Sky bundles Netflix, Disney +, HBO Max, Hayu
Sky has announced that new customers will be able to get Sky, HBO Max, Disney +, Hayu and Netflix together as part of Sky Ultimate TV from £ 24(€ 27.50) a month – rolling out this March. Existing customers will get access as part of their Sky TV subscription, with over £ 20 worth of streaming apps included each month, with:
• Disney + Standard with Ads from March( date to be confirmed)
• HBO Max Basic with Ads from when it launches in the UK & Ireland on March 26th
• Hayu from July, with a selection of content available from March
Existing customer eligibility:
• Sky Stream and Sky Glass customers with Sky Ultimate TV will get Disney + Standard with Ads, HBO Max Basic With Ads and Hayu content added to their pack alongside Sky TV and Netflix.
• Sky Q customers with Sky Signature, Sky Entertainment and other eligible packages will get Disney + Standard with Ads, HBO Max Basic With Ads and Hayu content added to their pack alongside Sky TV. Sky Q customers with Sky Ultimate TV get all of these plus Netflix.
• Sky + customers will have access to HBO Max Basic With Ads content and Hayu content alongside Sky TV.
• Disney + Standard and Disney + Premium customers can move their existing plans to Sky and save £ 5.99 a month on their bill.
• Eligible customers with Disney + and HBO Max access can upgrade their subscription plan if they would like, with the cost of Disney + Standard with Ads and HBO Max Basic With Ads deducted from the cost of the higher tier subscription.
• From launch, HBO Max Basic with
Ads will be packaged together with NOW Entertainment, included at no extra cost for existing customers and fully integrated into the NOW platform.“ This marks a new era for Sky and NOW. In a world-first, we’ re bringing together Sky, Netflix, Disney +, HBO Max and Hayu into a single Sky TV subscription. Nowhere else offers this breadth of incredible entertainment in a fully integrated experience, with everything customers love watching side by side so viewers can jump from show to show with ease,” commented Sophia Ahmad, chief consumer officer at Sky.“ Millions of existing customers will get easy access to this new line-up as standard at unbeatable value. All NOW Entertainment customers will get access to HBO Max, included at no extra cost, fully integrated within the NOW app. We’ re proud to continue Sky’ s legacy of innovation, making it easier than ever for people to enjoy the very best entertainment and best experience, all in one place.”
Sky Cinema customers will also get a new Disney + Cinema linear channel, giving them access to a selection of movies as part of their subscription.
Karl Holmes, General Manager, Disney +, The Walt Disney Company EMEA, said:“ We’ ve grown Disney + in the UK into our largest market across Europe over the past six years, and Sky is the perfect partner for our next wave of growth in the UK and Ireland. This agreement gives millions of Sky customers a simple, seamless way to enjoy all the great stories that Disney + offers, and opens up a substantial new audience for content creators and advertisers.”
Paolo Pescatore of PP Foresight said:“ We are now seeing the first fruits of a streaming service bundle, which will help address the fragmentation that currently exists. Despite Sky’ s aggregation play, the‘ all-in-one’ message has not yet resonated with users and households alike. Maybe, in part, due to
‘ Nowhere else offers this breadth of incredible entertainment in a fully integrated experience.’ the rise of streamers. However, users are now well aware of the true cost of signing up to these different services. Arguably, now is the right time to renew this ethos again and aggressively lean into the allin-one approach. Sky will now flex its muscles and position itself as a provider, offering users
a wide range of choices and value.”
“ Disney is copying Netflix’ s strategy and needs the Sky relationship to grow its subscriber base. It’ s less worried about cannibalising its premium service, since users might switch to a cheaper ad-tier. This offers millions of people more affordable access to Disney +, benefiting content creators and advertisers and enabling them to reach a larger audience. Overall, this is proving to be a crucial year for TV.
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BBC licence fee increases for 2026 / 27
The annual cost of a UK
TV licence will rise to £ 180
(€ 207) from April 2026, as
required by the 2022 Licence
Fee Settlement, in line with
inflation.
The increase follows the
methodology of calculating
the licence fee in line with the
consumer price index( CPI)
until the end of the BBC Charter
Period. This means the cost of
an annual colour TV licence will
rise by £ 5.50. The BBC is the
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UK’ s number one media brand, with 94 % of UK adults using the BBC each month in 2025 and it remains the UK’ s most widely used and trusted news outlet.
The government says it recognises the financial pressures on households and is committed to ensuring the BBC’ s funding model is sustainable, fair and affordable. The government has committed to the licence fee for the remainder of this Charter Period. To support the public with the cost of the TV licence, the government will
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also continue to support the Simple Payment Plan to spread payments through smaller instalments. Free licences remain available for over-75s on Pension Credit, with reduced fees for care home residents and blind individuals.
The BBC has recently announced a series of initiatives with the aim of bringing trusted public service content to more young people and families where they are. This includes a new content partnership with YouTube, with a CBeebies Parenting YouTube
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channel launching later in 2026, as well as six themed channels featuring content from CBBC shows. The BBC is also partnering with the British Library to provide storytelling for pre-schoolers and their parents at library events across the UK.
S4C, which receives all its public funding from the licence fee, will also see its revenue increase proportionately, receiving approximately £ 100 million in 2026 / 27 to support the growth of the Welsh creative industries.
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EUROMEDIA 5 |