I am terminating my Sky subscription, do I need to order a free-to-view card?
Brian Butterworth published on UK Free TV Because Sky want to make it as easy as possible to rejoin their subscription package, the ex-subscription cards still continue to provide itv-1, Channel 4 and five.
Simply leave the card in the box.
Should you have any problems, remove the card, remove the power from the mains connector, wait for 30 seconds whilst checking the cables, plug the power back in. After another 30 seconds the box should ask for you card to be inserted. After 30 seconds you should be able to see "your" itv-1 channel on 103.
All questions
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Monday, 18 July 2011
J
Jerome11:38 AM
Hello !
Very useful website indeed !
I'm considering to buy a Sky box from someone who cancelled his Sky subscription (I'm from France, he is from Switzerland).
There is a viewing card attached to it (the white one).
I understood that the card will allow to receive Channel 4 and five, even if I don't subscribe to Sky (I only want the Free-to-view channels, as well as BBC1 & 2 on 101 and 102 !)
My questions are: how long will this card last, and will it be usable with another box ?
Thank you very much !
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J
jb389:32 PM
Jerome: The card is only required for some ITV channel areas as well as 5* and a few others, the channels that you mentioned not requiring it.
If the card is cancelled by Sky at any time you can always purchase a new one for about £25.00 or so if done and activated via a UK address and phone number, the latter used for activation, and once done it reputedly lasting for 5 years or so.
Not sure about Sky cancelled contract cards working in more than one box, but my £25.00 free viewing from Sky card works in other boxes, as I have two spare Sky boxes and it works in all three of them.
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Tuesday, 19 July 2011
J
Jerome9:35 AM
JB38: Thank you for the answer ! I thought a viewing card was necessary for five...
And as I'd like to have BBC1/BBC2 on 101 & 102, I'll probably go for it anyway !
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J
jb381:36 PM
Jerome: Five used to be encrypted but not nowadays, its only 5* (Five star) that still requires a card to be able to view it, and as aforementioned no card being necessary for all the other channels you have mentioned.
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M
Mike Dimmick1:51 PM
Jerome, jb38: Channel 5 has advertising regions as well. Only Region 2, London, is free-to-air - the other regions are encrypted. Your Sky box will use whatever version corresponds to the postcode that the last-used viewing card was sent to.
Spot Advertising Macro Map | Channel 5 shows the regions, Astra 2A / Astra 2B / Astra 2D / Eurobird 1 (28.2°E) - All transmissions - frequencies - KingOfSat shows the parameters for manually tuning the free-to-air 'region 2' transmission. Currently on 10773 H, SR 22000, FEC 5/6.
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J
jb382:28 PM
Mike Dimmick: Thanks for that info, although I am located well into the lime green zone under Part Network and it doesnt require any card being installed where I am.
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