Bbc Prime And Bbc World

jimbob

Since we cant get BBC Choice, BBC 4, or news 24, how come we cant get BBC prime or BBC world. These would be great additions to the ROI lineup
Every other country seems to be able to receive them so why cant we.
And with NTL after signing up BBC world i don't understand the problem.
You might say Sky don't want competion with sky news but isn't sky news generally UK news unlike BBC world which is practically wolrd news (i think)
And sky one already has plenty of competition from others Like E4 so whats the problem with BBC prime.

philengland

I think the BBC should somehow make BBC World and BBC Prime avalible to you in Eire...you are not in the UK...and the BBC Prime/World channels are suppose to be avalible to all outside the UK....I think you should have access to them

Charles Slane

BBC World is Free to Air on Hotbird, so technically is easily available in Ireland. I've had it for years, and you're not missing anything really. A more "world" slant on the news, but not very interestingly produced or presented.

If you check out their listings, you'll see that BBC Prime is just a "best of " BBC channel, so anything that's on it has already been shown on BBC1 or 2. Since we already have these channels on Sky Digital, I can't see any reason to include them in an Irish package other than as a kind of "catch-up" channel. It wouldn't even be particularly good for that as a lot of programmes are a week or so late (I've seen it in foreign climes).

What would be far more interesting would be the inclusion of BBC Choice, 4, News 24, and the radio stations on the Irish EPG, and there's already a monster campaign thread for that.

West Briton

But again, folks, I won't hold my breath waiting for Choice, News 24 and Four to be legitimately available in "Eire".

We are considered "Domestic" when it comes to many things, and "Foreign" in others. Access to the sainted licence payers' telly comes high on the foreign list, seemingly.

philengland

just a moment....is BBC1 and BBC2 avalible in Eire?... if yes, that should make RTE1 and N2 avalible in Northern Ireland should it not?
I do know that some programmes on the RTE channels blocked out when one or another programme on cable when its being shown in Northern Ireland on another channel (ie c5), cant they just do the same for the Northern Ireland reception on Sky Digital with RTE1/N2?
(do that make sence?)

West Briton

It should, but there is a major complication in that RTÉ buys rights for US programming like Friends, ER and Ally McBeal for the Republic of Ireland, and shows these programmes well in advance of their showings on E4. Home and Away is also ahead of Channel 5 (Pedantic point: "Eire" is only correct in the Irish language and in any case is the Irish for "Ireland").

Any overspill reception in Northern Ireland (and northern Wales BTW) is of course "accidental", however, Channel Four and Channel 5 have objected to RTÉ being available to Sky Digital customers in Northern Ireland on this basis.

Analogue transmission can be "accidently on purpose". For many reasons the UK government were happy to have the analogue output from the Divis transmitter near Belfast available over much of the Republic, and the Irish government were equally happy that the Clermont Carn transmitter gives reciprocal reception over much of Northern Ireland. However, since the digital transmissions on Sky have to be enabled on a card-by-card basis, the enforcers of US copyright seek to have their rights for fees over a market respected.

The whole thing has gone to arbitration to some body in Switzerland..if the three RTÉ channels were made available across Britain and Ireland then the rights costs for US programming would proportionately increase from a population of 3,800,000 (RoI), plus the 1,500,000 in NI to the 65,000,000 or so across the whole of the British Isles.

Hence RTÉ's care that its test transmissions on Sky Digital can only be seen to RoI family pack subscribers.

Mossy Monk

what programmes get blocked from RTÉ channels on NTL Digital in the North

we are allowed to subscribe to BBC Prime and BBC World if we want but what's the point with BBC1 and 2 on Sky with BBC World FTA on Hotbird