Virgin has unveiled the latest product in its home entertainment line-up, the Virgin Stream. This new streaming box can be purchased by customers taking out select broadband contracts with Virgin Media UK and comes as a one-off cost.
Stream can be used for watching linear TV, and for accessing some of the most popular streaming apps like Netflix. Virgin Stream customers can pay for streaming subscriptions in one place and get a 10% discount on their monthly bill for doing so.
If you are interested in getting a new Virgin Stream for your household, then we have all the details. You can find out more about what to expect from the device in our Virgin Stream news story . Alternatively, you can read up on the rival to the Stream, the Sky Stream Puck .
How to buy Virgin Stream
You can start your order for Virgin Stream by heading to the Virgin Media website , or by calling the Virgin Media sales team on 0800 052 0422.
If you’re a new Virgin Media customer, then the only way to get your hands on Virgin Stream is to take out a broadband or broadband and home phone contract with Virgin Media. The device isn’t available if you include a standard TV package such as Virgin TV 360 .
If you are an existing Virgin Media customer, then Virgin claims that you can still buy the Virgin Stream as a standalone product.
Virgin Stream cost breakdown
The Virgin Stream by itself does not require a monthly package, like a standard TV contract. Instead, customers pay a one-off fee of £35 for the Virgin Stream, which will then be delivered.
There should be no installation costs, as it does not require any hard wiring. However, if you are not already a Virgin Media broadband customer, then you will need to take out a new contract.
Virgin Media broadband plans with Stream
At the time of writing, here are the broadband plans that Virgin has available on the Stream webpage :
- M100 Fibre Broadband – £25 per month for 18 months
- Gig1 Fibre Broadband – £62 per month for 18 months
- Broadband + Phone (M100 Fibre) – £34 per month for 18 months
There are other broadband contracts available from Virgin, but currently, they don’t have a Stream package attached. Virgin’s prices and plans may vary depending on where you live.
You may also be able to negotiate a deal if you call up the sales team to take out a package – this also seems like the best way for existing Virgin customers to add Stream to their packages.
Subscription costs via Virgin Stream
Here are the subscriptions available on Virgin Stream at launch:
- Netflix – From £6.99 per month
- Disney+ – £7.99 per month
- Sky Sports HD pack (All 8 Sky Sports channels in HD) – £38.75 per month
- Sky Cinema HD pack (All 11 Sky Cinema channels in HD) – £14.99 per month
- Sky Sports HD and Cinema HD pack (The two Sky packs above combined) – £46.25 per month
- BT Sports pack (4 HD BT Sport channels and BT Ultimate Sport in UHD) – £18 per month
- Essential Entertainment (25 HD entertainment channels including Comedy Central, Sky Max and Discovery) – £12 per month
- Kids pack (7 kids channels including Nick HD and Cartoon Network HD) – £4 per month
- Starzplay – £4.99 a month
Even if you don’t add any subscriptions to your monthly bill, you should still be able to watch the linear TV channels, and access free streaming apps such as All 4, the ITV Hub, BBC iPlayer and YouTube.
How to get 10% off your subscriptions with Virgin Stream
If you want to get that coveted discount on your monthly streaming bill, then you will need to pay for your streaming subscription via Virgin Stream, rather than via the platforms directly.
Virgin Stream uses a credits system, and the 10% saving comes back as credits after you are billed, which can then be spent on other streaming services on the platform.
Author: Hannah Cowton-Barnes, Entertainment Editor, Tech Advisor
As Tech Advisor’s Entertainment Editor, Hannah is the resident expert in all things streaming, film and TV. Before joining Tech Advisor in 2019, she studied Theatre and Performance at the University of Leeds and created a website dedicated to geek culture and lifestyle. She’s also reviewed a whole range of gadgets including flagship smartphones, wearables and styling tools. Outside of Foundry, she’s written freelance pieces for Polygon, Metro and Den of Geek, and is proud to be a Women Techmakers Ambassador for Google.
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