It seems that the new owner of the UK’s Channel 5, Richard Desmond, recognises the importance of video-on-demand (VOD) in the future television landscape. He has re-joined Project Canvas, a partnership between the BBC, ITV, BT, Channel 4, Talk Talk and Arqiva which aims to bring VOD to Freeview and Freesat next year.
RTL, the previous owner of Channel 5, withdrew from Project Canvas in June this year. Desmond, on the other hand, was quoted in The Guardian on 24 August as saying Project Canvas was set to shape the future of broadcasting and open up new and exciting possibilities for viewers.
Project Canvas is expected to use the brand name YouView when it launches.
