Dish Network (NASDAQ: DISH) has continued the rapid pace of evolution for its 17-month-old IP-based video service, Sling TV, adding Viacom channels as well as Apple TV access.
After signing a broad-reaching carriage renewal agreement with Viacom in April, Dish will add 12 Viacom channels to Sling, with Comedy Central joining the basic $20-a-month single-stream tier.
Channels including BET, MTV, MTV2, Spike, Logo, CMT, TV Land, Nick Jr. and VH1 will also be available on Sling's single-stream platform through $5-a-month add-on packages.
For example, Nick Jr., NickToons and TeenNick will now be packaged in "Kids Extra," along with Disney Jr., Disney XD, Boomerang, Baby TV and Duck TV. "Comedy Plus Extra" will include MTV, Spike, MTV2, Logo, CMT and TV Land, along with Turner Networks' truTV.
"By delivering these channels to consumers in our core and 'Extra' packs, we are giving them the flexibility to personalize their Sling TV service to fit their needs," said Sling TV CEO Roger Lynch.
Meanwhile, at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference, Sling TV announced that its single-stream and multi-stream (currently in beta) platforms will now be viewable on Apple TV. Sling Latino and Sling International are also getting Apple TV apps.
"Delivering the best TV experience for our viewers means being on the devices people want to use — Apple TV is our most requested platform, and we're excited to finally bring Sling TV to Apple TV today," Lynch said in a statement. "Incorporating Apple TV innovations like touch with the Siri Remote will enable Sling TV's new UI to deliver the highly polished experience Apple fans have come to expect."
Dish is offering the 32 GB version of Apple TV for $89 when customers sign up for three months of Sling TV's single or multi-stream services.
Finally, Sling has added Fox channels FXX and Nat Geo Wild to its multi-stream service.
For more:
- read this Dish Network press release
- read this other Dish press release
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