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Freesat launches today

E4 and More4 go FTA (May 2008)

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NG
noggin Founding member
dvboy posted:
Bearing this in mind, if Sky News can be manually tuned in then so can Sky Three.


No - they aren't the same thing.

Sky News is FTA (though not in the freesat EPG) - in other words it is not encrypted.

Sky Three is FTV - which is encrypted BUT subscription-free. However this means it requires a Videoguard CAM (integrated into all Sky Digiboxes) and a valid FTV card (either a "Freesat from Sky" or expired Sky subscription card)

So whilst it would be possible to add Sky News to a receiver which supports additional FTA channels (which under EU law they all should apparently) it wouldn't be possible to add Sky Three.
DV
dvboy
noggin posted:
Sky Three is FTV - which is encrypted BUT subscription-free. However this means it requires a Videoguard CAM (integrated into all Sky Digiboxes) and a valid FTV card (either a "Freesat from Sky" or expired Sky subscription card)


Is that the same situation as Five and its channels?
ST
Stuart
The disparity between what's available on Freeview and what's on Freesat is surely going to put alot of people off initially.

I suppose you could argue that anyone already with Freeview could always keep their box for viewing Sky Three, Dave, Five etc if they get Freesat - but alot of people (like my Sister) can't be bothered messing about with different boxes.

She has an 'HD Ready' TV, and is prepared to pay out for another box if she can get HD channels for free, but not at the expense of losing some of their favourite channels. She's a technophobe and has enough trouble understanding the 'freeview-playback' box I got her...she can't cope with having to switch between DTT and DSat between channels.
MA
Markymark
dvboy posted:
noggin posted:
Sky Three is FTV - which is encrypted BUT subscription-free. However this means it requires a Videoguard CAM (integrated into all Sky Digiboxes) and a valid FTV card (either a "Freesat from Sky" or expired Sky subscription card)


Is that the same situation as Five and its channels?


Yes !
NG
noggin Founding member
StuartPlymouth posted:
The disparity between what's available on Freeview and what's on Freesat is surely going to put alot of people off initially.

I suppose you could argue that anyone already with Freeview could always keep their box for viewing Sky Three, Dave, Five etc if they get Freesat - but alot of people (like my Sister) can't be bothered messing about with different boxes.

She has an 'HD Ready' TV, and is prepared to pay out for another box if she can get HD channels for free, but not at the expense of losing some of their favourite channels. She's a technophobe and has enough trouble understanding the 'freeview-playback' box I got her...she can't cope with having to switch between DTT and DSat between channels.


Though many (nearly all these days) "HD Ready" TVs have built in Freeview DVB-T tuners, so freesat is a good way of adding HD services (well BBC HD, ITV HD and Luxe HD), and there are freesat channels that aren't present on Freeview.
ST
Stuart
noggin posted:
Though many (nearly all these days) "HD Ready" TVs have built in Freeview DVB-T tuners, so freesat is a good way of adding HD services (well BBC HD, ITV HD and Luxe HD), and there are freesat channels that aren't present on Freeview.

Unfortunately her 42" LCD TV doesn't have any sort of tuner built in. Anyway, she is now addicted to her Freeview-PVR, so she will have to wait for a decently priced Freesat-HD-PVR to come out before she would consider changing (or another Christmas to come along!)

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