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BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
I understood that the BBC and ITV were going to launch their own free
sat package sometime "early" this year: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertain...io/4221722.stm I was going to wait until this service was launched before getting my parents digital satellite TV (as they live in a non-freeview area and have a widescreen TV). Does anyone know when this service will launch Will this service be any different from http://www.freesatfromsky.co.uk/ ? I'm not a big fan of Sky, hence was going to wait to buy the non-Sky offering, but if this new service is not going to be any different I guess I may as well get FreeSatFromSky now? I notice BBC are effectively advertising FreeSatFromSky now as in their digial TV adverts they say "you can get digital satellite for a one off payment of £150. Ask your retailer for details" on their recent TV ads. Any advice, insider news would be welcome. Cheers, David |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Dave wrote:
I understood that the BBC and ITV were going to launch their own free sat package sometime "early" this year: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertain...io/4221722.stm I was going to wait until this service was launched before getting my parents digital satellite TV (as they live in a non-freeview area and have a widescreen TV). Does anyone know when this service will launch Will this service be any different from http://www.freesatfromsky.co.uk/ ? I'm not a big fan of Sky, hence was going to wait to buy the non-Sky offering, but if this new service is not going to be any different I guess I may as well get FreeSatFromSky now? I notice BBC are effectively advertising FreeSatFromSky now as in their digial TV adverts they say "you can get digital satellite for a one off payment of £150. Ask your retailer for details" on their recent TV ads. Any advice, insider news would be welcome. Cheers, David I think that the BBC is advertising the $ky offering for now, simply because FreeSat isn't a going concern yet. I'd expect that to change when they're ready to launch. However, trying to sell the idea to Joe Punter as an alternative to Freeview when C4 & C5 are missing, let alone E4, More4 etc. will be very entertaining. Clem |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Clem Dye wrote:
Dave wrote: I understood that the BBC and ITV were going to launch their own free sat package sometime "early" this year: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertain...io/4221722.stm I was going to wait until this service was launched before getting my parents digital satellite TV (as they live in a non-freeview area and have a widescreen TV). Does anyone know when this service will launch Will this service be any different from http://www.freesatfromsky.co.uk/ ? I'm not a big fan of Sky, hence was going to wait to buy the non-Sky offering, but if this new service is not going to be any different I guess I may as well get FreeSatFromSky now? I notice BBC are effectively advertising FreeSatFromSky now as in their digial TV adverts they say "you can get digital satellite for a one off payment of £150. Ask your retailer for details" on their recent TV ads. Any advice, insider news would be welcome. Cheers, David I think that the BBC is advertising the $ky offering for now, simply because FreeSat isn't a going concern yet. I'd expect that to change when they're ready to launch. However, trying to sell the idea to Joe Punter as an alternative to Freeview when C4 & C5 are missing, let alone E4, More4 etc. will be very entertaining. But they had to advertise Digital Satellite because Sky complained they were putting too much bias on Freeview in their 'ads', and not enough on Satellite. D |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Why not just get one of the inexpensive Aldi/Lidl sat receivers when next on
offer and fit it yourself and enjoy the current free offerings. Alec "David Hearn" wrote in message ... Clem Dye wrote: Dave wrote: I understood that the BBC and ITV were going to launch their own free sat package sometime "early" this year: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertain...io/4221722.stm I was going to wait until this service was launched before getting my parents digital satellite TV (as they live in a non-freeview area and have a widescreen TV). Does anyone know when this service will launch Will this service be any different from http://www.freesatfromsky.co.uk/ ? I'm not a big fan of Sky, hence was going to wait to buy the non-Sky offering, but if this new service is not going to be any different I guess I may as well get FreeSatFromSky now? I notice BBC are effectively advertising FreeSatFromSky now as in their digial TV adverts they say "you can get digital satellite for a one off payment of £150. Ask your retailer for details" on their recent TV ads. Any advice, insider news would be welcome. Cheers, David I think that the BBC is advertising the $ky offering for now, simply because FreeSat isn't a going concern yet. I'd expect that to change when they're ready to launch. However, trying to sell the idea to Joe Punter as an alternative to Freeview when C4 & C5 are missing, let alone E4, More4 etc. will be very entertaining. But they had to advertise Digital Satellite because Sky complained they were putting too much bias on Freeview in their 'ads', and not enough on Satellite. D |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
"Clem Dye" wrote in message
... Dave wrote: I understood that the BBC and ITV were going to launch their own free sat package sometime "early" this year: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertain...io/4221722.stm I was going to wait until this service was launched before getting my parents digital satellite TV (as they live in a non-freeview area and have a widescreen TV). Does anyone know when this service will launch Will this service be any different from http://www.freesatfromsky.co.uk/ ? I'm not a big fan of Sky, hence was going to wait to buy the non-Sky offering, but if this new service is not going to be any different I guess I may as well get FreeSatFromSky now? I notice BBC are effectively advertising FreeSatFromSky now as in their digial TV adverts they say "you can get digital satellite for a one off payment of £150. Ask your retailer for details" on their recent TV ads. Any advice, insider news would be welcome. Cheers, David I think that the BBC is advertising the $ky offering for now, simply because FreeSat isn't a going concern yet. I'd expect that to change when they're ready to launch. However, trying to sell the idea to Joe Punter as an alternative to Freeview when C4 & C5 are missing, let alone E4, More4 etc. will be very entertaining. It has never been very clear what the BBC and ITV will provide that is not available now, given that the BBC and ITV channels are now all FTA on satellite. I've always hoped that they would provide an EPG and 'Interactive' facilities that do not use proprietary technology. It would be nice if the BBC would tell us more of their plans for Freesat - and HDTV. If your parents can't receive CH5 on terrestrial analogue, then they would need a Sky box to decode the satellite picture (Dragon CAMs apart.) I am not a customer of Sky, but their 1 year contract for £157.50 is not such a bad deal, particularly if DIY installation is not your/their scene. -- Michael Chare |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
I was going to wait until this service was launched before getting my
parents digital satellite TV (as they live in a non-freeview area and have a widescreen TV). Does anyone know when this service will launch Will this service be any different from http://www.freesatfromsky.co.uk/ ? I'm not a big fan of Sky, hence was going to wait to buy the non-Sky offering, but if this new service is not going to be any different I guess I may as well get FreeSatFromSky now? I notice BBC are effectively advertising FreeSatFromSky now as in their digial TV adverts they say "you can get digital satellite for a one off payment of £150. Ask your retailer for details" on their recent TV ads. I am amazed at the widespread ignorance regarding (so-called) FreeSat service At present all BBC and ITV channels are available from the Astra 2 Satellite free to air (FTA). With a FTA satellite receiver you can receive these channels as well as some dozens of other TV channels and many radio channels (including all the BBC channels, Classic FM etc. in top quality digital stereo) With a BSkyB digibox (available for about £30 from ebay) and a suitable dish you can also receive Ch 4, and Ch 5 provided you purchase a 'Freesat' card for £20. For £150 you can buy a BSkyB dish, digibox, Freesat card and installation. |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
"Malcolm H" wrote in message ... I was going to wait until this service was launched before getting my parents digital satellite TV (as they live in a non-freeview area and have a widescreen TV). Does anyone know when this service will launch Will this service be any different from http://www.freesatfromsky.co.uk/ ? I'm not a big fan of Sky, hence was going to wait to buy the non-Sky offering, but if this new service is not going to be any different I guess I may as well get FreeSatFromSky now? I notice BBC are effectively advertising FreeSatFromSky now as in their digial TV adverts they say "you can get digital satellite for a one off payment of £150. Ask your retailer for details" on their recent TV ads. I am amazed at the widespread ignorance regarding (so-called) FreeSat service At present all BBC and ITV channels are available from the Astra 2 Satellite free to air (FTA). With a FTA satellite receiver you can receive these channels as well as some dozens of other TV channels and many radio channels (including all the BBC channels, Classic FM etc. in top quality digital stereo) With a BSkyB digibox (available for about £30 from ebay) and a suitable dish you can also receive Ch 4, and Ch 5 provided you purchase a 'Freesat' card for £20. For £150 you can buy a BSkyB dish, digibox, Freesat card and installation. ....and as somone else pointed out, for a few pounds more you can get the Sky base pack for a year, albeit you have to have the box connected to a phone line. At the end of the year you can cancel the contract and keep the box/dish. The advantage of this route is that should the box go wrong during the contract period Sky turn out to fix it: if you go down the purchase route they do not. You will also get the Freeview channels that are not yet on FreeSat - E4, More 4, UKHistory, and Men & Motors. I would not advise buying a Sky box on E-Bay: you have no guarantee that it will work, and as you have to give the serial number when you order the FreeSat card they should be able to see if it is stolen. Buy a refurbished one from a dealer with a guarantee - a little more expensive but worth it. One thing to be wary of: FreeSat will 'force' you to watch the version of ITV1 that supposedly serves your area. Here in Harrogate most people get and watch Yorkshire, but Sky follow the ITV franchise boundaries which say we must watch Tyne Tees. It is possible to watch any ITV area, Yorkshire included, but it is a pain to get at through the menu system. -- Woody harrogate3 at ntlworld dot com |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
On Sat, 18 Feb 2006 18:21:20 GMT, Clem Dye wrote:
I think that the BBC is advertising the $ky offering for now, simply because FreeSat isn't a going concern yet. I'd expect that to change when they're ready to launch. You're not suggesting that the BBC would give greater prominence to their own 'preferred' platforms are you? That would be most improper... |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
On 18 Feb 2006 09:28:37 -0800, "Dave"
wrote: Does anyone know when this service will launch Will this service be any different from http://www.freesatfromsky.co.uk/ ? It will have fewer channels, a less comprehensive EPG, and the equipment will probably cost more. |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
For £150 you can buy a BSkyB dish, digibox, Freesat card and
installation. ...and as somone else pointed out, for a few pounds more you can get the Sky base pack for a year, albeit you have to have the box connected to a phone line. At the end of the year you can cancel the contract and keep the box/dish. The advantage of this route is that should the box go wrong during the contract period Sky turn out to fix it: if you go down the purchase route they do not. You will also get the Freeview channels that are not yet on FreeSat - E4, More 4, UKHistory, and Men & Motors. I agree this is a good course of action. |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
I notice BBC are effectively advertising FreeSatFromSky now as in their digial TV adverts they say "you can get digital satellite for a one off payment of £150. Ask your retailer for details" on their recent TV ads. The one-off payment will provide you with a box, dish, installation and a viewing card to pick up C4 & C5. What might be an alternative for you, as has been suggested in here before is to have Sky on a subscription basis for one year, which on a minimum package will cost you £157.50 over 12 months. You will get all the equipment installed for free and when the year is up you can cancel and you are still able to receive all the freesat channels. The advantage is you get some paid channels for a year. HTH Nathan -- Posted via NewsDemon.com - Premium Uncensored Newsgroup Service -------http://www.NewsDemon.com------ Unlimited Access, Anonymous Accounts, Uncensored Broadband Access |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Thus spaketh Zero Tolerance:
On 18 Feb 2006 09:28:37 -0800, "Dave" wrote: Does anyone know when this service will launch Will this service be any different from http://www.freesatfromsky.co.uk/ ? It will have fewer channels, a less comprehensive EPG, and the equipment will probably cost more. Three less channels - big deal! |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
On Sat, 18 Feb 2006 21:51:03 -0000, "Nathan" nospam.thankyou wrote:
| |I notice BBC are effectively advertising FreeSatFromSky now as in their |digial TV adverts they say "you can get digital satellite for a one |off payment of ?150. Ask your retailer for details" on their recent |TV ads. | |The one-off payment will provide you with a box, dish, installation and a |viewing card to pick up C4 & C5. What might be an alternative for you, as |has been suggested in here before is to have Sky on a subscription basis for |one year, which on a minimum package will cost you ?157.50 over 12 months. |You will get all the equipment installed for free and when the year is up |you can cancel and you are still able to receive all the freesat channels. |The advantage is you get some paid channels for a year. You have just shown that freesatfromsky is a $ky advertising exercise. -- Dave Fawthrop dave hyphenologist co uk "Intelligent Design?" my knees say *not*. "Intelligent Design?" my back says *not*. More like "Incompetent design". Sig (C) Copyright Public Domain |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Dave wrote:
I'm not a big fan of Sky, hence was going to wait to buy the non-Sky offering, but if this new service is not going to be any different I guess I may as well get FreeSatFromSky now? As has been mentioned this will not be significantly different from what is available now though it will allow for non-Sky receivers to be used. In your position I would buy the FreeSatFromSky package today for £150 (or indeed take the 12 month minimum Sky package which, with all the reductions, will only cost a few pounds more - but don't forget to cancel after 12 months) as you will probably never find anyone to provide a dish, box, cable, mount etc. and to install it all for £150. Then, later, you can just buy a new non-Sky receiver if an interesting one becomes available (you can just plug it in to the dish lead and TV yourself) or indeed just keep using the Sky box without a sub or any monthly payment. You win both ways. There is no point waiting. -- Digibox problem? : A reboot solves 90% of these. The Sky Digital FAQ: http://tinyurl.com/8vef5 UK TV overseas: http://tinyurl.com/6p73 BBC reception questions? ; http://www.astra2d.com/ Fed up with on-screen logos? : http://logofreetv.org/ ---- Only the truth as I see it. No monies return'd. ;-) |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Zero Tolerance wrote:
Does anyone know when this service will launch Will this service be any different from http://www.freesatfromsky.co.uk/ ? It will have fewer channels, By definition it will have exactly the same number of FTA channels as the current Sky offering. Currently the only ones that it won't have will be the 3 FTV channels. a less comprehensive EPG, This remains to be seen. It may well be more flexible than the Sky EPG. and the equipment will probably cost more. Only if you compare it with the heavily discounted £150 FreeSatFromSky offer. And of course you fail to mention that the BBC/ITV Freesat proposition will allow for anyone to make, sell, buy, install and use a twin-tuner SAT PVR of the Sky+ type without having to ask Sky's permission or indeed to pay Sky anything at all for so doing. This in itself is quite splendid and a Good Thing. -- Digibox problem? : A reboot solves 90% of these. The Sky Digital FAQ: http://tinyurl.com/8vef5 UK TV overseas: http://tinyurl.com/6p73 BBC reception questions? ; http://www.astra2d.com/ Fed up with on-screen logos? : http://logofreetv.org/ ---- Only the truth as I see it. No monies return'd. ;-) |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Jomtien wrote:
And of course you fail to mention that the BBC/ITV Freesat proposition will allow for anyone to make, sell, buy, install and use a twin-tuner SAT PVR of the Sky+ type without having to ask Sky's permission or indeed to pay Sky anything at all for so doing. This in itself is quite splendid and a Good Thing. Yes, it will be A Good Thing. However, as readers of uk.tech.digital-tv are only too aware, an open source DVB platform can be a mixed blessing. BBC/ITV might like to carefully consider the implications of throwing open the doors to any manufacturer to produce receivers, and particularly PVRs to work with their new (proprietary ?) Freesat EPG and platform. The Beeb and co adopted that policy with Freeview DTT, and there seems to be trouble brewing. Some boxes have not implemented the specs properly or fully and the results can be chaotic, with viewers uncertain whether to blame the broadcasters or manufacturers for operational failures. Sky have enough trouble with their 'closed' platform, never mind the 'free for all' design attitude adopted by the Freeview consortium. I suspect (and hope) the delay of BBC/ITV Freesat is because the above problems and challenges are being considered very carefully ? -- Mark Please replace invalid and invalid with gmx and net to reply. |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
On Sun, 19 Feb 2006 08:59:11 +0100, Jomtien wrote:
Zero Tolerance wrote: It will have fewer channels, By definition it will have exactly the same number of FTA channels as the current Sky offering. Currently the only ones that it won't have will be the 3 FTV channels. So like I said, fewer channels. a less comprehensive EPG, This remains to be seen. It may well be more flexible than the Sky EPG. Maybe - but what are the chances of that? Why would the BBC and ITV invest large sums of money in developing a Sky-beater EPG which could only make it easier for people to watch other people's channels? Unlike Sky they'd have no financial incentive to do so. My bet is that they'll be happy with anything that bungs all their channels on the front page, and sod the rest. and the equipment will probably cost more. Only if you compare it with the heavily discounted £150 FreeSatFromSky offer. So, like I said, the equipment will probably cost more. And of course you fail to mention that the BBC/ITV Freesat proposition will allow for anyone to make, sell, buy, install and use a twin-tuner SAT PVR of the Sky+ type without having to ask Sky's permission or indeed to pay Sky anything at all for so doing. This in itself is quite splendid and a Good Thing. For those people who worry about such things, of course. But non-Sky twin-tuner sat PVRs compatible with the BBC and ITV have been commonly available for quite some time now, and they don't appear to have sold in any significant numbers. Of course perhaps if the BBC and ITV could even be bothered to transmit proper advance EPG data which these boxes would work with, that would change things. But they haven't done, so far. The BBC have been FTA for years, why have they done nothing? Trying to run a twin-tuner PVR off some half-assed 'now and next' information is ridiculous. No wonder Sky+ is popular. |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
On Sun, 19 Feb 2006 07:43:11 +0000, Dave Fawthrop
wrote: You have just shown that freesatfromsky is a $ky advertising exercise. Why? The free option has always been that kind of price. And it's spelt "Sky", with an S. |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
|
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Zero Tolerance wrote:
And of course you fail to mention that the BBC/ITV Freesat proposition will allow for anyone to make, sell, buy, install and use a twin-tuner SAT PVR of the Sky+ type without having to ask Sky's permission or indeed to pay Sky anything at all for so doing. This in itself is quite splendid and a Good Thing. For those people who worry about such things, of course. But non-Sky twin-tuner sat PVRs compatible with the BBC and ITV have been commonly available for quite some time now, and they don't appear to have sold in any significant numbers. Given that ITV has only been FTA for a few months this is hardly surprising. Given that these non-Sky boxes are never publicised by anyone it is even less surprising. Given that the Sky EPG data is non-standard and, as such, won't work with most non-Sky boxes it is less surprising still. Once vendors, manufacturers and users actually realise that a non-Sky box can do the job I suspect that they will become much more available. If the remaining 2 major FTV channels became FTA as they should this would happen even more quickly. Of course perhaps if the BBC and ITV could even be bothered to transmit proper advance EPG data which these boxes would work with, that would change things. But they haven't done, so far. The BBC have been FTA for years, why have they done nothing? See above. It is the Sky EPG data that is non-standard and it is made so by Sky quite deliberately in order to prevent competition. Trying to run a twin-tuner PVR off some half-assed 'now and next' information is ridiculous. No wonder Sky+ is popular. Hmm. Shame it's so unreliable, even though you have to pay a monthly fee for it. -- Digibox problem? : A reboot solves 90% of these. The Sky Digital FAQ: http://tinyurl.com/8vef5 UK TV overseas: http://tinyurl.com/6p73 BBC reception questions? ; http://www.astra2d.com/ Fed up with on-screen logos? : http://logofreetv.org/ ---- Only the truth as I see it. No monies return'd. ;-) |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
|
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
MJ Ray wrote: Of course perhaps if the BBC and ITV could even be bothered to transmit proper advance EPG data which these boxes would work with, that would change things. But they haven't done, so far. The BBC have been FTA for years, why have they done nothing? I've been told unofficially that the distribution doesn't support broadcasting the standard EPG because Sky asked for it to be left out. Personally, I doubt it and I hope it will be proved wrong by BBC and ITV starting full 7-day EPG broadcasts. Distribution ? To and from where ? Please elaborate |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
On Mon, 20 Feb 2006 05:40:50 +0100, Jomtien wrote:
Once vendors, manufacturers and users actually realise that a non-Sky box can do the job I suspect that they will become much more available. Doesn't say much for the administration of this so-called BBC "Freesat" service if it relies on waiting for companies to "realise" that something can be done. And again, why has the BBC not done anything about transmitting proper European-style EPG data so that people viewing on non-Sky receivers get a better service? See above. It is the Sky EPG data that is non-standard and it is made so by Sky quite deliberately in order to prevent competition. Rubbish - nothing stops any broadcaster transmitting proper EPG information in addition to any information that they may supply to Sky. Why has the BBC not done so? Could it be because there is no significant market for non-Sky reception equipment? Or can the BBC just not be bothered? Are they serious about this 'Freesat' experiment or not? Hmm. Shame it's so unreliable, even though you have to pay a monthly fee for it. That's an interesting comment coming from someone who doesn't have it and wouldn't pay for it even if they WERE in this country. |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Zero Tolerance wrote:
On Sun, 19 Feb 2006 19:43:37 +0000, Dave Fawthrop wrote: Price is always part of the advertising mix. So any product or service that is sold for money is "just an advertising exercise" then? I see. And it's spelt "Sky", with an S. Tell Murdock to change the moneygrubbing policies. That isn't how you spell Murdoch either. You should know Mr Murdoch. |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Keith wrote:
Zero Tolerance wrote: On Sun, 19 Feb 2006 19:43:37 +0000, Dave Fawthrop wrote: Price is always part of the advertising mix. So any product or service that is sold for money is "just an advertising exercise" then? I see. And it's spelt "Sky", with an S. Tell Murdock to change the moneygrubbing policies. That isn't how you spell Murdoch either. You should know Mr Murdoch. Don't call him Mr. That implies some civility towards him. Referencing the rat by his surname is sufficient. -- Adrian C |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
You should know Mr Murdoch.
Don't call him Mr. That implies some civility towards him. Referencing the rat by his surname is sufficient. Adrian C Why is it the British custom to deride anybody who is successful at creating a profitable enterprise? |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Malcolm H wrote:
You should know Mr Murdoch. Don't call him Mr. That implies some civility towards him. Referencing the rat by his surname is sufficient. Adrian C Why is it the British custom to deride anybody who is successful at creating a profitable enterprise? It's not only a profitable enterprise - Murdoch's a monopolistic mogal who concentrates on annilation of the competition, corruption, restrictive practices, exploitation ... the unhappy list goes on. Other successfuls certainly deserve praise, but unfortunately the 'British custom' you are refering to is not actually born out of the British public, but by some purposely slanted critic published by a Murdoch newspaper or broadcast which then enters the social conscience and does immense harm to democracy and fairness. -- Adrian C |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Malcolm H wrote:
Why is it the British custom to deride anybody who is successful at creating a profitable enterprise? Is it? Are Alan Sugar, Richard Branson or "Call Me Stelios" often derided? No, the British custom is to deride the unpleasant of this world and Murdoch falls neatly into this group. -- Digibox problem? : A reboot solves 90% of these. The Sky Digital FAQ: http://tinyurl.com/8vef5 UK TV overseas: http://tinyurl.com/6p73 BBC reception questions? ; http://www.astra2d.com/ Fed up with on-screen logos? : http://logofreetv.org/ ---- Only the truth as I see it. No monies return'd. ;-) |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Zero Tolerance wrote:
And again, why has the BBC not done anything about transmitting proper European-style EPG data so that people viewing on non-Sky receivers get a better service? I suspect that they are working on this. See above. It is the Sky EPG data that is non-standard and it is made so by Sky quite deliberately in order to prevent competition. Rubbish - nothing stops any broadcaster transmitting proper EPG information in addition to any information that they may supply to Sky. Why has the BBC not done so? Why isn't the Sky EPG standard in the first place? There shouldn't need to be two. Hmm. Shame it's so unreliable, even though you have to pay a monthly fee for it. That's an interesting comment coming from someone who doesn't have it and wouldn't pay for it even if they WERE in this country. Actually I do have a Sky+. I don't bother with the recording features though as I won't pay a monthly fee for this. Besides which one doesn't have to use one to know that there is a problem. One only has to read the many comments here and elsewhere from people complaining that their Sky+ misses recordings, or loses them. I have also installed many Sky+ units and all of the users of those complain from time to time about missed recordings. Personally I have a Tivo which I know is much more reliable and requires no monthly fee. -- Digibox problem? : A reboot solves 90% of these. The Sky Digital FAQ: http://tinyurl.com/8vef5 UK TV overseas: http://tinyurl.com/6p73 BBC reception questions? ; http://www.astra2d.com/ Fed up with on-screen logos? : http://logofreetv.org/ ---- Only the truth as I see it. No monies return'd. ;-) |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
"Jomtien" wrote in message ... Zero Tolerance wrote: And again, why has the BBC not done anything about transmitting proper European-style EPG data so that people viewing on non-Sky receivers get a better service? I suspect that they are working on this. See above. It is the Sky EPG data that is non-standard and it is made so by Sky quite deliberately in order to prevent competition. Rubbish - nothing stops any broadcaster transmitting proper EPG information in addition to any information that they may supply to Sky. Why has the BBC not done so? Why isn't the Sky EPG standard in the first place? There shouldn't need to be two. Hmm. Shame it's so unreliable, even though you have to pay a monthly fee for it. That's an interesting comment coming from someone who doesn't have it and wouldn't pay for it even if they WERE in this country. Actually I do have a Sky+. I don't bother with the recording features though as I won't pay a monthly fee for this. Besides which one doesn't have to use one to know that there is a problem. One only has to read the many comments here and elsewhere from people complaining that their Sky+ misses recordings, or loses them. I have also installed many Sky+ units and all of the users of those complain from time to time about missed recordings. Personally I have a Tivo which I know is much more reliable and requires no monthly fee. ..........but according to you really poor quality . -- Tumbleweed email replies not necessary but to contact use; tumbleweednews at hotmail dot com |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
On Tue, 21 Feb 2006 08:36:55 +0100, Jomtien wrote:
I suspect that they are working on this. They've had years to start broadcasting the information in an off-the-shelf format, as standard and used all over Europe. Yet they haven't. What is there to work on? Look at the BBC's international channels on Astra and hotbird and there's almost no EPG data for them either. Maybe they just can't be bothered. Why isn't the Sky EPG standard in the first place? There shouldn't need to be two. Clearly if even our nation's major public service broadcaster (funded, may I remind you, by several billion pounds of licence fee payer's money every year) can't do the job, then someone else has to step up and provide the service. Personally I have a Tivo which I know is much more reliable and requires no monthly fee. People say things about Tivo's unreliability too (especially with regard to late schedule changes or poor guide data), of course. |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
In article ,
Jomtien wrote: Why is it the British custom to deride anybody who is successful at creating a profitable enterprise? Because there seems to be a strong correlation between making lots of money and being an evil *******. Is it? Are Alan Sugar, Richard Branson or "Call Me Stelios" often derided? Yes, of course. Sugar for producing crap products, Branson for screwing up the trains, and Stelios for trying to steal the word "easy". -- Richard |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Zero Tolerance wrote:
Why isn't the Sky EPG standard in the first place? There shouldn't need to be two. Clearly if even our nation's major public service broadcaster (funded, may I remind you, by several billion pounds of licence fee payer's money every year) can't do the job, then someone else has to step up and provide the service. What has this got to do with it? Sky could have made their EPG to DVB standard. They deliberately chose not to in order to make life difficult for the FTA channels. The BBC don't make the Sky EPG themselves: they supply the data to Sky who process it and broadcast it. For the BBC to broadcast a DVB standard EPG they would have to actually process and programme the data themselves, and collect it from other broadcasters and process and broadcast that too. Clearly they have been doubtful as to why they (ie the licence payer) should pay to do this. With the agreement with ITV in place one can expect this to become a reality, financed by all Freesat parties concerned. Personally I have a Tivo which I know is much more reliable and requires no monthly fee. People say things about Tivo's unreliability too (especially with regard to late schedule changes or poor guide data), of course. Indeed. The Tivo is very reliable. The EPG data (which is always at least 12 hours or more out of date) is not so reliable. The Sky+ is different. The data is normally totally accurate and timed to the second. The machine however just doesn't record some things, for no obvious reason, in spite of the data being correct. -- Digibox problem? : A reboot solves 90% of these. The Sky Digital FAQ: http://tinyurl.com/8vef5 UK TV overseas: http://tinyurl.com/6p73 BBC reception questions? ; http://www.astra2d.com/ Fed up with on-screen logos? : http://logofreetv.org/ ---- Only the truth as I see it. No monies return'd. ;-) |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Tumbleweed wrote:
Personally I have a Tivo which I know is much more reliable and requires no monthly fee. .........but according to you really poor quality . Not at all. You are inventing things. What I have said many times is that the Tivo is of acceptable visual quality. Most decent new DVD/HDD recorders offer better quality (which isn't surprising given the age of the UK Tivo). Direct recording offers better quality still. -- Digibox problem? : A reboot solves 90% of these. The Sky Digital FAQ: http://tinyurl.com/8vef5 UK TV overseas: http://tinyurl.com/6p73 BBC reception questions? ; http://www.astra2d.com/ Fed up with on-screen logos? : http://logofreetv.org/ ---- Only the truth as I see it. No monies return'd. ;-) |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
Richard Tobin wrote:
Is it? Are Alan Sugar, Richard Branson or "Call Me Stelios" often derided? Yes, of course. Sugar for producing crap products, Branson for screwing up the trains, and Stelios for trying to steal the word "easy". I don't think that the people themselves are often derided, if ever. On the contrary they are widely liked. The companies on occasion are derided but rarely the founders. In this respect Murdoch is quite different. Many of his companies (but not Sky, I think) are well-liked. He though is widely detested. -- Digibox problem? : A reboot solves 90% of these. The Sky Digital FAQ: http://tinyurl.com/8vef5 UK TV overseas: http://tinyurl.com/6p73 BBC reception questions? ; http://www.astra2d.com/ Fed up with on-screen logos? : http://logofreetv.org/ ---- Only the truth as I see it. No monies return'd. ;-) |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
On Wed, 22 Feb 2006 09:28:54 +0100, Jomtien wrote:
What has this got to do with it? Sky could have made their EPG to DVB standard. They deliberately chose not to in order to make life difficult for the FTA channels. They could have restricted their EPG to DVB standard, certainly, but maybe they thought that it was more important to provide decent features to their paying customers than to adopt a less flexible 'standard'. It quite obviously has nothing to do with the FTA channels at all, who could easily broadcast "standard" advance EPG data at any time, yet clearly can't be bothered to do so. And that's a pattern you see all over Europe - tune in to most of the channels on Astra 1 or Hotbird and you don't see anything other than what's on Now and Next - sometimes not even that! No wonder that platform providers like Sky have to go their own way. The BBC don't make the Sky EPG themselves: they supply the data to Sky who process it and broadcast it. For the BBC to broadcast a DVB standard EPG they would have to actually process and programme the data themselves, and collect it from other broadcasters and process and broadcast that too. Never mind other channels, they could start by broadcasting full EPG data for their own services. Yet they choose not to. What does that tell you? The Sky+ is different. The data is normally totally accurate and timed to the second. The machine however just doesn't record some things, for no obvious reason, in spite of the data being correct. Well, you clearly have no way to tell whether the data being broadcast is correct or not, only whether it 'looks' correct. And as we've seen, the BBC is well able to broadcast incorrect EPG data (as it does with PDC) that entirely screws up people's recordings. So let's not put all of the blame on the workman's tools, shall we? |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
"Jomtien" wrote in message
... People say things about Tivo's unreliability too (especially with regard to late schedule changes or poor guide data), of course. Indeed. The Tivo is very reliable. The EPG data (which is always at least 12 hours or more out of date) is not so reliable. The Sky+ is different. The data is normally totally accurate and timed to the second. The machine however just doesn't record some things, for no obvious reason, in spite of the data being correct. Incorrect, or to put it another way, BBC and ITV often dont start things at the time shown in the EPG (for which *they* send the data to Sky). Its not at all uncommon for the time to be out by 2 or 3 minutes, BBC2 IME is especially bad at this. -- Tumbleweed email replies not necessary but to contact use; tumbleweednews at hotmail dot com |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
"Jomtien" wrote in message ... Tumbleweed wrote: Personally I have a Tivo which I know is much more reliable and requires no monthly fee. .........but according to you really poor quality . Not at all. You are inventing things. What I have said many times is that the Tivo is of acceptable visual quality. Most decent new DVD/HDD recorders offer better quality (which isn't surprising given the age of the UK Tivo). Direct recording offers better quality still. One has only to google to see what you have said about Tivo quality. -- Tumbleweed email replies not necessary but to contact use; tumbleweednews at hotmail dot com |
BBC/ITV FreeSat - will this be any different from FreeSatFromSky?
"Mark Carver"
MJ Ray wrote: I've been told unofficially that the distribution doesn't support broadcasting the standard EPG because Sky asked for it to be left out. Personally, I doubt it and I hope it will be proved wrong by BBC and ITV starting full 7-day EPG broadcasts. Distribution ? To and from where ? Please elaborate I don't know what point in the system they meant, but presumably some point between it leaving the BBC and reaching Astra 2D. I can't find any information from the BBC in how they currently transmit via satellite, so it's hard to see either way. |
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