RTE cant block the 8 BBC channels can they?

Zhane

they're all like annoyed at the BBC and stuff but can they do anything to stop them being able to add them to sky?

Mossy Monk

if they were to do something, i'd imagine that they'd have done it by now

jez

Isn't Mr "Knee Jerk Reaction" Ahern capable of anything!!

Not to block these though!

What is RTE's problem?

i.e. All RTE radio services are FTA through Europe already.
All German terrestrial channels are available everywhere

The problem basically is that the RTE Channels are sub standard in comparison to Beeb etc and he's concerned people will switch off in droves.

If I'm ever down in my mobile and Chorus go off I suddenly realise its a choice of watching either Euronews,Den 2,Judge Judy or more Euronews. Thats why he has a problem.

RTE have great news,current affairs and lots of other good stuff but all the people here want is choice and not to be forced down a road we don't want to travel.

RTE should just join the party and go FTA across Europe - problem solved..

Capt'n Midnight

SKY are transmitting from a different country.

They don't pay irish tax or irish tax rates..
Comreg has no say in programming / ad times / they don't pay the comreg subsidisy
They do not have to obey irish liable laws
The irish censor has no control over what they show.

watty

This is all nonsense people had BBC *BEFORE* there was and RTE, in Ireland.

There must be about 10 people in the country that want BBC and don't already have it.

If RTE are waking up to UK competion, BRILLIANT, we'll get better programs, but it's years late.

Only Chorus and NTL is threatened. Cable, MMDS and Deflectors were all licenced not for demand of Sky One, Sky Sports or Hallmark and Disney, but for BBC ...


The only thing RTE can do is make better programs.

We all get BBC already. We just going to get it without paying Sky, NTL or Chorus.

BBC3 and BBC4 are extra as are Cbbc and Cbeebies, but the 90% of decent stuff is on the BBC1 and BBC2 and the Radio apart from 5 has been available for YEARS.

Richard

Originally posted by Zhane
they're all like annoyed at the BBC and stuff but can they do anything to stop them being able to add them to sky?

I'd say they could possibly take the Beeb to court for rights infringement, but that would have several knock-on effects:

* The BBC would complain about RTE on ntl: in NI and possibly get it taken off.

* Any hope of RTE expanding in Northern Ireland or GB would be gone.

* The BBC could stop selling shows like Eastenders to the BBC.

Capt'n Midnight

The BBC could stop selling shows like Eastenders to the BBC. We can but hope

Rights infringment - huh ? - read my previous post ....

Anyway one of the thingies about the good friday agreement was more cross border TV - guess what FTA sorta covers that nicely.

watty

The slight problem with Good Friday agreement is that it really is only talking about IRISH and SCOTS Gaelic language programs / stations... It really only G'tees TG4 to NI.

But TV is least of worries for GFA... I'll not open *that* can of worms here.. (discussing the *MAJOR* problems)

Tony

Originally posted by Capt'n Midnight
SKY are transmitting from a different country.

They don't pay irish tax or irish tax rates..

They do I charge them VAT every week

Richard

Originally posted by watty
The slight problem with Good Friday agreement is that it really is only talking about IRISH and SCOTS Gaelic language programs / stations... It really only G'tees TG4 to NI.

The following is the relevent part of the GFA:

In the context of active consideration currently being given to the UK signing the Council of Europe Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, the British Government will in particular in relation to the Irish language, where appropriate and where people so desire it:
<snip>

• explore urgently with the relevant British authorities, and in co-operation with the Irish broadcasting authorities, the scope for achieving more widespread availability of Teilifis na Gaeilige in Northern Ireland;

I don't think it it says anything about Scots Gaelic (although I belive it is very similar to Irish Gaelic), or about anything to do with Ulster Scots on TV.

Capt'n Midnight

Richard - since RTE do transmit programs in Irish.... surely they would be entitled to broadcast there ....

Watty - The Irish consumer pays the VAT - SKY don't and besides the Gov't would get a similar amount of VAT no matter how you spend your money. So SKY don't really ease the Tax burden on us.

---

At the end of the day the main effect on RTE would be on any kickbacks they get from cable companies and the cancellation of DTT (but they were never going to rich on that anyway) so like Watty said its Chorus and NTL who are going to get hit. And NTL should have had the BB market sown up years ago...

Richard

Originally posted by Capt'n Midnight
Richard - since RTE do transmit programs in Irish.... surely they would be entitled to broadcast there ....

But the GFA does not refr to channels that broadcast in Irish, it refers specifically refers to TnaG, which is now, of course TG4.

Having said that, TG4 isn't available in NI apart from via overspill (a pretty big, intentional overspill mind!) whilst RTE ONE and Network 2 are on ntl:

watty

Well I suppose all the NI Scots Gallic speakers died a 100year ago and now Grandchildren prefer idea of "British".

Amazing that TnaG gets specific mention isn't it!

Watty - The Irish consumer pays the VAT - SKY don't and besides the Gov't would get a similar amount of VAT no matter how you spend your money. So SKY don't really ease the Tax burden on us.

Eh???
Context??

Capt'n Midnight

The Govt collects taxes - the more they get from commercial entities the less they could take out of out pockets (if only )

The whole point is that since there is no legal or financial interaction between SKY and the Gov't / Comreg - there is no one RTE could turn to to protect them..

Or looking at it another way all the money going to SKY is leaving this fair isle (SKY were never getting the VAT )

Finally English will join the Italian and German as languages in which decent programs are FTA from Sat. - Can't wait..

Elmo

They do I charge them VAT every week

Could someone post up Sky's Irish VAT number, to make sure this is true. Thanks.

I don't think RTE need to be to worried as BBC 1 and BBC 2 together get only 15% of total viewership in the republic.

I think if RTE are worried its time that RTE, TV3 and TG4 start with their own DTT.

Ideas for RTE stations

RTE 1
N2
RTE 2 (Arts Station)
RTE News
RTE Sport
ID
The Den
Cubs Den (Like Cbeebs)
Mono (Multicultural TV)
Eolas (Education TV)

TV3 Stations

TV3
TV4 (More Bad american Imports)
TV3 Sport
TV3 Music
TV3 Movies

TG4 Stations

TG4
Sport TG4
Nuacht TG4 (A mix of the best international news with Nuacht TG4)
Cula4
Scannan TG4

Its just A dream.

Capt'n Midnight

Don't forget the Archives - they could cobble any number of documentry programs together just using news footage...
eg: various wars / year by year / farming changes over the years
they could pick a town and show the changes in it
they could do loads of music programs - Bring back MT USA !
- the important thing here is that it would be done from an Irish perspective and would not use other channels stock footage ( how many WWI docus DON'T contain that large explosion ..)

Not to mention the old Amach feoin Air and Wonderly Wagon - you could have a Den classic - ie. just show the Den since Day 1 without all the kids programs....

You could do a political program about how things were back in '75 and then and Halls Pictorial Weekly to follow

There could be a channel to learing foreign langauage

Perhaps you could squeeze euro news there too..

What is also needed is a Music channel - simply play the Videos shown on 2FM ( for Dave Fanning at least )

This should be on the terresterial board - but problem is DTT would be too little too late...

Peter

If the BBC or Sky want to, then all they need do is keep the 'flags' on their channels that tell a receiver whether a channel is encrypted or not and they can prevent everyone in Ireland from viewing their channels.

Example:
Last year Premier 3/Moviemax 3 & ITV2 (among others) were FTA for certain days here and there. Now even though they were free, you still couldn't see them on your Digibox (even through Other Ch.'s) because the box still thought they were scrambled because of the signal being sent.

Now the BBC can still go free on July 10 but keep the encryption info in the signal, which if remains the same as it is now will only allow UK cards access.

Of course if you have a non Sky receiver or DVB PCI card then this signal wont matter and you'll be able to view the BBC or they may get rid of the signal and none of the above will matter.

Peter

carrolls

Its just A dream.

I think it will take a lot of vision at RTE for this dream to become a reality.

Elmo

I think it will take a lot of vision at RTE for this dream to become a reality.

Well you never know. A job is coming up at RTE and maybe i could fill that vacance.

sceptre

Originally posted by Capt'n Midnight
Not to mention the old Amach feoin Air and Wonderly Wagon - you could have a Den classic - ie. just show the Den since Day 1 without all the kids programs....

Hehe, they didn't keep many tapes of the Den. They say they have 75 episodes of Wanderly Wagon but I've a feeling they only have a small few. Tolka Row etc were taped over long ago

Documentaries and cobbling together old news footage in an interesting way seem to be things RTE do very well

watty

Originally posted by Peter
<snip>Now the BBC can still go free on July 10 but keep the encryption info in the signal, which if remains the same as it is now will only allow UK cards access.
<snip>
Peter

No they won't.

The Whole POINT is that the FTV scheme didn't really work. People didn't realise they could get one and it was an extra delay. You could not take the box home and watch BBC.

The beeb want EVEN digiboxes to work with no card.

ITV2 didn't work even on some FTA boxes as the DVB tables had missing info you had to fill in like video PID and audio PID. It wasn't the same channel as on the EPG but some sort of test.

rte did have plans for a whole buch of stations for DTT. But they don't have the money.

Mike 1972

Surely it wouldnt cost much to start a single national DTT multiplex NOW (with the four basic Irish channels) and add the other five multiplex when the finance/rights/political issues are figured out ?

watty

It would cost millions to start.

Running cost is 4 times higher than satellite carriage, which currently RTE doesn't pay for anyway.

David C

Originally posted by Peter
If the BBC or Sky want to, then all they need do is keep the 'flags' on their channels that tell a receiver whether a channel is encrypted or not and they can prevent everyone in Ireland from viewing their channels.

Example:
Last year Premier 3/Moviemax 3 & ITV2 (among others) were FTA for certain days here and there. Now even though they were free, you still couldn't see them on your Digibox (even through Other Ch.'s) because the box still thought they were scrambled because of the signal being sent.

Now the BBC can still go free on July 10 but keep the encryption info in the signal, which if remains the same as it is now will only allow UK cards access.

If BBC leave the encryption flag on for Irish BSKYB cards then people will not get/keep Sky Digiboxes and naturally there will be an explosion in sales of other FTA DVB-Sat receivers.

That is not something Sky want to see happening as they cannot make any money from an FTA box...

Typedef

Originally posted by jez

The problem basically is that the RTE Channels are sub standard in comparison to Beeb etc and he's concerned people will switch off in droves.

Feel free to pay more on your TV licence or shock horror pay for private semi-State TV stations.

Funding for good TV, doesn't just magic itself out of thin air you realise.

Seriously though, it's very Irish, to deride 'everything' Irish, when the simple fact is that money talks and with enough money... you too can change the colour of your skin/nation, just like Michael Jackson.

"The Irish are the blacks of Europe.
Dubliners are the blacks of Ireland
and North Siders are the blacks of Dublin.
So say it once and say it loud, I'm black and I'm proud".

Elmo

TV3 aren't worried because u cann't get UTV or C4 on this service and noone is going to be bothered when they cann't get those stations.

How many subscribers has sky? TV3