TalkTalk reveals YouView delayed until September 2012

It was supposed to have been up and running by the first half of 2011 at the latest but the much delayed YouView project is now set for launch in September 2011 according to key partner TalkTalk. The announcement was made by the broadband provider as it announced yearly results for the year to 31 March 2012 which produced total revenue of £1.687 billion, £78 million down on the previous year, fy11, but a vast improvement in statutory profit before tax £127 million, a 122% year on year climb. TalkTalk is one of the original partners of the YouView subscription free on demand TV project—along with the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Five, Cisco, Humax, Technicolor and Arqiva—and if it does actually come to light in September 2012, it will be two tears since YouView was announced as the official brand for the old  Project Canvas which itself began inception three years ago. Even after a series of delays, and even after hiring the most high profile business leaders to drive the project, YouView received a huge blow by missing the London Olympics, a landmark occasion that was thought by many a key driver. Dido Harding, CEO of TalkTalk believes that the company’s financial performance throughout the fy12 accounts period had delivered a materially more profitable and stable customer base and a leaner, more efficient cost structure, giving the company a strong platform from which to invest in growth opportunities such as YouView. Indeed the results showed a payment of £4 million in relation to its continued investment in the project. “Our triple play proposition that will feature YouView, is on track for launch during Q2 fy13 [Autumn 2012]. YouView will bring to our customers all of the 'plug-in-and-watch' simplicity of Freeview, plus the UK’s leading internet catch-up and video on-demand services…Development within the YouView team is progressing well and within TalkTalk we are making good progress on provisioning capability, as well as operational and CRM readiness to support our TV service within our existing operational structures.” TalkTalk has already begun to roll out 'friends and family' trials focusing on the end-to-end customer experience and will soon be extending the trial to its wider customer base.