freesat in the news

NewHillel

STB wrote: »

Channel Share research is conducted by AGB Nielsen...

What is surprising is that of the majority channels watched are those that are free to air (RTE, Tv3, RTE2, BBC, UTV, Ch4 etc) and that is measured across all platforms, beit Sky/UPC/or free to air within Ireland. Infact 9 out of the Top 10 are free to air, yet people pay subscription companies to view them! So the marketing of the Sky's and UPC's of this world is quite effective in the brainwashing department. Majority of punters are beginning to cop onto this as they look for bills to cut. But I strongly suspect that there is a strong lobby to prevent this type of word getting out especially in the papers in any coherent way, outside technical fora!

I believe that there are three reasons:

• Ease of Use
• Inertia
• Ease of Use

The recession will sort out no 2, but not 1 or 3.

This is why I believe that Combo boxes offer by far the best solution for customer and installers alike.
I don't believe it matters that much whether, or not, it is Saorview certified, once there is at least a minimal EPG for the Irish channels.
(Though it would be a 'nice to have' feature.)

IMO, a bigger issue is Freesat certification, just in case there are widespread changes to channel lineups, after the ASO in the UK.

My thinking is simple:

1. There is likely to be much less frequency churn with digital terrestrial and users are already familiar having to add in terrestrial channels manually, on the rare occasions that this might be necessary.

2. Consumers interested in FTA UK channels will want the facility to record as wide a range/choice of program's, as possible, using an EPG. With few exceptions, program's broadcast on Irish DTH, will also be available on the UK channels, plus many more. Hence the recording priority, to the extent that priority is required, is for Freesat, rather than Saorview.

(Sits back and waits for the howl's of protest from the 'you should only use a certified Saorview box, from a member of the ISAA', trade lobby. end/)

Cantona's Collars

Doesn't mask the fact that an average of 4 hours virtually every evening are dedicated to soap operas which have a massive following and dominate FTA channels scheduling.Even when the soaps aren't on we are fed a diet of reality tv at the weekends,as soon as one series comes to an end we get another again with high viewing figure which I personally hope collapses some day so we go back to having some decent stuff made.

Take RTE for example,any of the decent imported stuff is stuck into the graveyard shift and doesn't get the viewing figures it should meanwhile the same stuff is shown on primetime tv on other channels such as Living or FX.
Perhaps RTE could have another channel on Saorview dedicated to these shows,surely they have the capacity to do it.

watty

Combo boxes fail MASSIVELY on ease of use compared to Freesat boxes. Especially when there is any transponder change or new transponder. Most of the channels are on Freesat.

Tony

Watty I'm not sure how a device can fail at something its not meant to do in the first place?

watty wrote: »

Combo boxes fail MASSIVELY on ease of use compared to Freesat boxes. Especially when there is any transponder change or new transponder. Most of the channels are on Freesat.

FRIENDO

zerks wrote: »

Besides,that site that was mentioned earlier is illegal and shouldn't really be mentioned here.

Thanks zerks, I did not know that.

Frank Black

zerks wrote: »

:pac::pac::pac: You'd be lucky to get dialup speeds in parts with Eircom.

Besides,that site that was mentioned earlier is illegal and shouldn't really be mentioned here.

Hmmmm.

There's a liveonlinefooty thread in the Soccer forum with over 1500 posts on it.
Maybe someone should tell a soccer Mod.

Morris Code

FRIENDO wrote: »

The Match on UTV/ITV on a Sunday, brings back great memories.:)

Yes and RTE used to have access to some live matches on Sat afternoon-Sky put paid to that.

Discodog

campo wrote: »

I live in the sticks and I have Eircom need I say more

I use a 3 modem & LOF is fine for me. People can never believe that it is a stream. The quality is very good.

Discodog

zerks wrote: »

:pac::pac::pac: You'd be lucky to get dialup speeds in parts with Eircom.

Besides,that site that was mentioned earlier is illegal and shouldn't really be mentioned here.

That site has a huge thread here & has been in business since 2004

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055494531

moro_original

I have to agree with watty on this one, combo boxes are a massive pain compared to a Freesat box.

Freesat certified boxes are 'fit and forget' devices, whereas any non-Freesat certified box is a 'fit and allow things to gradually go wrong' type of device.*

I wish the Freesat EPG / tuning instructions were open so that media centre software could decode and use it.


(actually, they're more of a 'massive pain in the ass to setup and then things gradually go wrong' device.)

Tony

What you are saying is true but Combo boxes are a "compromise" given our unique broadcasting set up in Ireland . Freesat boxes are excellent for fit and forget but they cannot receive RTE which would be an even bigger pain for a lot of people. Combo boxes out sell Freesat boxes in Ireland by a massive % even given their undoubted limitations.

moro_original wrote: »

I have to agree with watty on this one, combo boxes are a massive pain compared to a Freesat box.

Freesat certified boxes are 'fit and forget' devices, whereas any non-Freesat certified box is a 'fit and allow things to gradually go wrong' type of device.*

NewHillel

watty wrote: »

Combo boxes fail MASSIVELY on ease of use compared to Freesat boxes. Especially when there is any transponder change or new transponder. Most of the channels are on Freesat.

That is why the availability, or not, of a Saorview certified Combo box doesn't really matter - as I stated in my post. What would be useful is a Freesat certified Combo Box, again as stated.
Until then, the uncertified box is the best option for many people.

NewHillel

Tony wrote: »

What you are saying is true but Combo boxes are a "compromise" given our unique broadcasting set up in Ireland . Freesat boxes are excellent for fit and forget but they cannot receive RTE which would be an even bigger pain for a lot of people. Combo boxes out sell Freesat boxes in Ireland by a massive % even given their undoubted limitations.

That is exactly it, for technophobes they are the best free option currently available in the market. I have two, in different rooms, used daily by young and old alike. Meanwhile, my trusty Humax is used only by me. (It's that old 'two remote, plus change TV Input' issue. The 'others' simply don't want to know.)

Cantona's Collars

black francis wrote: »

Hmmmm.

There's a liveonlinefooty thread in the Soccer forum with over 1500 posts on it.
Maybe someone should tell a soccer Mod.

Different rules for different forums,I learned the hard way by posting link to ITV channels the time UPC lost them.

I use streams myself for games that aren't televised but won't post links to the sites in the satellite forum.

liamtech

twinklerunner wrote: »

When Tony spoke about the number of channels on Freesat, he didn't clarify that they include 18 regions of BBC1, 4 regions of BBC2, as well as numerous regions of ITV1, Channel 4 & Channel 5. Hardly transparent.

twinklerunner wrote: »

No, you're missing my point. He was selling Freesat on the basis that there are 130 free channels available, but a huge number of these channels are just regional variations of BBC1, BBC2, ITV1, ITV1+1, C4, C4+1, C5 etc etc

1 BBC1
2 BBC2
3 BBC3
4 BBC4
5 BBC HD
6 BBC1 HD
7 BBC ALBA
8 ITV1
9 ITV1+1
10 ITV2
11 ITV2+1
12 ITV3
13 ITV3+1
14 ITV4
15 ITV4+1
16 ITV1 HD
17 STV
18 STV+1
19 STV HD
20 UTV
21 UTV+1
22 CHANNEL4
23 CHANNEL4+1
24 CHANNEL4 HD
25 E4
26 E4+1
27 MORE4
28 MORE4+1
29 CHANNEL5
30 CHANNEL5+1
31 5USA
32 5USA+1
33 5*
34 5*+1
35 CBS ACTION
36 CBS REALITY
37 CBS REALITY+1
38 CBS DRAMA
39 HORROR CHANNEL
40 HORROR CHANNEL+1
41 BET
42 BET+1
43 BEN
44 SHOWCASE
45 SHOWCASE+1
46 INFORMATION TV
47 INFORMATION TV +1
48 TRAVEL CHANNEL
49 TRAVEL CHANNEL+1
50 HOLIDAY AND CRUISE
51 FILM4
52 FILM4+1
53 MOVIES4MEN
54 MOVIES4MEN+1
55 MOVIES4MEN2
56 MOVIES4MEN2+1
57 TRUE MOVIES
58 TRUE MOVIES 2
59 TRUE ENTERTAINMENT
60 MEN&MOVIES
61 UMP MOVIES
62 BBC NEWS
63 BBC PARLIAMENT
64 SKY NEWS
65 CNN
66 CNBC
67 BLOOMBERG
68 AL JAZEERA
69 FRANCE24
70 RUSSIA TODAY
71 CNC
72 CCTV
73 EURO NEWS
74 NHK WORLD
75 CHART SHOW
76 CHART SHOW+1
77 THE VAULT
78 SCUZZ
79 FLAVA
80 B4U MUSIC
81 ZING
82 CLUBLAND
83 VINTAGE TV
84 BLISS
85 MASSIVE RNB
86 CHANNEL AKA
87 STARZ
88 DANCE NATION
89 MUSIC INDIA
90 CBBC
91 CBEEBIES
92 CITV
93 POP
94 POP GIRL
95 TINY POP
96 KIX
97 POP GIRL+1
98 TINY POP+1
99 FOOD NETWORK
100 FOOD NETWORK+1
101 HORSE AND COUNTRY
102 BODY IN BALANCE
103 VOX AFRICA
104 PROPELLOR
105 SUMO TV
106 THE COMMUNITY CHANNEL
107 FITNESS TV
108 QVC
109 S4C
110 WEDDING TV
111 OCEAN TV
112 RENAULT TV
113 PSYCHIC TV
114 REVALATION
115 DAYSTAR
116 SONLIFE
117 PRICE DROP
118 PITCH TV
119 PITCH WORLD
120 JML DIRECT
121 JML CHOICE
122 IDEAL EXTRA
123 IDEAL WORLD
124 ARGOS TV
125 CREATE AND CRAFT
126 THE JEWELLERY CHANNEL
127 QVC BEUTY
128 ROCKS AND CO
129 BID TV
130 THANE DIRECT

Hum ... looks like 130 individual channels to me - i know i included STV and UTV but they do show different films so... independent in my book..

BUT WAIT! I left out the adult channel's of which there were around 16 (last i checked, correct me if im wrong!)

TONY! you were wrong!!! TUT TUT! TRANSPARENCY PLEASE! lol

SHAME ON YOU!

I actually thought you did a great job in my humble opinion:D - for what its worth well done - i can see why a few posters might think the other guy had a slight bias toward SKY/UPC, but thats expected every time this subject is discussed..

If only we had a true PVR/COMBI available, then critics wouldn't have anywhere to run too -

Incidentally i know that on FREESAT itself, many of the channels i listed are not in the EPG - but considering it was the combi box being discussed for the most part that is irrelevant

Again well done!

twinklerunner

Tony wrote: »

Firstly I was selling nothing and secondly the interview lasts only minutes and quite understandably the producer does not want it getting bogged down with irrelevancies. Think you need to get a grip there chief.

Oh right Tony, so you weren't promoting Freesat installation? You say 'irrelevancies', I say important detail. Certainly no need for me to grip anything However, I'm sure you agree that some of the reporting on the alternatives to Sky or Upc leaves a lot to be desired. We seem to do confusion very well in this country. As for the reporting of same in the newspapers, well don't get me started. Don't get me wrong though, I'm all for punters going with Saorview & Freesat. I just like clarity on the matter because it really is very straight forward. Take care

Tony

liamtech wrote: »

TONY! you were wrong!!! TUT TUT! TRANSPARENCY PLEASE! lolSHAME ON YOU!

I know I screwed up (theres just no pleasing some people) . During the broadcast I was actually receiving SMS texts asking me to mention certain things which I found incredible. Luckily I had the sense to leave the phone outside the studio .

liamtech wrote: »

I actually thought you did a great job in my humble opinion:D

Thanks for the kind words

liamtech wrote: »

i can see why a few posters might think the other guy had a slight bias toward SKY/UPC, but thats expected every time this subject is discussed..

I can kind of see that point but I thought Adrian Weckler gave quite a balanced view as you would expect from a good journalist and I could not really disagree with anything he said, it was all pretty valid in my view.

liamtech wrote: »

If only we had a true PVR/COMBI available, then critics wouldn't have anywhere to run too -

Indeed but the question is would guys be prepared to pay the much higher price ?

liamtech wrote: »

Incidentally i know that on FREESAT itself, many of the channels i listed are not in the EPG - but considering it was the combi box being discussed for the most part that is irrelevant
Again well done!

Thanks again

liamtech

twinklerunner wrote: »

Oh right Tony, so you weren't promoting Freesat installation? You say 'irrelevancies', I say important detail. Certainly no need for me to grip anything However, I'm sure you agree that some of the reporting on the alternatives to Sky or Upc leaves a lot to be desired. We seem to do confusion very well in this country. As for the reporting of same in the newspapers, well don't get me started. Don't get me wrong though, I'm all for punters going with Saorview & Freesat. I just like clarity on the matter because it really is very straight forward. Take care

Seriously there are well over 130 UNIQUE INDIVIDUAL CHANNELS available on FTA28.2 -

for the record UPC list RTEjnr, TRTE, and Cula4 as individual channels on there packages DESPITE the fact they are simply parts of RTE1, RTE2, and TG4 -

Also included in there 'QUALITY' packages are the likes of

CITYTV
EWTN
the God channel

I understand and accept that many people have no time for FTA TV - they think its unreliable, costly to set up and missing what they consider to be Crucial channels - thats their decision... but with SKY currently advertising in advance of the Digital switchover as if they have 'actually got anything to do with analogue switchoff' and UPC listing sections of daytime programming as individual channels.... let he who is without sin - and in all cases.. Caveat emptor

I for one will never go to pay TV while the current alternative exists - its just too good - and obviously i dont watch many of the fringe stations, but hey - im not paying for them?

Badgermonkey

Tony wrote: »

Combo boxes out sell Freesat boxes in Ireland by a massive % even given their undoubted limitations.

If retailers in ROI chose to carry & market Freesat branded boxes, I wonder how much that percentage would tilt?

Declan on the Currys forum has said there's a licencing impediment on stocking Freeview, but no such restriction exists for Freesat.

A 'holy grail' solution covering all bases ain't here yet. Any inconvenience as a consequence of running Saorview & Freesat side by side is way overblown imo and is compensated by a far superior end-user experience.

Tony

From your reply its pretty obvious that your are not in posession of the facts as Liamtech has since pointed out . Theres little point in debating with someone who is either ignorant or has another agenda and I certainly do not propose to take responsibility for others reporting skills.

If you have a problem with the content of the interview I suggest you take it up with Today FM.

twinklerunner wrote: »

Oh right Tony, so you weren't promoting Freesat installation? You say 'irrelevancies', I say important detail. Certainly no need for me to grip anything However, I'm sure you agree that some of the reporting on the alternatives to Sky or Upc leaves a lot to be desired. We seem to do confusion very well in this country. As for the reporting of same in the newspapers, well don't get me started. Don't get me wrong though, I'm all for punters going with Saorview & Freesat. I just like clarity on the matter because it really is very straight forward. Take care

moro_original

Badgermonkey wrote: »

Any inconvenience as a consequence of running Saorview & Freesat side by side is way overblown imo and is compensated by a far superior end-user experience.

Exactly. Say you have a TV with two set top boxes:

HDMI1 = Saorview approved STB - fit and forget
HDMI2 = Freesat approved STB - fit and forget

No one will ever have to manually update the channels on this setup. This is more convenient than turning the satellite receiver on and discovering some channels don't work, and to fix it you have to look up new transponder settings on the Internet. Also, having to manually assign channel numbers and all that hassle.

Also, in the future it will become:

Built-in tuner = Saorview
HDMI1 = Freesat

Tony

Retailers have in reality always been free to sell Freesat branded boxes, market forces I think dictates what sells and what does not . Really what I meant was since combos became available and with the advent of Saorview the sales of freesat only boxes has been in serious decline. Very few people it seems want two boxes and two remotes.

Badgermonkey wrote: »

If retailers in ROI chose to carry & market Freesat branded boxes, I wonder how much that percentage would tilt?

Cantona's Collars

Good point on UPC naming kids programming as extra channels,very sneaky imo.

Regarding a one for all box,a trick has been missed here.The time to analogue switchoff will be here before we know it and still no sign of a certified combi box with or without pvr capability and ease of use.This is where Sky holds the aces,they are advertising now for digital switchover and despite the monthly charge they'll hoover up a lot of customers as the lack of certification and decent public info campaigns continues.
I know Saorview is just a replacement for analogue but a lack of a proper certified combi box is a big boo boo.People want easy to use tech and it should be provided.Case in point being I had to swap out my fta boxes for old Skyboxes as the missus prefers them,easier to navigate for her.

liamtech

zerks wrote: »

Good point on UPC naming kids programming as extra channels,very sneaky imo.

Regarding a one for all box,a trick has been missed here.The time to analogue switchoff will be here before we know it and still no sign of a certified combi box with or without pvr capability and ease of use.This is where Sky holds the aces,they are advertising now for digital switchover and despite the monthly charge they'll hoover up a lot of customers as the lack of certification and decent public info campaigns continues.
I know Saorview is just a replacement for analogue but a lack of a proper certified combi box is a big boo boo.People want easy to use tech and it should be provided.Case in point being I had to swap out my fta boxes for old Skyboxes as the missus prefers them,easier to navigate for her.

Agreed 100%.

We have been waiting well over a year since the Triax 537 and still no sign... it beggars belief -

STB

zerks wrote: »

Doesn't mask the fact that an average of 4 hours virtually every evening are dedicated to soap operas which have a massive following and dominate FTA channels scheduling.Even when the soaps aren't on we are fed a diet of reality tv at the weekends,as soon as one series comes to an end we get another again with high viewing figure which I personally hope collapses some day so we go back to having some decent stuff made.

Take RTE for example,any of the decent imported stuff is stuck into the graveyard shift and doesn't get the viewing figures it should meanwhile the same stuff is shown on primetime tv on other channels such as Living or FX.
Perhaps RTE could have another channel on Saorview dedicated to these shows,surely they have the capacity to do it.

The viewing statistics are measured across all channels and is available for the whole day.

There is nothing being masked. It is being captured. Yes plenty of people watch soaps during peak times. That is why these programmes are shown at peak times! They choose to ! This is their viewing habits. Because you dont, doesnt make others wrong! Certainly its where the advertisers place their money and they arent stupid.

You are in the minority.

These figures are those with multichannel share. If you want I could show you the top 20 programmes

Nothingbetter2d

twinklerunner wrote: »

No, you're missing my point. He was selling Freesat on the basis that there are 130 free channels available, but a huge number of these channels are just regional variations of BBC1, BBC2, ITV1, ITV1+1, C4, C4+1, C5 etc etc

i have a pc setup with media centre on it.... i have a hauppage hvr 4000 dvb-t2/dbv-s2 tuner on it

out of all of the channels between saor view and freesat i have 88 channels worth watching.

disabled are the dozens of religious channels, the dozens of channels of scantly clad women waiting for you to spend €2 per minute phoning them, the dozen or so foreign language channels, and the 50 or so shopping channels

FIRE

watty wrote: »

Subscribe on a Freesat service is an oxymoron.

If you want Sky Sports you need Sky or UPC. However people that have it watch it less than 2% of the time. Perhaps visiting the Pub occasionally would be cheaper. There is a lot of Rugby and Football between all the free channels ( TG4, RTE, S4C, BBC, ITV, C4 etc)

Do you mean Sport or Premiership circus?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/jul/19/freesat-considers-pay-tv

knew i seen freesat thinking of pay tv somewhere.

Nothingbetter2d

zerks wrote: »

Good point on UPC naming kids programming as extra channels,very sneaky imo.

Regarding a one for all box,a trick has been missed here.The time to analogue switchoff will be here before we know it and still no sign of a certified combi box with or without pvr capability and ease of use.This is where Sky holds the aces,they are advertising now for digital switchover and despite the monthly charge they'll hoover up a lot of customers as the lack of certification and decent public info campaigns continues.
I know Saorview is just a replacement for analogue but a lack of a proper certified combi box is a big boo boo.People want easy to use tech and it should be provided.Case in point being I had to swap out my fta boxes for old Skyboxes as the missus prefers them,easier to navigate for her.

there is a saorview/freesat combo box with dvr

http://www.satellite.ie/acatalog/HD_Ariva_120_Combo_Box.html

Tony

Thanks for the link but I don't thing the 120 combo could rightly be described as saorview/freesat. Even though it receives channels from both services it does not have auto update or red button features.

Nothingbetter2d wrote: »

there is a saorview/freesat combo box with dvr

http://www.satellite.ie/acatalog/HD_Ariva_120_Combo_Box.html