query: fta services across the EU

DannyD

I'm compiling a list of fta satellite services that offer a service similar to freesat, ie: programmed receiver and defined channels.
So far I know of:
TivùSat : Italy
Freesat : UK
Saorsat : Ireland

I haven't been able to find any such service/platform for Germany. Does one exist? How about the rest of the EU?

SalteeDog

Fransat (5W) and TNTSat(19E) for France. FTV not FTA (i.e. encrypted)

DannyD

Very good. Didn't know about those French ones. How about the rest of the EU?

munchkin_utd

DannyD wrote: »

I haven't been able to find any such service/platform for Germany. Does one exist? How about the rest of the EU?

the only pre programmed receivers are for sky germany and even there the first 100 channel places are reserved for your own self appointed favourites list.

unfortunately the german mentality of loving to take on pointless technical challenges leads to a preferance of a setup offering endless tweaking possibilities over user friendly preprogrammed boxes, even if that means you have a massive headache any time frequencies change and your previously stored channels are lost.

for me a massive headache in reprogramming channels is to a german a chance to feck about endlessly with his sat box !!

Apogee

SES Astra were intending to roll out the 'Entavio' service for German, but it fell apart in the end.

http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2007/08/29/astra-announces-full-entavio-details/

http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2008/05/02/uncertain-future-for-astra-entavio-platform/

munchkin_utd

some products though are preprogrammed with the channels and receive updates via astra.
i.e. this one
http://www.amazon.de/Comag-100-Satelliten-Receiver-Ready-schwarz/dp/B001KL0NRI/ref=pd_sim_ce_1

from the user comments

Die Einrichtung ist sehr simpel ' Anschließen und fertig. Die Sender für Astra sind schon vorprogrammiert und auch sinnvoll sortiert. Auch diverse Favoritenlisten sind schon vorhanden (z.B. HD, Sport, News etc). Der Anschluss dauert daher keine 5 Minuten.

so....
"The setup is very simple. Plug in and its ready. The channels for Astra are already pre-installed and sorted in a logical way. Diverse favourite lists are already preconfigured (HD, Sport, News etc). Connecting it up doesnt even take 5 mins."

Maybe look into the links between such manufacturers and Astra and see if they are an ad hoc alternative to a proper formal freesat?

One thing to note I suppose is that the selling point for freesat is that people in UK/IRL associate sat TV with pay TV - so freesat as a brand is needed to break the mental link that you need a subscription to watch sat tv.

In germany though all main public and private channels (dozens of them) have been always free, so theres no need for a concerted effort to inform the public that you can get sat services for no cost !!!

For the private channels in HD on sat theres the Astra+ system, but its not free.

DannyD

Apogee wrote: »

SES Astra were intending to roll out the 'Entavio' service for German, but it fell apart in the end.

http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2007/08/29/astra-announces-full-entavio-details/

http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2008/05/02/uncertain-future-for-astra-entavio-platform/

Thanks for the replies everyone. I found one for Germany, HD plus. It requires a €50 anual subscription, a hd plus card and a hd plus receiver.

http://www.hd-plus.de/#/alles-ueber-hd-plus/wie-empfange-ich-hd-plus