ITV 4

As far as I can tell there is no animation, it is just a still.

I wouldn't have thought this was the problem. ITV have simply moved the matches they were going to show on either ITV1 or ITV2, and since these are already available on all platforms then they must have had the broadcast rights.

Tuesday is Champoions Leagu night on ITV4 and Thursday will be the UEFA cup matches on ITV4. So there is no change of days for matches. The games shown on ITV2 are allmoving to ITV4. Therefor ether will be no rights issue.

Unless they're planning on launching ITV4 as FTA (which has been rumoured). Therefore the existing deal for ITV's FTV coverage wouldn't allow broadcast on ITV4.

I notice that Liverpool get the chance of an ITV1 screening now as a result of Chelsea being used to promote ITV4!

I reckon Liverpool would have got ITV1 anyway - after all, its their title to defend...

Check the link below for info of the delayed launch of ITV4 on Sky.

http://www.media247.co.uk/skydigital/newsarchive/2005/10/itv4_launch_dis.php

It read the article earlier, and believe that it's just another attempt by Sky to force ITV plc into a carriage deal at the last minute to ensure simultaneous launch on all platforms. ITV lose the "pubicity inertia" gained from the launch if they don't appear in the 6+ million Sky homes until a week after.

Either that, or by default Sky will merely be encouraging football fans to go out and buy a Freeview box for £35-40 - and that's not in their best interest I would've thought!

So now ITV4 is allocated to Channel 30 on Freeview does this mean we will NOT be losing Men and Motors and the ITV News Channel on Freeview?

I see that they are now advertising ITV4 as "Exclusively on Freeview and NTL" both on screen and as a voiceover.

With live football showing on the first night, expect fireworks from Sky customers!

Even if ITV4 doesn't officially launch on Sky November 1st. Sky viewers will be able to watch it via the 'Other Channels' function.

Have ITV ever had a succesful channel launch that hasn't been fraught with some kind of platform / carriage issue ?

- ITV2 didn't get carriage on satellite until a few years after it's launch. (not forgetting ITV1 either)

- ITV3 made an eleventh hour appearance on satellite resulting in closure of Granada Plus. At the same time forcing the ITVNC off air in most parts of the country on freeview.

- ITV4, apparently no slot for it on Freeview without sacrificing a channel and no carriage on Sky.

It's all very well launching all these new services but perhaps somebody should be dealing with these capacity and carriage issues in the first place. Every successive channel launch just unveils another layer of incompetence.