Best Buy will partner with the U.K.’s Virgin Media...
Best Buy will partner with the U.K.’s Virgin Media to showcase “the connected digital home” to consumers there, the companies said Wednesday. Best Buy will open its first U.K store next month, and plans to host a “media day” April…
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26 to preview the flagship location, about a half hour from London (CED April 12 p6). Five more Best Buys will open in the U.K. by year-end. At all outlets, customers will be able to see and try Virgin Media products and services, the partners said, including fiber broadband for data and VOD content downloading and streaming in HD. Virgin set-tops that can pause, play, rewind and record live TV will also be available at the Best Buy stores, as well as Virgin’s cellphone products and services. “The Blueshirts, Best Buy’s expert and impartial in-store team, will be on hand to offer demos, explain how customers can access, share and watch their content on their mobile, laptop or TV, as well as suggesting ways to add more value to existing Virgin Media packages,” the retailer said. Best Buy and Virgin also will emphasize videogaming in the stores, they said. “In response to recent research conducted by Best Buy …, Best Buy’s store in Thurrock will feature the Ultimate Games Experience room,” the retailer said. “This will be kitted out with the latest HDTV home theatre equipment featuring 5.1 surround sound, Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 consoles and PC equipment.” The room will be sponsored by Virgin Media, the partners said. Virgin Media already has significant street-presence in the U.K., with 57 stores in major cities London, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh, Leeds and Leicester. It also has 26 “retail lite” sites in prominent locations at shopping centers across the U.K., plus availability through 4,000 independent retailers.