Digital TV packages suck

As a family after 15 years we have recently ditched SKY. However since then Sky one has started up a at least 2 more series of brainiac science abuse and a live spin off plus Paramount 2 has started repeating Not The Nine O Clock News.

I've thought about this and why not get a very very basic package just for myself in my own room?? So I've checked out sky, telewest & NTL and why can no provider do a 'pick-and-choose' service where you can just chose say 10 channels you want for a flat fee. EG I've worked out I only want 6 channels thats all

Sky One
UKTV Gold
UKG2
UKTV Drama
Paramount Comedy 2
Nicktoons TV

I can get the 1st for on a very basic telewest package for just £5 a month but If I want Paramount 2 & Nicktoons Ive got to buy the sepreme package thats £17 just for those same goes with sky I gotta have the family pack at £16 to get them 7 and 50 others I could'nt give a toss about and will never ever watch.

Why can't a digital tv servie offer a 10-channel-custom service where you pick and choose the 10 channels you want and just pay for those?? I'm sure other people would do it aswell. !!!! Why not is my question

ITV Digital used to do a pick and mix option!


The answer is simple though really - if customers can choose their favourites, they'll pick them and get the cheapest package available.

By categorising the channels people are forced to pay more to get the channels they want!

That is part of the story, but there is also another key reason for the bundling of packages.

Sky (plus NTL/Telewest) generate a decent income by charging channels for EPG placement; buy supporting the less successful channels by bundling them with more popular ones they increase the number of channels that survive and as a result they increase their incomes.

I've worked out I can get everything I want (par paramount 2) which the level 2 package from telewest (£11 a month) think i'll go for that.


Annoying thing you can get paramount 1 but not 2, and its 2 I want. 1 only show american stuff 24/7 you get some good one UK repeats at night on paramount 2! aahh.

Altho found out Challange TV now run Egghead repeats so another reason to get it.

I had exactly the same problem when I got Telewest.

Mich is right though, packages exist partially so that the popular channels subsidise the less popular ones. Without Sky and the cable companies having packages several perfectly good, but obscure channels wouldn't be in business

Don't get too excited - in order to accommodate an ad break, they've quietly chopped a round out of the middle of each episode.

How does that affect scoring?

So THAT'S how it works. Ohh.

It doesn't - but you get to the final round and there's someone in the question booth who you don't remember losing a round...

They don't anymore I got my Telewest digital on monday and have been watching the Challange repeats and all the rounds are there what they are now doing is trimming team introductions and 'babel' and chatter between the teams etc.

I just discovered that I can watch network BBC One, Two, ITV London, C4 and Five using Telewest channels 851 through 855. They are "audio description" channels, although I haven't heard any AD to speak of today.

I'm probably the last to know, but I thought I'd share just in case its news to anyone else.

NTL has the same (in fact they also carry BBC1 Wales, Scotland and NI), but on NTL you have to go into Settings to turn Audio Description on, I presume the same goes for Telewest. I don't know for TW, but NTL have only carried BBC Two AD, ITV1 London and C4 London since earlier this year, so it's still relatively new.