Free-to-air ( FTA ) services are television (TV) and radio services broadcast in unencrypted form, allowing any person with the appropriate receiving equipment to receive the signal and view or listen to the content without requiring a subscription , other ongoing cost, or one-off fee (e.g., pay-per-view ). In the traditional sense, this is carried on terrestrial radio signals and received with an antenna.
79-447: Freesat is a British free-to-air satellite television service, first formed as a joint venture between the BBC and ITV plc and now owned by Everyone TV (itself owned by all of the four UK public service broadcasters , BBC , ITV , Channel 4 and Channel 5 ). The service was formed as a memorandum in 2007 and has been marketed since 6 May 2008. Freesat offers a satellite alternative to
158-441: A wideband LNB which is incompatible with most models of Freesat receiver. A "Hybrid" Sky Q LNB can be used as it has both wideband outputs for Sky Q and conventional universal LNB outputs for non-Sky Q receivers, including Freesat. In 2020 a new generation of Freesat boxes was launched, these work with regular LNBs and also Sky Q LNBs. For users who do not currently have a satellite dish, Freesat offers an installation service which
237-558: A Sat4free brand name. The requirement to enter a UK postcode was removed; the systems were instead set to use the version of the electronic programme guide appropriate for Northern Ireland through a hard-coded Belfast postcode. Sat4free was permanently closed down shortly after. In Ireland there is now an alternate FTA satellite service, Saorsat which only carries the RTE channels. Free-to-air FTA also refers to channels and broadcasters providing content for which no subscription
316-424: A backwards EPG and a Showcase section offering recommendations. HTML versions of BBC iPlayer and ITV Hub will also launch, both services use MHEG-5 on first generation devices. YouTube launched on Freetime receivers on 7 March 2013, the first deployment of YouTube's HTML app in a Western European TV service. 4oD launched on Freesat's Freetime receivers on 27 June 2013, making Freesat the first UK TV platform to host
395-402: A black urban audience. In 1985, a new service called TV4 was introduced, carrying sports and entertainment programming, using the channel shared by TV2 and TV3, which ended transmissions at 9:30 pm. In 1992, TV2, TV3 and TV4 were combined into a new service called CCV (Contemporary Community Values). A third channel was introduced known as TSS, or Topsport Surplus, Topsport being the brand name for
474-439: A combination of the two. In Croatia eleven national channels are free-to-air: HRT 1 , HRT 2 , HRT 3 , HRT 4 ( HRT being national broadcaster), Nova TV , Doma TV , RTL , RTL2 , RTL Kockica , CMC and SPTV . There are around 21 local or regional channels. Before June 2020, they used to be transmitted via three OiV (state-owned public broadcasting company) DVB-T and one DVB-T2 ( HEVC/H.265 ) MUXes . As of June 2020,
553-540: A corporate rebranding. The channel's highest ratings to date were on 12 February 2008 for the second part of the CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Without a Trace crossover. The show averaged 2.58 million viewers between 10:00 and 11:00 p.m. equating to a multichannel share of 13.9%. Those numbers made the show the most-watched multichannel programme in its slot – beating every other channel (digital and analogue) aside from BBC One , and
632-484: A free-to-air set-top box. In Korea, KBS , MBC (the two main public broadcasters), SBS (privately owned, but available for free to viewers), and EBS (including both TV and radio ) are the free-to-air broadcasting stations. They dominate more than 80% of advertisement profits, according to the recent survey from the agency. Due to the recent government's decision, digital television service for all free-to-air networks would be scheduled before 2012, followed by
711-537: A full-time channel called ITV1 HD , simulcasting the main ITV1 channel. The name was changed back to ITV HD on 14 January 2013. BBC One HD , a high-definition simulcast of BBC One, was made available on Freesat and other platforms on 3 November 2010. Channel 4 HD also became available on the platform on 19 April 2011 but was withdrawn on 22 February 2018. NHK World HD was added to Freesat on 9 May 2011; it shared its channel number with its standard definition counterpart and
790-471: A local low-power repeater. In 1986, the SABC's monopoly was challenged by the launch of a subscription-based service known as M-Net, backed by a consortium of newspaper publishers on 1 October. However, as part of its licensing restrictions, it could not broadcast news programmes, which were still the preserve of the SABC, although M-Net started broadcasting a current affairs programme called Carte Blanche in 1988. As
869-585: A managed service with an Electronic Programme Guide and interactive features similar to the Freeview service launched three years earlier. Unlike Freeview, however, these features are only available on approved receivers manufactured under licence from Freesat. The initial plan was to launch the service in early 2006. This was postponed to Autumn 2007 as approval from the BBC Trust was only received in April 2007. However,
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#1732851668685948-460: A multitude of programming channels in many languages, spanning many new channels, so they can get National support, which ultimately leads to carriage by cable systems, to additionally support the high costs of broadcasting signals in this way. Nevertheless, free-to-air satellite TV is a viable addition to home video systems, not only for the reception of specialized content but also for use in locations where terrestrial ATSC over-the-air reception
1027-430: A number of local channels were available but since have closed, such as Cue TV were also available. Local stations such as CTV and Face TV (previously Triangle TV) were free-to-air analogue PAL transmissions prior to CTV migrating to the free-to-air digital DVB-T service and Face TV's terrestrial free-to-air service shutoff from December 2013. A digital terrestrial version of Freeview was launched in 2008, which, unlike
1106-455: A public service broadcast multiplex and a commercial multiplex, both DVB-T2. The informal term "council telly" is sometimes used for free-to-air television in the UK, evoking a basic service accessible to all. There are a number of competing systems in use. Early adopters used C-band dishes several feet in diameter to receive analog microwave broadcasts, and later digital microwave broadcasts using
1185-454: A satellite from which transmission covers a much larger area than just the UK and content licensing means that they had to be encrypted). As a result, a few Freesat viewers (who cannot receive free-to-view, encrypted content) were moved to regional variations not corresponding to their actual location. Other available regions may be chosen by putting a different postcode into the box for the preferred television region. BBC English Regional content
1264-525: A third party, with Freesat operating the conditional access system that would underpin it. The plan is to use the upcoming launch of G2 spec receivers to add support for Digital Rights Management and, where technically possible, on existing receivers. On 29 November 2011, a beta trial for the subscription-based on demand movie service BoxOffice365 was added to the Freesat EPG. On 11 March 2013, BoxOffice365 withdrew from Freesat. The Freetime guide also features
1343-409: Is available for Humax increased to a 30-day catch-up service from the original 7-day service but with a larger ITV ident/logo in the top left of the screen, Manhattan, and some Sagemcom devices, however it is not available on 2nd Generation Humax devices to viewers using DG and TD postcodes. It is not clear why this is the case. In 2010, Freesat also indicated an intent to launch a receiver featuring
1422-511: Is expected, even though they may be delivered to the viewer/listener by another carrier for which a subscription is required, e.g., cable television , the Internet , or satellite . These carriers may be mandated (or OPT) in some geographies to deliver FTA channels even if a premium subscription is not present (providing the necessary equipment is still available), especially where FTA channels are expected to be used for emergency broadcasts, similar to
1501-572: Is free-to-air, but the more conventional broadcast systems in use mean that SiriusXM style in-car reception is not possible. Cable and satellite distribution allow many more channels to carry sports, movies and specialist channels which are not broadcast as FTA. The viewing figures for these channels are generally much lower than the FTA channels. Various European countries broadcast a large number of channels via free-to-air terrestrial , generally as an analog PAL / SECAM transmission, digital DVB-T / T2 or
1580-689: Is grouped under Paramount Networks UK & Australia division. It was launched on 16 October 2006 as Five US and was the second digital terrestrial television channel in the UK to be launched by RTL Group (the owner at the time) as part of their multi-channel strategy, the first being Five Life (now 5Star ). 5USA concentrates on showing imported movies and programmes from the United States . The channel's original broadcast hours were from 4:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m., however it extended its hours starting at 12:00 p.m. in June 2007. On 1 November 2015,
1659-690: Is incomplete and additional channels are desired. Australia has five major free-to-air networks: the two public broadcasting networks - ABC and SBS , and three commercial networks - Seven Network , Nine Network , and Network 10 . Traditionally each network had only a single channel in a geographic area, but with the advent of digital television each network started broadcasting several SD multichannels, such as 7two , 9Gem , 10 Bold , and SBS Food , as well as at least one HD channel. There are also free-to-air community television channels in some major cities. Viewers in remote parts of Australia are able to access many Australian free-to-air channels using
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#17328516686851738-587: Is made available through retailers and which is advertised in a leaflet included with Freesat receivers. A suitable dish may also be installed by the user or a non-Freesat-affiliated installer. While Freesat systems work in Ireland, official branded Freesat receivers are not widely or officially marketed in the country. On 23 October 2008, several Irish retail chains, including Maplin , Tesco Ireland and PowerCity began offering modified Freesat systems from Grundig and Alba that had their Freesat branding replaced with
1817-555: Is no concept of paying for a TV license. The acronym used for DVB-T in Spain is TDT ( Digital terrestrial television in Spain [ es ] ). In the UK, the five main free-to-air television networks are BBC One , BBC Two , ITV , Channel 4 and Channel 5 . Around 108 free-to-air television channels and 30 free-to-air radio channels are available terrestrially via the Freeview DVB-T service. Seven HD channels are also broadcast via
1896-412: Is occupied by pay-TV operators Shaw Direct and Bell Satellite TV , although larger C-band dishes can pick up some content. FTA signals may be scattered across multiple satellites, requiring a motor or multiple LNBs to receive everything. This differs from Europe, where FTA signals are commonly concentrated on a few specific satellites. Another difference between North American FTA and FTA in most of
1975-502: Is positioned to receive these services will be capable of receiving Freesat, with the addition of a suitable receiver (or Television with the receiver built-in). Provided that the LNB has sufficient outputs, a single dish may be used to receive multiple services (i.e. Sky and Freesat). However, a dish with an LNB for the Sky Q service cannot be used with most types of Freesat receivers because Sky Q uses
2054-511: Is the LF7700 (discontinued mid-2010), with screen sizes of 32", 37", 42" and 47". Sony has released two televisions with Freesat receivers, the W5810 and Z5800 series, available from sizes 32" up to 52" and in 100 Hz and 200 Hz alternatives. The service makes use of the same group of Astra satellites at 28.2°E as the Sky subscription satellite service. This means that a satellite dish which
2133-576: The 1-1-2 (112) emergency service provided by mobile phone operators and manufacturers. On the other side, free-to-view (FTV) is generally available without subscription , but it is digitally encoded and may be restricted geographically. Free-to-air is often used for international broadcasting , making it something of a video equivalent to shortwave radio . Most FTA retailers list free-to-air channel guides and content available in North America for free-to-air use. Although commonly described as free,
2212-466: The 2012 Summer Paralympics in high definition from the following day; the three channels also share their EPG slots. On 14 February 2013, RT HD was added to Freesat, sharing its channel number with its standard definition simulcast. On 26 March 2013, BBC HD was replaced by a high-definition simulcast of BBC Two . On 13 June 2013, an HD stream of the BBC Red Button was temporarily made available on
2291-592: The Freeview service on digital terrestrial television , with a broadly similar selection of channels available without subscription for users purchasing a receiver. The service also makes use of the additional capacity available on satellite broadcasting to offer a selection of 60 (as of December 2023) high-definition channels from broadcasters including BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, Sky Mix , Arirang TV , Bloomberg , Daystar , Discovery Networks , France 24 , NHK , and TRT World . Freesat's main competitors are
2370-512: The INSAT-4B and GSAT-15 satellite covering India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and parts of Afghanistan, and Myanmar. In India, the channels are marketed as DD Direct Plus / DD Free Dish by Doordarshan , India's national broadcaster and other Indian private broadcaster ABS Free Dish from the ABS2 satellite. One can receive free-to-air regional TV channels using a small DTH antenna and
2449-599: The YouView service (then called 'Project Canvas') and said that the video on-demand services 4oD (now All 4 ) and Demand 5 were under consideration On 28 July 2011, the BBC Trust approved proposals to introduce the listing of pay content delivered on-demand via broadband. The trust will allow the BBC to continue to play a part in Freesat as the plans did not represent a significant change to
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2528-547: The digital terrestrial television (DTT) Freeview platform, and the free-to-air services on the IPTV and DTT YouView platform from EE TV and TalkTalk TV , the cable Virgin TV platform and the satellite Sky UK platform. In February 2021, it was announced that, subject to regulatory approval, Freesat was to merge its operation with Digital UK (now Everyone TV), the joint venture of BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, which manages
2607-670: The 3.7-4.2 GHz band. Today, although large C-band dishes can still receive some content, the 11.7-12.2 GHz K u band is also used. Ku-band signals can be received using smaller dishes, often as small as under a meter (3 feet, 3 inches) in diameter, allowing FTA satellite to be picked up from smaller spaces such as apartment balconies (note, however, that these dishes are not quite as small as those commonly used for commercial services such as Dish Network , DirecTV , Bell ExpressVu , Shaw Direct , etc. Dishes intended for those services may not deliver an adequate signal on Ku-band). The European-developed DVB-S and DVB-S2 standards are
2686-877: The All4 catch-up service. However, Channel 4 HD returned to Freesat on 8 December 2021. Channel 5 HD and S4C HD continue to broadcast on Freesat, along with all the Channel 4 SD (standard definition) channels including Channel 4 SD, Film 4, E4, 4Seven and the +1 channels. In April 2022, QVC launched its HD service on Freesat, followed by ITV2 HD , ITV3 HD and ITV4 HD in November 2022, and in February 2023, BBC completed its upgrade to HD of BBC Parliament , BBC Red Button and BBC Alba , and all its regional services (removing access to regional services for SD-only receivers). On 9 January 2024, BBC closed all SD channels broadcasting by satellite, and on
2765-904: The Astra 2D satellite since launching on the Sky platform some years earlier, also made their channels free-to-air. On 18 November 2008, Channel 5 commenced broadcasting a single channel via Freesat, eventually adding its ancillary services 5USA and 5* (now known as 5STAR) three years later in December 2011. It later added Channel 5 HD to Freesat following the removal of BBC Three (BBC iii) as an SD and HD TV channel (when it moved to online and BBC iPlayer only). Viva moved from free-to-view to free-to-air on satellite on 19 March 2013 before launching on Freesat on 2 April 2013. On 2 April 2013, all seven of Box Television 's channels left Sky's subscription package, with six becoming free-to-air on satellite; on 15 April four of
2844-574: The DVB-S2 Optus VAST service. New Zealand has a number of FTA broadcasters such as Television New Zealand 's TVNZ 1 and TVNZ 2 , as well as Discovery New Zealand 's Three and Bravo , Sky Network Television 's Sky Open and the government subsidised the Whakaata Māori and Te Reo channels. Four channels, TVNZ 1, TVNZ 2, Three, Bravo are also broadcast timeshifted by +1 hour on Freeview and Sky platforms. A broadcast of parliament and
2923-598: The DVB-T MUXes were switched off and all eleven national channels are now distributed via two OiV DVB-T2 (HEVC/H.265) MUXes. In Denmark, six channels are as of 2020 free-to-air, distributed via 18 main transmitter sites and 30 smaller, auxiliary transmitters. The six channels ( DR1 , DR2 , DR Ramasjang , Folketinget , TV2 Regionerne, and sign language/local programme) come in one DVB-T2 multiplex . In France, there are 26 national television channels (MPEG-4 HD video) and 41 local television channels broadcast free-to-air via
3002-503: The EPG. On 16 July 2013, the BBC announced they would be launching five new HD channels in early 2014. The five channels (HD simulcasts of BBC Three, BBC Four, CBBC, CBeebies and BBC News) were in fact launched early – on 10 December 2013. BBC Three and BBC Three HD have been rebranded as BBC iii and are now only available on the BBC iPlayer, but in HD, if your television is HD-ready and can be connected to
3081-536: The Freesat on-demand services, offering catch-up programming from UKTV's channels, including Dave , Yesterday , Really and Drama . In March 2019, Channel 5's Demand 5 app provided catch-up for Channel 5 , 5 STAR , 5 USA , 5 SELECT , 5 Spike and Paramount Network was replaced on Freesat by My5, with a change in the user interface, a selection of programmes from partner channels, BLAZE , BET , PBS America , Real Stories, Spark and Together , and some programmes shown online exclusively or ahead of broadcast. At
3160-698: The HTML5 version of 4oD. Demand 5 arrived on Freesat on 6 August 2013. In December 2015, Freesat announced the availability of an application for the Netflix subscription TV streaming service on the Humax HDR-1000S, HDR-1010S, HDR-1100S and HB-1000S Freetime receivers. Netflix is expected to be available on other Freetime receivers in the future. In January 2016, Saorview , the Irish free TV service, announced it would be launching an online catch-up and on-demand TV service using
3239-569: The Humax HDR-1000S. In September 2018, Freesat announced that Arris International would produce Freesat's 3rd generation set-top box. The new boxes, which support 4K, were eventually released in February 2020 by CommScope , who purchased Arris International in 2019. Following the initial launch, Panasonic introduced three plasma televisions with integrated HD Freesat receivers. At the end of October 2008, Panasonic brought out two more sizes which are 32" and 37". In April 2009, LG launched four LCD TVs with built-in Freesat receivers. The LG series
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3318-526: The PAL system for colour television, being only the second terrestrial television service in sub-Saharan Africa to launch with a colour-only service, Zanzibar in Tanzania having introduced the first such service in 1973. (Tanzania itself did not establish a television service until the early 1990s, similarly concerned about the expense and perceived threat to cultural norms.) The Government, advised by SABC technicians, took
3397-832: The SABC was finally allowed to introduce a television service. Initially, the proposal was for two television channels, one in English and Afrikaans, aimed at white audiences, and another, known as TV Bantu, aimed at black viewers. However, when television was finally introduced, there was only one channel with airtime divided evenly between English and Afrikaans, alternating between the two languages. Test transmissions in Johannesburg began on 5 May 1975, followed in July by ones in Cape Town and Durban. Nationwide services finally commenced on 5 January 1976. In common with most of Western Europe, South Africa used
3476-544: The SABC's sport coverage, but this was replaced by NNTV (National Network TV), an educational, non-commercial channel, in 1994. The main channel, now called TV1, was divided evenly between English and Afrikaans, as before. It also became available in Walvis Bay , an enclave of South Africa in Namibia, which was itself then under South African administration, with a live feed of the channel broadcast via Intelsat being retransmitted on
3555-507: The TNT DVB-T2 service. In Germany there are various free-to-air DVB-T services available, the number of which varies by region. Das Erste , ZDF , ZDFneo , ZDFinfo , 3sat , Arte , KiKA and Phoenix are available throughout the country, in addition to at least one region-dependent channel which is provided by the regional ARD member. Additionally, ARD's EinsFestival , EinsPlus and tagesschau24 are variously available in some parts of
3634-742: The analogue and free-to-air satellite options, supports high-definition broadcasts for TVNZ 1, TVNZ 2, Three and Bravo. While, airing the timeshifted channels also. In Brazil the main FTA satellite is the Star One D2, it holds approximately C-band analog channels (1985-2024), including all major networks like TV Globo (feed nacional digital HDTV ), SBT (feed nacional digital HDTV ), Record (feed nacional digital HDTV ), RedeTV! , Band (feed nacional digital HDTV ), Cultura , Futura (feed nacional digital HDTV ), TV Verdes Mares (feed nacional digital HDTV ), Canal Gov, Canal Libras and others, 36 C-band and KU-band digital HDTV channels. In Chile
3713-613: The approval previously given in 2007. There was no need for a Public Value Test or for further regulatory process. Under the plans, some pay content, such as films, would be added to the Freesat EPG alongside the existing free-to-air content. However, there would be no adult material or live-streamed sports coverage. Freesat itself will not supply any of the on-demand content but will allow third parties to do so through its EPG. Some content will also be made available through existing channels using an on-screen prompt that would take viewers to an on-demand environment. Pay-TV sales would be handled by
3792-482: The broadcast, streaming and EPG of Freeview. In July 2021, Digital UK acquired Freesat from its two shareholders, the BBC and ITV and the merger was completed. In January 2023, Digital UK changed its name to Everyone TV. The BBC and ITV, the two biggest free-to-air broadcasters in the UK, make their services available digitally through three routes: free-to-air via digital terrestrial and digital satellite, and subscription-only via digital cable. On digital terrestrial ,
3871-493: The channel began broadcasting from 7:00 a.m. until 3:00 a.m. The channel changes its programme slots and shows from time to time. British comedian Russell Kane was the 'face of the channel', presenting short clips between some programmes which acted as space fillers to comply with advertising regulations in the UK (UK regulations allows fewer minutes of advertising than in the US) until 16 February 2009. The music used during
3950-421: The channels have always been available free-to-air with the appropriate equipment. In 2007 Freeview was available to only 73% of the population. After analogue TV services were replaced in the digital switchover , this increased to 98.5% for the public service channels and 90% for the full 'Freeview' service. To provide more widespread coverage and a larger number of channels, a digital satellite alternative
4029-417: The channels – The Box , Kerrang! TV , Kiss TV and Smash Hits – were added to the Freesat EPG. This was followed by Heat and Magic on 29 April. The free-to-air channels can be received using any standard satellite ( DVB-S ) receiver, although those not licensed by Freesat will need to be re-tuned manually if/when channel frequencies are changed. (See next section.) The Freesat project aims to provide
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#17328516686854108-586: The channels. Similarly, to use the Videoguard encryption, the broadcasters needed to pay a fee to NDS Group . In May 2003, the BBC moved most of its channels from the Astra 2A satellite to Astra 2D , which has a footprint that focuses more tightly on the UK. This move allowed the BBC to stop encrypting its broadcasts while continuing to meet its rights obligations. It dropped the encryption two months later. Two months later, ITV, whose channels had already been located on
4187-653: The commercial version of the Freetime software, including EPG roll-back and remote recording, with Freesat providing a fully managed service. In September 2016, the BBC closed the MHEG version of the BBC iPlayer (V2) used on some older connected TVs and receivers (manufactured between 2008 and 2014). Freesat Freetime equipment using the HbbTV version was unaffected. The BBC recommended that consumers should purchase replacement receivers to continue to receive iPlayer. In October 2016, STV Player
4266-528: The cost of free-to-air services is met through various means: Up until 2012, Israel had several free-to-air channels. The major ones rating-wise were Channel 2 , Channel 10 , and Channel 1 . The other ones were Educational , Channel 33 , and Knesset 99 . Since 2018, Israel has several new free-to-air channels that replace their older counterparts. The major ones rating-wise: are Channel 12 , Channel 13 , Kan 11 , and Channel 20 . The others are Kan Educational , Makan 33 , and Knesset Channel . In 1971,
4345-617: The country, and various commercial channels are available in metropolitan areas. In the Republic of Ireland, there are nine television channels and 11 radio channels broadcast free-to-air via the DVB-T Saorview service. Analog PAL versions of some of the channels were also broadcast until October 24, 2012, when all analogue television broadcasting was shut down. All of Malta's national and political party channels are available free-to-air. The national channels TVM and TVM2 , Parliament TV and
4424-996: The end of analog television broadcasting. European countries have a tradition of most television services being free-to-air. Germany, in particular, receives in excess of 100 digital satellite TV channels free-to-air. Approximately half of the television channels on SES Astra 's 19.2° east and 28.2° east satellite positions, and Eutelsat 's Hot Bird (13° east) are free-to-air. A number of European channels which one might expect to be broadcast free-to-air - including many countries' national terrestrial broadcasters - do not do so via satellite for copyright reasons. (Rights to purchase programs for free-to-air broadcast, especially via satellite, are often higher in price than for encrypted broadcast.) The lack of FTA among public broadcasters are prevalent in countries whose broadcasters tend to use subtitles for foreign language programmes; although Spain's two public domestic channels, La Una and La Dos, are also encrypted despite dubbed foreign programmes being
4503-502: The following day, ITV closed the SD channels, ITV3, ITV4 and ITVBe, although the +1 versions of ITV3 and ITV4 remained available on SD-only receivers. Some channels (notably BBC One and ITV) are transmitted in regional variations and the appropriate services are selected by the Freesat receiver from the user's postcode. In March 2010, ITV altered several of their regions from free-to-air transmission to free-to-view (because they were moved to
4582-465: The idents until February 2009 were " The Dress Looks Nice on You ", " Chicago ", " Jacksonville " and " The Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts ", all performed by Sufjan Stevens . On 28 August 2007, Five US launched a timeshift channel – Five US +1 – available only on Sky. On 22 January 2009, it was announced that Five US would be rebranded Five USA on 16 February. It became 5USA in March 2011 as part of
4661-460: The internet either directly (using an Ethernet cable) or via wi-fi or via your computer online. You now have to pay a licence fee to receive all BBC TV channels legally on all devices. Channel 4 pulled its 4HD service from Freesat on 22 February 2018, along with its catch-up on-demand All4 service. It claimed that Freesat had significantly increased Channel 4's fee for the Freesat platform, with Freesat claiming that they had not increased their fee for
4740-418: The launch of the service, there were two types of Freesat receivers available —standard definition-only receivers and high definition-capable receivers. As of July 2010, there were eleven companies licensed to produce Freesat boxes and televisions. Humax launched a Freesat recorder, Freesat+ , which became available to the public in November 2008. On 17 October 2012, Humax released the first Freetime receiver,
4819-437: The launch. In addition some channels from other broadcasters such as Chello Zone , CSC Media Group , Al Jazeera English , Zee Live , Zee News , RIA Novosti and Euronews were included on the channel list. BBC HD was the only high-definition channel available on Freesat from launch day, with ITV HD added as a "red-button" interactive service from 7 June 2008. On 2 April 2010 ITV HD changed from an interactive service to
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#17328516686854898-492: The main FTA satellite is the Hispasat 74W-1, it holds approximately 10 KU-band digital HDTV channels including all major networks like La Red, Telecanal, TVN Regional, TVN2 Regional, Canal 24HRS, CHV, CHV2, CDTV, TV Senado, La Red Feed, Telecanal Feed and TVN Feed. 5USA 5USA is a British free-to-air television channel owned by Channel 5 Broadcasting Limited , a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Global , which
4977-402: The most commonly used broadcast methods, with analog transmissions almost completely discontinued as of mid-2014. The most common North American sources for free-to-air DVB satellite television are: Most of these signals are carried by US satellites. There is little or no free Canadian DVB-S content available to users of medium-size dishes, as much of the available Ku-band satellite bandwidth
5056-455: The national public broadcaster, ORF , offers a special free-to-air channel which airs selected programming without (i.e. those without copyright issues) via satellite all over Europe. As Germany and Austria speak the same language and use the same satellite, Austrian viewers are able to receive about 120 free German-speaking channels from both countries. In general, all satellite radio in Europe
5135-516: The norm in Spain. However, these channels usually provide a scheme to offer free, but encrypted, viewing with free-to-view broadcasts. Certain programming on Italy's RAI , and the majority of Dutch channels are covered by such schemes (although in the case of RAI some programming is transmitted without encryption where there are no copyright issues). In Austria , the main national networks broadcast free-to-view via satellite; however, all regional and some smaller channels are transmitted free-to-air, and
5214-403: The platform. On 8 November 2022, Freesat added ITV2 HD, ITV3 HD and ITV4 HD, followed by ITVBe HD on 12 December 2023. The HD channels replaced the SD channels on their previous channel numbers. The BBC began to roll out a beta version of BBC iPlayer for Freesat devices in early 2010. BBC iPlayer is an internet-based service with around 2500 hours of television being available on demand. ITVX
5293-607: The political party channels NET and ONE, all are broadcast via the free-to-air DVB-T service. Even HD versions of these channels are available free-to-air. The only scrambled channel in Malta is ITV Teleshopping. In the Netherlands, three national public television channels ( NPO 1 , NPO 2 and NPO 3 ) and seven national public radio channels broadcast free-to-air via the DVB-T Digitenne service. The television and radio channels of
5372-527: The range of apps available on Freesat 4K boxes. On 13 June 2021, GB News launched in HD on channel 216. On 11 October 2021, That's TV Gold launched on Freesat channel 178, broadcasting classic TV entertainment, music and films from the 1960s to today, 24 hours per day. On 8 December 2021, the high-definition version of Channel 4 re-joined the Freesat lineup (it had left in February 2018) and Channel 4's music channels, Box Hits , The Box , Kiss , Magic and Kerrang! , also started broadcasting again on
5451-560: The regional public broadcasters are also free-to-air via the DVB-T service. In Spain, there are around 25 national and 40 regional channels, as well as many local channels and radio stations. All television channels are in HD, with at least one UHD channel ( La 1 ). The state broadcaster, Televisión Española , is publicly-funded and does not show commercials. The two major competing networks, Atresmedia and Mediaset , are privately-owned and show commercials. All broadcasts are free-to-air, and there
5530-566: The rest of the world is that in North America , very few of the available signals are actually intended for home viewers or other end-users. Instead, they are generally intended for reception by local television stations, cable system headends, or other commercial users. While it is generally thought to be legal for home viewers to view such transmissions as long as they are not encrypted, this means that there are several unique challenges to viewing FTA signals, challenges not present in other areas of
5609-402: The service was further delayed and was officially launched on 6 May 2008. The service launched officially on 6 May 2008. From the launch, Freesat advertised all national television channels from the BBC and ITV as being available on the platform (excluding ITV2 +1), as well as all national BBC radio networks. Channel 4 also managed to make most of its channels free-to-air in preparation for
5688-680: The state-controlled broadcaster, the SABC was accused of bias towards the apartheid regime, giving only limited coverage to opposition politicians. In Hong Kong, the largest and most dominant television channel, Television Broadcasts Limited , was the first free-to-air commercial television channel when it commenced broadcasting on 19 November 1967. It may also well be among the oldest and first stations to broadcast over-the-air in East and Southeast Asia. ViuTV and RTHK TV started broadcasting in 2016. Around 600 FTA television channels and 180 radio channels are broadcast from ku-band and c-band transponders on
5767-516: The view that colour television would have to be available so as to avoid a costly migration from black-and-white broadcasting technology. Initially, the TV service was funded entirely through a licence fee as in the UK, charged at R36. However, advertising began on 1 January 1978. On 1 January 1982, two services were introduced, TV2 broadcasting in Zulu and Xhosa and TV3 broadcasting in Sotho and Tswana, aimed at
5846-452: The world. Among these are: The largest groups of end-users for Ku-band free-to-air signals were initially the ethnic-language communities, as often free ethnic-language programming would be sponsored by Multilingual American Communities and their broadcasters. Depending on language and origin of the individual signals, North American ethnic-language TV is a mix of pay-TV , free-to-air and DBS operations. Today, many American broadcasters send
5925-609: Was added to Freesat 4K boxes to provide streaming access to live and catch-up BBC radio and podcast services. On 30 November 2020, Court TV joined the Freesat EPG as channel 177, 12 weeks after first launching on satellite for the UK. On 17 September 2020, Sky Arts Launched on Freesat channel 147 as a result of the channel itself going free-to-air, offering 24 hours a day of programmes dedicated to highbrow arts , including theatrical performances, movies, documentaries and music (such as opera performances and classical and jazz sessions). On 16 December 2020, Amazon Prime Video joined
6004-422: Was felt necessary. Initially, both the BBC's and ITV's channels were encrypted since the original Astra satellites used for Sky broadcast to most of Europe but the broadcasters' rights for premium content such as films and sports typically covered the UK only. The use of encryption meant that anyone wishing to view the channels had to purchase equipment from Sky and pay for a free-to-view viewing card to decrypt
6083-616: Was made available to Freesat viewers. The online live streaming and catch-up service operated by STV shows ITV programmes and content from its own archive. All4 (formerly 4OD) was added to the [Humax] Freesat service soon after its launch online; however, due to fee increases at the start of 2018, Channel 4 have withdrawn the All4 on-demand service from all boxes that carry the Freesat Freetime service, from 22 February 2018 as well as taking Channel 4HD from all HD-capable Freesat devices. In September 2018, catch-up service UKTV Play joined
6162-458: Was previously only available in SD, whereas Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland programmes had also been available in HD on BBC One only. As of March 2023, all BBC services, including English regions, are available in HD with regional services now unavailable in SD. The SD “Nightlight” services for viewers with non-HD equipment has closed on 8 January 2024. On 24 November 2020, the BBC Sounds app
6241-421: Was therefore only listed on high-definition receivers, which were unable to access the standard definition channel via the EPG. (The SD channel ceased transmission on 1 October 2011.) On 23 July 2012, the BBC added 24 temporary channels to cover the 2012 Summer Olympics ; the channels share their EPG slot with their standard definition counterpart. On 29 August 2012, Channel 4 added three temporary channels covering
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