half of The Walking Dead’s season six, which was due to air on FOX UK at 9pm on Monday, February 15 – less than a week away.
The Walking Dead will no longer air on BT
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BT made no mention of pricing in the e-mail, which suggests customers won’t get a discount, despite losing two channels.
The TV service provider told us that if customers want to leave their TV contract however, they’ll need to let BT know within 30 days of receiving their notification “to avoid paying penalty charges”.
We also received the following statement from Fox:
“From March 1 2016 FOX will no longer be available on BT. Viewers can continue to enjoy their favourite FOX programmes including brand new episodes of The Walking Dead, and UK premieres of NCIS and American Dad! on Sky 124, Virgin 157, TalkTalk 422, and Now TV.”
However, Fox declined to reveal why the decision not to renew the BT contract was made.
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Note: This story was first published at 15:54, and has since been amended with additional comment from BT and Fox.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.