BBC goes FTA: Lobbying the minister.

Tony

Originally posted by Icehouse
There ya go son...

http://www.unison.ie/business/stories.php3?ca=80&si=1003903

Needs registration I'm afraid

DMC

Its free.

Icehouse

..and the full text of it was already posted by jister!

Tony

Originally posted by jister
David Brady deputy business editor wrote the article. I clipped the article from the online paper yesterday, for some reason they had it split into 2 parts so I copied them over seperatelly.

Are you sure its David brady and not David Murphy, the switchboard said there weas no David Brady there?

Tony

DMC

Its David Murphy.

Tony

Originally posted by DMC
Its David Murphy.

Thanks Damo, left a message on his voicemail so if he is interested I'm sure he will get back to me.

Tony

eirman

David Murphy does the Saturday 2 hour business slot on newstalk 106.

Genghis

There has to be some precedent for this elsewhere in Europe. Can anyone outline how rights / FTA access operates in Germany / Austria or in France / Belgium. These are regions where neighbouring territories share a language, and yet afaik their 'terrestrials' have been able to become FTA satellite for years now.

Tony

Just talked to David Murphy on the phone and I mentioned boards.ie to him so he may come on to elicit some more views.

Tony

BHG

confused Minister goes to London to discuss Irish Box

its about the box
What Box?
the box the in the corner with bunnies ears

:-:

if "Dermot goes to London" someone should tape it,
or maybe he can meet under the good 'belfast' friday (dis)agreement -

remember Big Ian said to RTE journo, "I’ve nothing to say to the TV station of the enemy" days later his daughter presents saturday live the for-runner to kenny live on RTE1

Mossy Monk

Originally posted by Genghis
how rights / FTA access operates in Germany / Austria

i thought they were considered to be 1 territory for broadcasting rights

maisflocke

Nope, its not one single territory!

German Broadcasters buy the rights for Germany Switzerland & Austria - 'cos quite simply, they can afford it.

However, Germans or Austrians cannot access Swiss TV Stations or Germans & Swiss cannot access Austrian TV Stations as the Austrian ORF & Swiss SRG encrypt almost all Satellite transmissions. The Swiss have even gone to the bother of making Hotbird "their" satellite orbital position, probably to discourage native Swiss people from receiving German broadcasts.

West Briton

The silence from my email inbox is deafening.

I haven't had the courtesy of a holding reply from the Department of Communications. If I don't get a reply by Friday this will be escalated.

Smeagol

However, Germans or Austrians cannot access Swiss TV Stations or Germans & Swiss cannot access Austrian TV Stations as the Austrian ORF & Swiss SRG encrypt almost all Satellite transmissions.

I watch them anyways here in the northwest :cool:

sceptre

Originally posted by West Briton
The silence from my email inbox is deafening.

I haven't had the courtesy of a holding reply from the Department of Communications. If I don't get a reply by Friday this will be escalated.

Send it to them again with "In case your system has managed to mislay this (I'd appreciate you replying to let me know it was received)"

I've had to do that a few times with both department of comms and dept of the tea shock. Sometimes mails are deliberately accidentally lost.

watty

Some Austrian commercial stations are FTA. The ORF is rumored to be going FTA soon.

Swiss nationals abroad can buy a card SF120 for Swiss TV. There is perhaps a Swiss News channel FTA. They don't ask to see your Swiss Passport

If Switzerland was EU and they sold a Card to a Swiss in Ireland, they'd have to sell it to any EU national in Ireland. They arn't EU so "technically" they only sell it to Swiss Nationals, though without verification that the person really is Swiss.

icdg

Originally posted by maisflocke
Nope, its not one single territory!

German Broadcasters buy the rights for Germany Switzerland & Austria - 'cos quite simply, they can afford it.

However, Germans or Austrians cannot access Swiss TV Stations or Germans & Swiss cannot access Austrian TV Stations as the Austrian ORF & Swiss SRG encrypt almost all Satellite transmissions. The Swiss have even gone to the bother of making Hotbird "their" satellite orbital position, probably to discourage native Swiss people from receiving German broadcasts.

Hmm... I was able to recieve ORF in Bavaria (terrestrially!) a couple of years ago when I was there on an exchange... the Suddeutsche Zeitung even listed ORF1 and ORF2 in their listings. This was not right beside the Austrian border, it was a good bit inland...

maisflocke

terrestrially!

The equation is simple,

terrestrially / reception outside of country of intention = overspill.

A bit like BBC, UTV, HTV & ch4 in Ireland really


BTW I did say *Satellite* transmissions!

Tony

Hi Guys, David Murphy has written another piece in the independent business section today, a well written article IMHO

Tony

sceptre

Heh, there even seem to be two of them:

Short mention: http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=184&si=1007560&issue_id=9463

Longer article:
http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=184&si=1007507&issue_id=9463

One of the few informed articles so far. Nice PR btw Tony - hopefully you'll get quite a bit of custom out of it.

jister

A solid article at last. Lots of quotes from the different sides of the debate.

Nice PR for Tony as well.

The moaning about job losses is rubbish, it could also create employment with guys fitting and servicing the new systems around the country.

Tony

Thanks Guys, he 's a good journalist and told me eaxctly what quotes he would use. The phones been hopping so I've had to hurriedly add a new section to the web site.

Thank god holidays next week :-)

Originally posted by sceptre
Heh, there even seem to be two of them:

Short mention: http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=184&si=1007560&issue_id=9463

Longer article:
http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=184&si=1007507&issue_id=9463

One of the few informed articles so far. Nice PR btw Tony - hopefully you'll get quite a bit of custom out of it.

JoeDuffy

The BBC's director of strategy and distribution, Carolyn Fairbairn, says the fact that it will be broadcasting in Ireland is "completely accidental". The corporation planned to send its signal to Britain only, but it can be received here because the size of the satellite footprint extends over this country. She adds: "We have no strategic intent for Ireland."

Various contributors to this forum have pointed out that there are rights issues associated with British TV channels broadcasting on digital satellite in Ireland. Surely this quote removes this issue over rights.

Terrestrial TV spillover is "completely accidental". Digital satellite spillover is "completely accidental". No reason for ITV, Ch4 and Ch5 from broardcasting FTA (in Ireland) on digital satellite.

Icehouse

Originally posted by JoeDuffy
Various contributors to this forum have pointed out that there are rights issues associated with British TV channels broadcasting on digital satellite in Ireland. Surely this quote removes this issue over rights.

Terrestrial TV spillover is "completely accidental". Digital satellite spillover is "completely accidental". No reason for ITV, Ch4 and Ch5 from broardcasting FTA (in Ireland) on digital satellite.

...and no reason why RTE should keep it's signal encrypted either. They would have no need to pay UK broadcast rights, going by the BBC spokeswoman's logic.

kevmac

Can someone cut and paste the long Indo article here - I don't want to register for various reasons.

parasite

Broadcasters hit the roof as BBC dishes out free service

The Irish broadcasting industry is channelling its collective anger towards the BBC's plans for a free digital service. Despite the effect on the sector, the consumer looks like being the clear winner

IT'S great news for couch potatoes.

But the arrival of the BBC's free digital satellite service is meeting with a mixed reception from the broadcasting industry in Ireland.

Today, the British institution begins a novel new offer in the UK which can also be easily received by viewers in Ireland.

For the once-off cost of putting a satellite dish on their roofs, consumers can receive BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Three, BBC Four, BBC Parliament, News 24 and two children's channels.

Although the first two have been widely available in Ireland for decades, the development means there is more quality foreign programming available for free than before.

This has happened after the BBC decided earlier this year that it would begin unencrypted transmissions of all its broadcast services on the Astra 2D Satellite.

Unlike Sky digital - where customers have to pay for installation and cough up a monthly charge - with BBC, consumers will only have to put up a satellite dish and receiving a signal is free.

The BBC's director of strategy and distribution, Carolyn Fairbairn, says the fact that it will be broadcasting in Ireland is "completely accidental". The corporation planned to send its signal to Britain only, but it can be received here because the size of the satellite footprint extends over this country. She adds: "We have no strategic intent for Ireland."

While the development seems like a simple boost for the public in the form of more choice and additional competition, the indigenous broadcasting industry sees it differently.

For a number of years, the Irish government has been pushing to set up a digital terrestrial television service. The concept was to enable consumers to receive a digital signal through aerials into their homes.

This step requires an enormous upgrade to the current infrastructure of antennae which currently broadcast on an analogue system. The Government tried to get the initiative off the ground but failed.

The latest instalment of this sorry saga came when the Government's plan to sell a share of the infrastructure to a private investor collapsed. The price it could obtain continually fell as the climate in the telecoms industry went from bad to worse. At the same time, the only applicant to run the service never won adequate financial support.

If it ever became a reality, the digital terrestrial television project would provide a third platform for Irish consumers to receive digital TV - the others being satellite and digital cable.

Government sources say the move by the BBC to put its channels on satellite today will reduce the demand for digital terrestrial television.

Last week, Communications Minister Dermot Ahern wrote to his opposite number in the British government to outline his concerns about the development.

However, Ms Fairbairn says it is unlikely that the BBC initiative would have an effect, because 73pc of Irish consumers have been receiving BBC One and BBC Two for years.

The cable companies, Chorus and NTL, have been watching the BBC development with interest. Both firms have had to pay the British broadcaster for the right to carry its channels.

NTL's marketing and sales director, Mark Mohan, says the cable company will suffer from an "inequality", as it will be charged for carrying BBC but consumers will be able to receive it for free.

He hopes the arrival of the new services will stimulate public interest in digital television. Mr Mohan suggests the Irish government should instead opt for a low cost digital terrestrial service.

Ms Fairbairn says: "In Europe, cable operators do pay public service broadcasters for their service. We do not see any inequality in this."

Dermot Horan, director of broadcast and acquisitions at RTE, says the fact that BBC's digital output will be broadcast for free on digital satellite will be beneficial for Britain.

But he points out that if the corporation's move to put its unencrypted signal on the Astra satellite is followed by UTV and Channel 4, then the platform could become enormously popular in Ireland. RTE would then have to seriously consider joining the system.

He adds that if the Irish channels were broadcast on the satellite, their signals would reach across Britain.

Popular foreign programming such as films, Friends and The Simpsons- which RTE currently pays for on the basis that they are only viewed in Ireland - would then be seen by millions of UK viewers and the Irish broadcaster fears this could result in higher fees.

"It makes digital terrestrial television more complicated," he adds. "Now people may say, if I can get UK services for free, why should I pay for digital terrestrial television?"

Perhaps the most vocal objection to the BBC development has come from the Telecoms and Internet Federation within employers group IBEC.

It has claimed that the general principle expressed by the industry is that Irish people should be able to access indigenous channels on "an Irish controlled and regulated" platform.

In a statement last week, it went as far as saying that it "will not benefit the economy and may lead to job losses".

It has also suggested that it would deprive the Irish consumers of choice and regional diversity and would undermine the scope for a digital terrestrial television platform.

The federation's director, Tommy McCabe, believes it would damage the cable industry and affect the future of telecoms, including broadband, in Ireland.

Tony Moore, of Dublin-based supplier Ireland's Satellite Specialists, dismisses the suggestion that the BBC development could result in job losses as "absolute rubbish".

And giving an indication of the potential consumer response, he says he has received a plethora of enquiries about selling equipment to receive the BBC signal even before the service has commenced. His company will be supplying a dish and box for less than €250.

Despite the effect on the industry, the consumer is the clear winner.

DMC

Good work Tony!

I saw the article yesterday, very well done.

Tony

Originally posted by DMC
Good work Tony!

I saw the article yesterday, very well done.

Thanks Damo, I've put a link inour FAQ to Charles excellent instructions so hopefully we will get lots more visitors here.

carrolls

Tony, what sort of equipment is available for €250?
I'm thinking of getting an FTA receiver for the bedroom.
Also do you supply Dual LNB's that are compatible with my existing Sky dish? I want to use the same dish for both boxes.
By the way Tony, excellent article in the Indo.;)

Tony

Originally posted by carrolls
Tony, what sort of equipment is available for €250?
I'm thinking of getting an FTA receiver for the bedroom.
Also do you supply Dual LNB's that are compatible with my existing Sky dish? I want to use the same dish for both boxes.
By the way Tony, excellent article in the Indo.;)

Thanks but its really the journalist who should get the credit. I'm afraid I upset some other suppliers who wanted to pitch this at a higher price. Anyway as it turns out I can do it at quite a bit less than 250 and theres a freeview section on my site now at http://www.satellite.ie/acatalog/BBC_Freeview.html

Hope Damo and Ronan dont mind me posting this, please delete it if thats the case.

Tony