Help Please

YvonneC

I bought a FTV card from Ebay and received it today. When I put it into the box ITV, CH4 and CH5 were working. I was very happy, but when I checked a couple of hours later I'm know getting the message "This viewing card is not authorised call the broadcaster for assistance".

Has anyone seen this before or am I out of luck, I payed over 100 Euro for this card.:mad: :mad:

mickeyboymel

You first option is to leave it in the box,powered on, for at least 48 hours, to see if it will re-activate. See this thread for more information regarding problem cards:http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=&threadid=149964

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if it initally worked and now has stopped, you may be the victim of a seller who has sold you their card, then reported it lost/stolen/damaged and then ordered a new card from Sky who automatically "Kill" the original card once a replacement has been issued.

Samson

Not saying this is definitely the case, but I've heard of a scam being perpetrated on Ebay, which goes something like this:

Someone advertises and sells their FTV card on Ebay to a foreigner or expat.
When it's been sold, they call for a replacement saying their original has been lost/stolen/damaged.
Card is cancelled.
Card no longer works.
Buyer is fucked over.

A few questions:
What sort of Ebay rating did the seller have?
How long have they been registered?
Have you contacted the seller?
Was the seller a company or a private individual?

If you have not contacted the seller, send them a mannerly email stating that the card is not working, can they check into it? etc. etc.
If you don't receive a response, you should start to worry.

Also, please post a link to the card page on Ebay, or post the item number.

EKRIUQ

But even if its an old subscribution card the FTV chanels ie. ITV and Ch4 should still work, I'd leave it in the box for a while or else try tuning in the channels by add channels.

mickeyboymel

Originally posted by TIPPTOP
But even if its an old subscribution card the FTV chanels ie. ITV and Ch4 should still work, I'd leave it in the box for a while or else try tuning in the channels by add channels.

Not if the card has been cancelled by Sky. Once a new card is issued the original is completely deactivated. If this were not the case, expired cards being used as FTV cards, would be all over the place and not difficult to come by.

An expired card is still kept "alive" by intermittent signals over air and thus is capapible of decoding ITV,CH4 & 5,but a card is sent a "Kill" signal in cases where it is reported lost/stolen/damaged which renders it useless.

This seems very likely in this case as it originally worked,and may have taken a few hours to pick up this "Kill" signal.

I hope it is not the case and the card will reactivate....fingers crossed for you YvonneC:)

YvonneC

Samson the link to the card is

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5702464546&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT

everything seemed to be OK with the seller, card etc.......

YvonneC

Samson the link to the card is

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5702464546&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT

everything seemed to be OK with the seller, card etc.......

Tarabuses

He seems to have sold several cards recently and has a good feedback record (including your own I see!).

He has guaranteed the card to work and so I do think you should make contact with him and advise him of your problem.

Marty

Yvonne,
The fact this guy has sold several cards means its unlikely he has reported it stolen and had it killed. More than likely his source for the card may have done it. Suggest you definetely contact him and request a replacement or your money back. If you get no joy threaten to report him to e-bay, he won't risk losing his account with all the credits and as far as l know e-bay has some kind of purchase protection against this kind of problem.

mickeyboymel

On the surface, he seems legitimate enough. However I would be concerned on a number of issues:

1. He is only a member since 5 April this year.
2. He has only sold three cards.
3. The wording in the description at the bottom of the page guarentees all "Freeview" channels as opposed to specificly stating FTV.
4. He has previously purchased and subsequently resold (twice) a guide on selling Sky Cards. These guides are just a quick way of making money from people who have no knowledge on the subject,and they contain no information which cannot be freely obtained with a little internet research.


Let us know how you get on with him.

For anyone else using this route for a card, I would look for a seller who has been around a lot longer and sold a greater quantity of cards.

Always try to get a contact number and ring the person directly.

YvonneC

I emailed the seller yesterday and as yet I've had no reply, I'll wait until Monday incase she has no access to the internet. Then I'll get onto E-Bay.

Many thanks for your help, I'll keep you posted.

Samson

Did you ever receive a reply Yvonne?