Sky UK to Cut 1K Jobs Amid a Shift Towards Digital Streaming

Michael Edgar

31 January 2024, 09.52am

“Increasingly, customers are choosing Sky Glass and Sky Stream which don’t require specialist installation, and that has led us to change the number of roles we need to deliver our services,” said a Sky UK spokesperson.

As Sky continues to intensify its focus on internet-based, digital TV solutions like Sky Glass and Sky Stream, the company announced potential job cuts which could affect up to about 1,000 employees.

The news was first broken by LBC, when an unnamed engineer told them that employees were told by an operations team that a consultation period regarding redundancy would begin shortly.

The redundancies are being referred to by insiders as a ‘strategic shift’ rather than cuts as a result of market pressure, according to LBC. This being the case, a significant portion of the job cuts are expected to be focused on more traditional parts of the business, such as engineers who install satellite dishes.

The announcement, though not entirely unforeseen, follows recent developments hinting at Sky’s transition away from satellite-based services. Reports emerged in late 2022, reported by Bleeping Computer, suggesting a potential end of new satellite dish installations by the end of 2023, a claim refuted by Sky at the time.

However, with the latest revelation, concerns among satellite TV engineers about their roles within the company have intensified.

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“The launch of Sky Glass and Sky Stream represents a shift in our business to deliver TV over IP (an internet connection) rather than satellite,” said a Sky UK spokesperson.

“Increasingly, customers are choosing Sky Glass and Sky Stream which don’t require specialist installation, and that has led us to change the number of roles we need to deliver our services.”

Existing customers with satellite dishes installed are not expected to be affected by the transition, as satellite-based distribution and hardware support are still expected to continue for the foreseeable future. Rather, the company’s strategic pivot towards internet-based digital streaming underscores changing consumer preferences.