No worries for finglas residents

portomar

Just in relation to the gardai seizing broadcasting equipment in finglas.

Somebody told me that according to the broadcasting act, It is only illegal to supply and use these boxes for "THE PURPOSE OF PIRATE DECRYPTION AND ACCESSING UPC SERVICES WITHOUT PAYING THE RELEVANT SUBSCRIPTION"

That means according to the law if you are using this box and NOT WATCHING SKY SPORTS, MOVIES ETC then you are doing nothing wrong.

some people have been FORCED to buy these boxes as their own ntl boxes keep freezing and they can't get any service, therefore they conect this digital reciever and watch only those channels they've paid for.



NOT POSTED BY PORTOMAR...I HIJACKED HIS COMPUTRON :-D

watty

Well "Somebody" is misinformed.

There is NO free cable. You are breaking Irish and EU law watching ANY channel, analogue or Digital on UPC without a subscription, or different to the package you paid for.

Also it breaks the T&C you agree when you get a subscription to use your own decoder, even for only the channels you paid for.

NO-ONE is "Forced" to use NTL/UPC or buy illegal equipment.

You are simply wrong on every level.

Infraction for encouraging misuse of cable TV and disseminating false advice.


It is a CRIMINAL offence to make available equipment or methods for the purpose of obtaining PayTV incorrectly.


Satellite TV is different. It is Broadcast. Sky do not own the satellite or the airwaves. Anyone may tune in any un-encrypted (FTA = Free To Air) channel from TV aerial or Dish. That right is enshrined in EU law.
You may not "ACCESS PAY TV SERVICES WITHOUT PAYING THE RELEVANT SUBSCRIPTION to THE AUTHORISED AGENT" on Satellite without "stealing a service".

In Satellite, MMDS, and Cable watching or distributing "Pay TV content" or distributing FTA content that is not Free To Carry*, is breaking civil copyright law too.

The Operators and content providers may pursue people using Copyright Violation. But the Garda/DPP can pursue people for Theft of Service.

* i.e. if you write to BBC you may distribute BBC World TV or World Service radio freely on your Hotel / apartment system, but not BBC1 or BBC2, even though these are FTA, without payment to an operator that has paid royalties or paying royalty direct to BBC.

FTA can only be used free for personal use.

This is a complex area of law but can be simplified:

• Only Aerial & Dish has FTA (The unencypted channels)
• FTA can only be free for personal use, not Apartments/Hotels
• There is no free MMDS or Cable, digital or Analogue no matter what the channel is, even it is free on Satellite or unencrypted on Cable MMDS.
• Only operator supplied decoders are allowed on Cable / MMDS.
• A free terrestrial channel (via aerial, digital or analogue) can be payTV on satellite, then you can't decode it without payment. It may be free on a different satellite, If it un-encrypted the non-cable/non-MMDS then you can watch it free, otherwise not.
• Encrypted Aerial or Dish channels are effectively same rules as Cable/MMDS, except you may use your own decoder with the operators official card.
• In Ireland and UK you may not use your own cable decoder with the valid UPC/NTL/Chorus card, even though this may be permissable for some operators in USA and Germany that do Cable more like a pay only Satellite service.
• No one is FORCED to have payTV. That is against the law.