BBC Four on Eir

An Ciarraioch

Just got this message on the channel when flicking between stations: "This service is now closed. Please upgrade to HD-ready equipment" - receive Eir through Apple TV boxes, and the other BBC channels already come in HD on the basic package.

KildareP

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058330298/bbc-four-on-eir

BBC moved all of their satellite broadcasts to HD only since last week and now have an upgrade message on what were their SD broadcasts.

Sounds like Eir are sourcing BBC Four from satellite and haven't updated this change on their headend.

You'll have to get onto Eir customer support. May I wish you the very best of luck in your endeavours with that 😉

No Bills

It might be worth waiting until 7pm to see if the regular programming starts or the closure message stays in place?

The channel is listed as BBC4 HD on the Eir TV Guide and the Channel List.

I will be interested to see what happens later.

No Bills

BBC4 seems to be working fine on Eir for me now.

An Ciarraioch

Perhaps Eir read Boards threads - not only was the channel working at 7, but the guide listing has been upgraded to HD, with yesterday's message now removed!

JDxtra

So, it’s encoded for satellite delivery then received and encoded again by Eir for IP delivery.

I would have thought they would have a dedicated feed from the BBC with no or minimum loss to ensure the best picture on their platform.

lertsnim

Virgin Media still have it in SD.

mackersdublin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121617209#Comment_121617209

And is only available in SD, and stil no sign of the returned BBC Three (SD or HD) on that platform either

Charles Slane

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121615245#Comment_121615245

It's not encoded on satellite, it's free to air.

JDxtra

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121634108#Comment_121634108

The phrases encoded and encrypted mean different things. Encoding is the the process of compressing the original source broadcast into some other format, normally losing some data to save space. Similar to encoding a music CD to MP3.

In the case of BBC4 on Eir, this is happening twice - once by the BBC for satellite transmission, then again by Eir for delivery over IP. This is not ideal.

Glaceon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121634320#Comment_121634320

I'd imagine that most providers source from satellite these days and re-encode the stream to suit their needs. In the 90s, Cablelink Dublin had a direct feed to RTE, which became apparent when the terrestrial transmitters were switched off every night but the cable feed stayed on. Everything else was fetched off-air - the UK terrestrials via a feed from Divis, and the analogue satellite channels directly from the satellite.

TAFKAlawhec

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121634320#Comment_121634320

Whilst not ideal, as long as Eir's encoding is being given a high enough bitrate and the source also is broadcasting a decent bitrate (which given it's BBC Four the answer is usually "yes" as the Beeb don't tend to really cram their transponders compared to others at 28E) then it shouldn't be too bad, I'd imagine. AFAIK Challenge & Sky News Ireland on Saorview are also sourced from satellite broadcasts at 28E (but Challenge especially takes a noticeable hit in PQ on Saorview) while a lot of cable companies also get compressed feeds as well - one of the advantages of receiving terrestrial in the US is that you're receiving "first generation" compression compared to cable which is usually second compression or sometimes even worse.

Some of the best HD broadcast pictures I've seen are from ARD & ZDF at 19E. They're only 720p but at 50 frames per second and having a video bitrate of over 10 Mbps, they look superb IMO. I wonder what their 1080p terrestrial broadcasts (compressed in HEVC at around 3 Mbps video) are like in comparison.