Virgin Media in the context of "Eastern Telegraph"

V+ (previously known as TVDrive) is a set-top box for Virgin Media's Virgin TV service, which provides personal video recording (PVR) and high definition (HD) functionality to customers who subscribe to the service. Virgin TV have taken a different approach from rival Sky's Sky+ and later Sky+ HD services, by implementing a rental scheme for the V+ Box. When Virgin TV was launched, there was an installation charge (waived under certain circumstances) and a monthly charge for all customers with a discount for XL customers. On 1 June 2007 pricing was revised, with all customers paying a one-off set-up fee and TV M and L customers paid a monthly charge, while TV XL customers had no extra charges. Various deals to lower the set-up fee have been made available to all customers in order to compete with rival Sky.

The V+ set-top box is technically on lease, still owned by Virgin Media, who provide technical support for it free of charge if a problem occurs for the life of a contract. Should the customer downgrade from the V+ service, the recording functions of the V+ box and access to all high definition channels and on demand content will be blocked, effectively acting as a standard V Box. As of Q1 2010, there were a total of 939,900 V+ customers, representing 25% of all Virgin TV subscribers.

Sky Arts (originally launched as Artsworld) is a British free-to-air television channel offering 24 hours a day of programmes dedicated to highbrow arts, including theatrical performances, films, documentaries and music (such as opera performances and classical and jazz sessions). The channel is available in the United Kingdom through Freeview, Freesat, BT TV, Sky, Virgin Media, and TalkTalk TV and in the Republic of Ireland via Sky Ireland, Virgin Media Ireland, Vodafone Ireland and Eir, included in most basic subscription packs, but started life as a premium service requiring an additional payment on top of the monthly Sky subscription. The channel launched on Freeview and Freesat as a free-to-air service in September 2020.

Telefonica UK Limited, trading as O2 UK (stylised as O₂), is a British telecommunications services provider. It is the largest mobile network in the United Kingdom, with approximately 23.2 million subscribers as of December 2024.

Since 2021, O2 UK has formed a subsidiary of Virgin Media O2, a 50:50 joint venture between Telefónica and Liberty Global formed through the merger of their respective O2 UK and Virgin Media businesses.

Sky Cinema is a British subscription film service owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). In the United Kingdom, Sky Cinema channels currently broadcast on the Sky satellite and Virgin Media cable platforms, and in addition Sky Cinema on demand content are available through these as well as via Now, EE TV and TalkTalk TV.

In 2016, Sky rebranded its television film channel operations under one single branding on 8 July, the channels in the United Kingdom and Ireland were rebranded from Sky Movies to Sky Cinema; on 22 September in Germany and Austria, the Sky Cinema brand (originally used for the flagship network) was extended to the German channels in the group formerly known as Sky Film; the Italian Sky Cinema channels followed suit on 5 November by adopting the brand packages introduced in the United Kingdom and Ireland earlier.

Capital is a network of twelve independent contemporary hit radio stations in the United Kingdom, broadcasting a mix of local and networked programming. Ten of the stations are owned and operated by Global, while the other two are owned and operated under separate franchise agreements.

As of September 2024, the stations serve a combined weekly audience of 7.5 million listeners and target a core audience in the 15–34 age group; 57% of all listeners are within this demographic. The national version of the network is widely available on Global Player, Freeview, Sky, Freesat, Virgin Media and Digital One DAB. Capital is the fifth most-popular radio network in the UK by listeners, and the second largest of the commercial stations after Heart.

Heart is a network of thirteen independent adult contemporary radio stations in the United Kingdom, broadcasting a mix of local and networked programming, although only the stations in Scotland and Wales still have their own shows. Ten of the stations are owned and operated by Global, while the other three are owned and operated under separate franchise agreements. The national version of the network is widely available on Global Player, Freeview, Sky, Freesat, Virgin Media and Digital One DAB.

According to RAJAR, the Heart ‘brand’ (including the network of the main Heart station and digital spin-off stations) had an average weekly audience of 12.8 million during the July to September 2025 quarter, with the main Heart network reaching an average weekly audience of 9.4 million during same period. While the overall Heart brand is running neck and neck with its rival BBC Radio 2 (also an average weekly audience of 12.8 million during the quarter) the BBC station remains significantly ahead when compared with the main Heart network of stations (12.8 million vs 9.4 million). While the station’s owner, Global, states that “Heart remains the UK’s biggest radio brand,” Radio 2 remains significantly ahead in terms of hours listened, with an average of 133 million hours per week during the July to September 2025 quarter for the BBC station, compared to 82 million for the Heart ‘brand’ and 59 million for the main Heart network.