In November 2014 , BSkyB came together with Sky Deutschland and Sky Italia to create Europe ’ s leading entertainment business . From three separate businesses covering five European countries , Sky plc was created and immediately set out on a journey of digital transformation .
With 22 million customers in the UK , Ireland , Germany , Austria and Italy Sky quickly morphed from being a federation of national companies to one team sharing a brand . “ Customers will benefit as we launch exciting new services , bring them even more great TV and accelerate innovation across all of the markets in which we operate ,” promised Sky CEO Jeremy Darroch at the time . Sky operates in a buoyant and dynamic market . Technology is constantly changing in the entertainment space , and the 65 million households that have not yet signed up to pay TV represent a tempting market . Sky is by no means limited to its core business of providing entertainment : it ’ s playing an ever greater role in the provision of infrastructure which carries that content , such as fibre optic cable , and now a mobile phone service .
The strategy behind the merger was to share strengths and expertise from across the group to serve customers better , accelerate innovation and grow faster . Clearly the needs and expectations of German , Italian and English-speaking customers are very different , and the organisations in the three countries will continue to reflect that , but as in any corporate consolidation , synergies existed . A key opportunity lay in procurement . Accordingly , some 18 months ago
94 May 2017