Sky Movies is the collective name for the British premium subscription television movie channels operated by Sky Television, later British Sky Broadcasting. It has around 5 million subscribers, via both satellite and cable in the UK and Ireland.[2] In addition to the television channels, it has an interactive 'red button' service, a website (sky.com/movies) and recently launched a 3G Mobile service via Vodafone. Sky Movies is said to be the largest television movie service in the world outside the United States.^{[citation needed]} Image File history File links Skymovies07. ... is the 36th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Sky Digital is the brand name for British Sky Broadcastings digital satellite television service, transmitted from SES Astra satellites located at 28. ... Virgin Media Inc. ... UPC Ireland N.V. is Liberty Global Europes operation in Ireland. ... This article is about motion pictures. ... Sky Television corporate identity from 1989, maintained by British Sky Broadcasting until 1995 Sky Television plc was a four-channel satellite television service launched by Rupert Murdochs News International on February 5, 1989. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Vodafone Group Plc is a mobile network operator headquartered in Newbury, Berkshire, England, UK. It is the largest mobile telecommunications network company in the world by turnover and has a market value of about £84. ...

History

The early years (1989 - 1998)

The original Sky Movies logo.

Sky Movies was originally a single movie channel offered as part of Sky's original 4-channel package in February 1989, but it was not until 1990 that it became the first Sky channel to scramble its signal, using a card-encryption system called VideoCrypt which rendered the picture totally incomprehensible to anyone attempting to view it without a decoder and smart card. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... VideoCrypt is a cryptographic, smartcard-based conditional access television encryption system that scrambles analogue pay-TV signals. ... A smart card, or integrated circuit(s) card (ICC), is defined as any integrated circuitry embedded into a flat, plastic body. ...

When Sky merged with rival British Satellite Broadcasting it acquired BSB's The Movie Channel, and with the launch of the second Astra satellite in 1991 The Movie Channel was relaunched as part of the Sky package. Later Sky added a "classic movies" channel, Sky Movies Gold. BSB logo British Satellite Broadcasting (BSB) was a company set up in 1986 to provide direct broadcast satellite television services to the United Kingdom. ... SES Astra SA, is a corporate subsidiary of SES, based in Betzdorf, in eastern Luxembourg, that owns and operates the Astra series of geostationary satellites, which transmit approximately 1100 analogue and digital television and radio channels via 176 transponders to 91 million households across Europe. ... Year 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the 1991 Gregorian calendar). ...

A rebranding exercise on 1 November 1997 saw Sky Movies renamed to Sky Movies Screen 1, and The Movie Channel was renamed Sky Movies Screen 2. is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the band, see 1997 (band). ...

After a further rebranding on September 10, 1998 Sky Movies Screen 1 became Sky Premier, Sky Movies Screen 2, became Sky Moviemax, and Sky Movies Gold was renamed Sky Cinema. is the 253rd day of the year (254th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ...

Sky Movies in the digital era (1998 - 2007)

The previous Sky Movies logo. (November 2003 - April 2007

The launch of Sky Digital in October 1998 was accompanied by a dramatic expansion of channels. Sky Premier 2 through 4 , Sky Moviemax 2 through 5 and Sky Cinema 2, along with Sky Premier Widescreen - at the time, the only channel devoted to showing widescreen movies, were all launched exclusively on digital satellite. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (900x211, 45 KB) Summary fair use Licensing File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (900x211, 45 KB) Summary fair use Licensing File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Sky Digital is the brand name for British Sky Broadcastings digital satellite television service, transmitted from SES Astra satellites located at 28. ... The inner box (green) is the format used in most pre-1952 films and pre-widescreen television. ...

July 1, 2002 saw yet another re-branding exercise. The Sky Premier channels were renamed Sky Movies Premier, the Sky Moviemax channels became Sky Movies Max, and the Sky Cinema channels became Sky Movies Cinema. is the 182nd day of the year (183rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ...

Eventually in June 2003 Sky bowed to demands for more widescreen movies. The Sky Movies Premier Widescreen channel was closed and the majority of films on the remaining channels were shown in widescreen.

On November 1, 2003, the Sky Movies Premier and Sky Movies Max channels were all brought under one banner as Sky Movies 1 through 9. At the same time, Sky Movies Cinema 1 and 2 became Sky Cinema 1 and 2. is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

From January 30, 2006, Sky Movies 9 and the new Sky Movies 10 started broadcasting from 5pm to 3am. They were PIN-protected, meaning that for the first time 15 rated films will be able to be shown as early as 5pm. With the launch of Sky HD, the two channels were also available in a high definition format. is the 30th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... PINs are most often used for ATMs but are increasingly used at the Point of sale, especially for debit cards. ... A motion picture rating system categorizes films with regard to suitability for children and/or adults in terms of issues such as sex, violence and profanity. ... The Sky HD logo Sky HD is the brand name of the HDTV service launched by BSkyB on 22 May 2006 in the UK and the Republic of Ireland to enable high definition channels on Sky Digital to be viewed. ... Projection screen in a home theater, displaying a high-definition television image. ...

Sky Movies goes categorized (2007 - )

The now Sky Movies logo.

From April 4, 2007, Sky Movies channels were revamped and genred with a new logo, where the V is supposed to be from searchlights, which is similar to Fox's X (Fox is also owned by Sky's parent company, Newscorp) and new channel names grouped by genre. Sky Cinema 1 and 2 merged to become Sky Movies Classics.^[1]. Sky recently made available Sky Movies HD 1 & HD 2 to SD subscribers through a different simulcast channel. With the launch of Sky Movies HD in 2007. Sky launched two new channels Sky Movies SD (also known as Sky Movies Standard Definition) which showed movies which where being displayed on the Sky Movies HD channels at that same time. So therefore every viewer could watch the movie. Image File history File links Skymovies07. ... Image File history File links Skymovies07. ... is the 94th day of the year (95th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... News Corporation (NYSE: NWS) is a media conglomerate that operates world-wide. ...

Advertising and promotion

All of the Sky movie channels have always carried commercials between movies, although the movies themselves are uninterrupted. Additionally some strands and seasons are sponsored. All advertising for Sky Movies (traditional & interactive ads, sponsorship, online) are handled by Sky Media - the advertising sales part of BSkyB. The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...

Sky Movies regularly sponsors the theatrical premieres of major film titles - such as Shrek 2, The Incredibles, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ,Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit and Big Momma's House 2. Shrek 2, which was released in the United States on May 19, 2004, is the 2004 sequel to the 2001 computer-animated DreamWorks Pictures film Shrek. ... The Incredibles is a 2004 Academy Award-winning computer-animated feature film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures, centering around a family of superheroes. ... Not to be confused with the 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

A brief experiment with small on-screen logos in the early 1990s caused a storm of protest, and so movies are now shown logo-free although the channels use logos over feature programmes like movie Top Tens. In a typical digital on screen graphic, the stations logo appears in a corner of the screen. ... For the band, see 1990s (band). ...

Sky Movies is part of a "Rate Card" within the UK and BSkyB must supply other TV operators (such as Virgin Media) if they agree to pay a price set down by Sky. Virgin Media Inc. ...

Original production

Sky Movies has a dedicated production team that produces over 100 hours of original film-related programming each year - including Sky Movies News (a half hour weekly film release round-up), and UK/US Top Tens. In addition, Sky's close relationships with the Film Studios means it regularly gets exclusive access on-set and to talent for one-off 'making-of's', talent-based programming etc.

In 1998, Elisabeth Murdoch (who was Sky's director of channels and services at the time) advocated Sky setting up a film funding and production unit (similar to BBC Films and Film4 Productions). The result was Sky Pictures, which existed in order to invest in both low-budget and mainstream British films. However, following a lack of success and the decision of Elisabeth Murdoch to leave Sky and set up her own production company, Shine, the unit was scaled back and closed in 2001. BBC Films is the feature film-making arm of the BBC. It has co-produced some of the most successful British films of recent years and is now firmly established at the forefront of UK film-making; producing approximately eight films a year. ... Film4 Productions is a British film production company owned by Channel 4. ...

Voice-overs

Charlie Neil (born 6 January 1971) is a British weather presenter who works for Central. ... Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan are married co-stars of British daytime light entertainment television programmes. ... Leslie Crowther on Wogan Leslie Crowther (6 February 1933, Nottingham – 29 September 1996, Bath) was an English comedian. ... Eamonn Holmes (b. ... Sarah-Jane Honeywell was born in 1974 in Worksop, Nottinghamshire. ... Justin Fletcher is a childrens TV personality in the UK. Justin Fletcher is a very popular presenter and actor who appears on the BBC preschool television channel CBeebies and performs a number of roles, both speaking and performing. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Danielle Nicholls (born 16 December 1978 in Salford, Greater Manchester) is a British television presenter most famous for her presenting of CITV from 1998 to 2001 and many other presenting roles. ... Chris Jensen (born October 28, 1963 in Fort St. ... Neil Andrew Howe Fox (born 12 June 1961) is a British radio and television presenter, known for many years as Dr Fox before he became Foxy in the 2000s. ... Matthew Martin Kelly (born, 9 May 1950, Urmston, Lancashire, England) is an English actor from paisley, who made his name as a television presenter. ... Katey Sagal (born Catherine Louise Sagal on January 19, 1954)[1] is a Golden Globe-nominated American actress, singer, and writer, best known for her roles in Futurama, 8 Simple Rules, and Married. ... Veronica Roberts is a British actress, best known for playing Dorothy Bennett in the BBC drama Tenko and Laura Elliott in the ITV series Peak Practice. ... Anthony Tony Francis (born 1 April 1969 in South Australia) is a former Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League. ...

References

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 139th day of the year (140th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• Sky Movies at sky.com
• Blog by some Sky Movies employees