Sky Sports News HD

Suspect they'll do what they've started to do with Sky News. Two completely different treatments for the SD and HD outlets. (Fox do something similar in the US I believe with one of their 24 hour news outlets)

You could have a 4:3-unsafe treatment for the HD outlet - with the video pushed to one side, or sidepanels overlaid out of 4:3 safe. However for the SD outlet you could render stuff differently, in different places, or with less (or totally different) information?

Rendering different graphics for SD and HD outlets makes a lot of sense for other reasons as well - as you can ignore SD compatibility that way (irrespective of 4:3/16:9 issues) and take advantage of the extra resolution of the HD outlet.

Can't see that being legal - it would surely be in breach of the subscription that WAS held which I suspect has all sorts of caveats about redistribution etc. (Otherwise Virgin Media would do the same wouldn't they?)

Sky aren't charging over the odds for distribution, they are charging for the rights to show the content in public. Presumably Sky argue that showing broadcasts in a pub could reduce Sky's subscription revenue potentially - as if people can watch the football in a pub, they are less likely to subscribe at home?. Similarly they will also argue that being granted the rights to show football broadcasts in a public bar is a potential draw to the venue - and will generate significant extra revenue for the pub?

Even if you distributed the signal independently of Sky, you'd still need to ensure you had the rights to show the content in public. I doubt the FA have granted anyone else those rights, other than Sky... (Not sure if you'd be allowed to show Sky Sports via Virgin Media or Top Up TV in a pub - as I don't think they have pub subscriptions - and systems to ensure pubs aren't using domestic subscriptions)

Yes, although my point was more that if it's done like that they'd probably have to have nothing at all information-wise in the 2 pillars. There's nothing extra which would be thin enough to put down the right hand pillar and they can't spread it across from the 4:3 frame to the pillar.

The video portion of the screen will almost certainly be 16:9 and in the top left of the 16:9 frame

But this is Sky - it's basically blackmailng viewers by saying "we're leaving Freeview so if you want to watch SSN you must cough up for Sky, and you might as well pay even more and go HD too!"

Technically though, technologically, there is nothing stopping someone registering a TopUpTV card at a domestic address, and then taking that registered card and putting it in a pub TV. I was able to take my box around to different houses when I subscribed to Setanta, and also back in the old TopupTV days I was able to register my box at my home address and still take it to university. How would they track where a DTT signal was being received?

I think it is just as low tech as someone visiting the pub and checking for the pint glass DOG. Maybe doing so based on reports from members of the public or (more likely IMHO) rival landlords. This will catch pubs using domestic subscriptions on any platform, not just Sky's own.

http://business.sky.com/CustomerZone/FightingFraud/

http://www.skysports.com/tv_show/story/0,20144,12975_6286710,00.html

There's a new promo on this site, hopefully this is what it should be like on-screen, looks good, different too...

Hmm - suspect you're right. Though given that all the SSN source material will, itself, be 4:3 safe (all sports material is) you could do something cleverer with the two versions, making them look quite radically different from each other whilst driven from the same source data.

Technically - no. Legally - yes. You'd be in breach of your TopUpTV subscription and probably a whole lot of other laws as well.



It isn't a case of tracking where the signal is received, it is where it is displayed.

The Sky pub cards are configured to receive a different version of Sky Sports which - though AIUI links to the same video and audio PIDS (or streams) - has a different set-up, such that a beer glass overlay bottom right is rendered by the receiver (a bit like the Press Red overlay you get on BBC channels at some points).

If you are watching a footy match in a pub (possibly only at certain times - not sure) and you DON'T see that beer glass on-screen, then you know the pub is using an illegal subscription and is in breach of contract.

Presumably Sky suggest to publicans that they have a large group of spotters out checking - to ensure that they don't try and play fast and loose. I assume these spotters are also trained to recognise the on-screen graphics of non-UK broadcasters of English Premiere League matches etc. as showing these is likely to be legally dodgy as well.

From today all Sky Sports Subs on DTT are using Paired cards and boxes, as ESPN on BTV has been for a year. It will not be possible to switch cards, even CAMs are not permitted, which has made me very annoyed. If viewers want to port their subs they will have to port their boxes as well.

Does this mean you can't get ESPN or Sky Sports via DVB-T on an IDTV without a set-top box?

I'm pretty sure we actually get a different channel, as the adverts differ to "normal" Sky Sports channels, with an emphisis on alcohol adverts and Sky subscription adverts. We have occaisionally seen the opt-point, and dropped into the last few frames of a different advert just before rejoining the programmes. Also, while the pint glass is rendered on the box, you can't remove it like the Press Red overlays with a press of the backup button.