Looking Local launches red button service in partnership with the Community Channel

Looking Local is pleased to announce a partnership with the Community Channel, which from today will be the main route into our interactive services on Sky.

For many years Looking Local has sought a broadcast presence and this partnership delivers just that. The seven million plus viewers of the Community Channel will be prompted to "push the red button" via a constant on-screen prompt, which will lead them through to the Looking Local portal.

Run by the Media Trust, the Community Channel has been broadcasting since 2000 and has over 700,000 viewers per month. It broadcasts a range of local and global community focused programming covering a wide range of issues, 24 hours a day, and is wholly focused on real issues, raising public awareness and informing people about the world around them.

Both parties feel there is a real fit in terms of content and vision, and that the interactive services delivered by the range of public sector organisations Looking Local works with complements the broadcast content and vice versa.

The partnership was driven in part by the fact that DirectGov will be closing down their digital interactive TV service at the end of 2010, leaving Looking Local as the only route by which public sector services can be delivered on both Sky and Virgin in the UK. As Sky viewers currently access Looking Local via DirectGov, this led to a new approach which we believe will increase traffic as well as shortening the route into the Looking Local service.

Looking Local remains committed to delivering public sector services on DiTV, particularly for the digitally excluded within our communities. We feel that the partnership with the Community Channel gives us a unique opportunity to bring services closer to broadcasting and widen exposure to the wealth of information and services our partners offer.

Read more about the Community Channel.