Meeting with RTE

netwhizkid

My Area is having a public meeting regarding how our terrestrial signal is totally messed up since a new Windfarm was built. I am attending and as you can see from my posts here I am aiming to lobby hard for RTE to go FTA or FTV on Satellite. Like Why the hell should we have to pay sky and a Tv license. Anyway my plan is to pitch a list of European countries which have either FTA or FTV systems allowing people to view without having to pay monthly for it. Most of these systems have a once off start up fee of the Dish and FTA box or Decoder for a FTV system. But having to pay €30.50 a month is outrageous. Myself having sky is not affected as bad but we have lost the multi-room capabilities of the Terrestrial service. And I am not paying Sky more for Multi-room (which should be free also)

Anyways do anyone here know of a list of European countries that have FTA or FTV like the BBC in the UK.

Any advice is very welcome.

Ulsterman 1690

In the following countries the main national public broadcasters are FTA

United Kingdom, Germany, Poland, Latvia, Austria, Belgium (RTBF), France, Spain, Luxembourg, Italy, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Yugoslavia (Serbia), Bulgaria, Romania, Russia, Greece, Cyprus, Czech Republic

probably left out quite a few.............

Also most countries in North Africa and the Middle East
Plus (If you count them as being in Europe) Turkey and Armenia

Switzerland, the Netherlands, UK (C4 and C5) and quite a few others have FTV

Some countries switch between FTA (for home produced programming) and FTV for imports.

If RTE went FTA (but not on any EPG outside Ireland) the numbers of overseas viewers would be insignificant and almost exclucively confined to ex-pats and satellite enthusiasts. Mainland British people arent going to be bothered with channels that arent on the EPG and people on the continent even if they can speak English are going to prefer TV in their own language.

L1011

Polands main channels are not FTA, Austrias main channels are not FTA, Belgiums proper channels (RTBF is crippled on satellite), Spains proper channels (TVEi is crippled...), Italy (ditto) and probably some more don't have true FTA.

RTÉ could go FTV with ease - be it Videoguard or using a system where we can actually use a rent-free PVR, etc.

clarkbelt

netwhizkid wrote:

My Area is having a public meeting regarding how our terrestrial signal is totally messed up since a new Windfarm was built. I am attending and as you can see from my posts here I am aiming to lobby hard for RTE to go FTA or FTV on Satellite. Like Why the hell should we have to pay sky and a Tv license. Anyway my plan is to pitch a list of European countries which have either FTA or FTV systems allowing people to view without having to pay monthly for it. Most of these systems have a once off start up fee of the Dish and FTA box or Decoder for a FTV system. But having to pay €30.50 a month is outrageous. Myself having sky is not affected as bad but we have lost the multi-room capabilities of the Terrestrial service. And I am not paying Sky more for Multi-room (which should be free also)

Anyways do anyone here know of a list of European countries that have FTA or FTV like the BBC in the UK.

Any advice is very welcome.

Have you been at one of these public meetings held by RTE ? My experience is that they are a stage run show from start to finish ( including the mad heckler in row three , who has to be thrown out ) RTE are in show business after all , and boy was the meeting I attended one BIG SHOW !

I agree with your point on the FTV issue , a guy I know in RTE told me to write to my local TD every week complaining , seemingly the TD's office is obliged by law to reply to all written correspondance .

Greenman

MYOB wrote:

Belgiums proper channels (RTBF is crippled on satellite),

Explain???

Ulsterman 1690

MYOB wrote:

Polands main channels are not FTA,.

TVP, Polonia 1, Polsat, ITV Tele 5 and many others are FTA on Hotbird

MYOB wrote:

Austrias main channels are not FTA.

ORF2 (West and East regions) FTA

Belgiums proper channels (RTBF is crippled on satellite),

Crippled ?

Spains proper channels (TVEi is crippled...),

On hotbird its fta

Italy (ditto) and probably some more don't have true FTA.

Rai 1/2/3 Italia 1/Rete 4/Canale 5 all FTA along with many other (RAI and private)

Mossy Monk

TVE is FTA?

i thought it was just TVEi that was

Capt'n Midnight

MYOB wrote:

Italy (ditto) and probably some more don't have true FTA.

RTÉ could go FTV with ease - be it Videoguard or using a system where we can actually use a rent-free PVR, etc.

RAI & Co. encrypt major sports events and film premiers. But that sort of stuff is rare on FTA anyway, in fact it can be rare on terresterial too with SKY buying up sports anywhere it can. As I've pointed out before the main terresterial Italian channels only encrypt some programs, they do not encrypt the whole time - do any SKY channels do this ? (and on analog the encryption is so week you can just about watch a football match )

Regional local channels are also FTA think of a dozen TG4 without the US series.

L1011

Ulsterman 1690 wrote:

TVP, Polonia 1, Polsat, ITV Tele 5 and many others are FTA on Hotbird

Thats not all the national channels

ORF2 (West and East regions) FTA

With blackouts, and missing the all-important ORF1

E and W are Europe and Wien (Vienna), not East and West, btw.

Crippled ?

Different schedule, devoid of any truely interesting content

On hotbird its fta

Thats TVEi. See RTBF for what it is :rolleyes:

Rai 1/2/3 Italia 1/Rete 4/Canale 5 all FTA along with many other (RAI and private)

Complete with constant blackouts.

L1011

Greenman wrote:

Explain???

RTBF Sat is a different channel. Not even in the S4C-to-Channel-4 style of "different channel". It has different shows and different content to either La Une or La Deux.

Its an "international broadcasting" channel, and its as much a national channel as TV5 Monde is to France, DW is to Germany, BBC World to the UK, and so on.

Frisian

In Germany ARD and ZDF are constrained by law to be fta to all the available media (sat, cable, dvb-t ...). That is one reason they cannot follow the announced encryption of RTL and Sat1/Pro7. Btw. Also they may not show adverts after 20.00.
Don't mix up national and commercial channels.

RTÉ could go FTV with ease - be it Videoguard or using a system where we can actually use a rent-free PVR, etc.

I'd say thats the only feasible solution for RTÉ.
So go and talk to your TD.:mad:

Sponge Bob

the Videoguard encryption would be a special batch of SKY cards / Boxes and free installs where RTE reckon its cheaper than providing the service via normal tech . Only rte , tg4 and tv3 would decrypt...actually let tv3 pay 1/4 of the card and admin cost as well and if they refuse then dont let them on the cards ....you will have free ITV anyway .

If a windfarm caused it let them pay for it

watty

The main Italian channels are FTA, but TVP1 and TVP2 are the polish equivalent of RTE1 &2 and are encrypted. (Just told this by a Pole).

Arriang TV can't possibly be the NORMAL korean TV

watty

The only feasible solution is RTE to pay for a special Irish TV only card for Sky box. Sky want too much money for it, is the problem.

Sponge Bob

watty wrote:

The only feasible solution is RTE to pay for a special Irish TV only card for Sky box. Sky want too much money for it, is the problem.

true but how much is too much if the signal loss was caused by

a) a windfarm ....who should pay
and/or
b) a commercial forestry .....who should pay

there will only be a few 1000 of these cards in rural areas.