BT Sport - New TV Channel - what's it all about ?

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dinners

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What's are new 'BT Sport' Channels all about then ?

I just noticed them on the TV guide and having watched the rolling advert for BT Sport launch, I'm a bit confused.

I subscribe to SKY including SKY sports and my ISP is BT so do I get it for free ?
 
What are they all about?


Sport (at a guess...)


Badum, Tisch. I'm here all week!
 
Cheers

Looks like the only thing of note as an existing BT Broadband and SKY customer is it starts a new 12 month BT contract of the BT Broadband package.


Already have BT Broadband?

BT Sport is free! This is how you get it
BT customers with the Sky Digital Satellite Platform

Just add BT Sport to the Sky Digital Satellite Platform for FREE.

This will start a new 12-month contract of your current BT Broadband package.
 
I am not sure of the full ins and outs but it seems as though BT have acquired ESPN in some way and added their own channels as well. I had ESPN with Sky which they told me would end at the end of July. I have BT broadband so get it for free which is a big saving over paying Sky for ESPN. I guess they are all chasing the same customers and i understand that BT Sports isn't going to be available on Virgin whose customers have had ESPN for free with some packages.
 
Well if it's going to be free I'll give it a go as it will show the Premier League games that aren't covered by SKY Sports.
 
I can't get BT infinity here, do have sky and don't want to sign up for another 12 months :bang:
Not a problem because I don't want the sports either :LOL:
 
Tinkie said:
I am not sure of the full ins and outs but it seems as though BT have acquired ESPN in some way and added their own channels as well. I had ESPN with Sky which they told me would end at the end of July. I have BT broadband so get it for free which is a big saving over paying Sky for ESPN. I guess they are all chasing the same customers and i understand that BT Sports isn't going to be available on Virgin whose customers have had ESPN for free with some packages.
Click to expand...


Apparently BT and Virgin are trying to reach a deal which will see BT Sport on the XL package;if it goes ahead will have to see if I can get a new deal off Virgin although we won't be wanting to pay too much as it will only be for MotoGP,not fussed about anything else.
Might have a look at some of the individual streaming packages instead though from the individual series(ie Dorna for MotoGP and WSBK).
 
andy700 said:
I have BT Broadband (Internet, calls and line rental), but NOT BT Infinity.
So, as an existing customer, I would need to pay more money to upgrade to Infinity, and buy a latest version of their box.

http://www.bt.com/sport/3-ways-to-watch-bt-sport.html?vendorid=SP4

Not that attractive or - FREE!
Click to expand...

Do you need to have BT infinity for it to be free ?

I have BT broadband unlimited something or another (not infinity) and a SKY package including SKY sports and i thought it was free when I read the details.
 
Well the ads read like any BT Broadband is free (on Broadband)

Could be a little slow on normal Broadband - depends what your locality is like.

Luckily I have no interest in sport so I don't give a toss. :LOL:
 
Looks pretty clear from the posted link. You can get BT sports free if.....

A: You have BT Broadband and a SKY box (Infinity not needed)
B: You have a BT tv box AND Infinity (pretty much sucks if you only have broadband)
C: You have BT tv box and BT broadband you either have to watch it on your pc or upgrade to infinity.
 
I'm not sure about broadband and all that, but I found out that this BT Sports channel is going to be part of Freeview, as a matter of a fact, there seems to be 3 BT Sports Channels set up ready for when it becomes active, they're found just before Channel 70 which is CBBC. However I wish to point out that I don't know if they're free to view or pay to view, sometimes some channels listed on Freeview is not viewable unless you're using Freesat, so until they're active and I find out if I can view them or not, all I know is that they're listed in the channels list.
 
Major Eazy said:
I'm not sure about broadband and all that, but I found out that this BT Sports channel is going to be part of Freeview, as a matter of a fact, there seems to be 3 BT Sports Channels set up ready for when it becomes active, they're found just before Channel 70 which is CBBC. However I wish to point out that I don't know if they're free to view or pay to view, sometimes some channels listed on Freeview is not viewable unless you're using Freesat, so until they're active and I find out if I can view them or not, all I know is that they're listed in the channels list.
Click to expand...

Yep - the 3 channels appear on my freeview listings too on the TV upstairs which isn't connected to SKY.

The TV downstairs (with SKY) should run it OK being a BT broadband customer but I suspect the freeview TV upstairs wont.
 
antihero said:
Looks pretty clear from the posted link. You can get BT sports free if.....

A: You have BT Broadband and a SKY box (Infinity not needed)
B: You have a BT tv box AND Infinity (pretty much sucks if you only have broadband)
C: You have BT tv box and BT broadband you either have to watch it on your pc or upgrade to infinity.
Click to expand...


That is exactly how I understood it, and what I was told a couple of months ago by a BT person trying to get me to upgrade to Infinity.
 
andy700 said:
Exactly the same as me, but I don't have a Sky box or BT box, so BT would want me to upgrade to Infinity and buy a BT box.:(
Click to expand...

or get a Sky box- how else are you going to watch it if you either don't have a box or don't want to watch it on your PC?
 
dinners said:
Yep - the 3 channels appear on my freeview listings too on the TV upstairs which isn't connected to SKY.

The TV downstairs (with SKY) should run it OK being a BT broadband customer but I suspect the freeview TV upstairs wont.
Click to expand...

They won't work on Freeview
 
Craig1912 said:
They won't work on Freeview
Click to expand...

I'm no expert but actually....

They are not accessible on Freeview freely unless your Freeview box is one of those that have a card slot for a decoder and you paid extra to unlock for those services.

They are not supposed to be viewable unless you phone up the channel provider (in that case, BT itself) and pay for a PIN to key in, which offeres you limited viewing time, usually 24hrs or something. (Just like with Television X or other channels.)

Otherwise if they don't work on Freeview, then technically they shouldn't be listed at all. If it is listed, then it is either free to view or in some cases, it is encrypted, just like G.O.L.D. or ESPN (spelling?), and chances are the 3 BT Sports channel are more likely to be encrypted unless you have that Freeview box with a decoder card, or you contact BT and pay for PIN, hence they are listed anyway.

As for why do they show up on Sky, well all or most channels you find on Freeview will be found on Sky too, BBC One is on Freeview and Sky, ITV1 is on Freeview and Sky, Channel 4 is on Freeview and Sky, so why shouldn't BT Sports be on Freeview and Sky too? That's why it's listed on Freeview and listed on Sky.

Most of the times, I would just hide or delete any channels on Freeview that needs a decoder card or need to have PIN or something, as they tend to be listed but not viewable. There is a different between "won't work" and "not accessible".
 
dinners said:
Yep - the 3 channels appear on my freeview listings too on the TV upstairs which isn't connected to SKY.

The TV downstairs (with SKY) should run it OK being a BT broadband customer but I suspect the freeview TV upstairs wont.
Click to expand...

It doesn't matter if you are a BT customer or not. BT showing some channels on Sky and Freeview (see my above post) is no different from say Playboy showing their channels on Sky and you don't have to be a Playboy keyholder to watch.

I don't have Sky subscription nor do I have any Sky packages yet I've been able to watch Sky 3 which had been on Freeview some months ago. Chances are you can watch it on Sky if BT Sports happens to be included in the packages you paid for along with say Sky Sports, Sky Atlantic, or whatever packages you pay extras, otherwise if you don't pay for those extra options, chances are you don't get to watch BT Sports, your Sky will show what is on Freeview plus whatever other channels are free.

Well, as far as I can see, BT Sports is just a channel not a service, like ITV is a channel but not a service. Freeview is not a channel, it is a service. Sky happens to be both a services and channels.

I figure it would just depend on your Sky packages you pay for, when you buy Sky, you pick the options, you get all the free to view channels like BBC, ITV, etc., etc., plus if you pay extras, you get subscription channels like Sky Sports.

It may be that it won't show on Freeview upstairs unless it's one of those with decoder cards or you opt to contact BT and pay for a PIN to key in to get to watch it, and as for your downstairs which happens to be Sky, it may or may not be viewable depending on your packages.

If you do happens to be a BT Broadband customer, you just get it free, maybe it will be in a different package group.

Hope it helps?
 
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andy700 said:
That is exactly how I understood it, and what I was told a couple of months ago by a BT person trying to get me to upgrade to Infinity.
Click to expand...

Oh come on!!

Sales people working for companies will try to talk you into buying their own services or upgrades or whatever they want you to buy.

e-on will talk you into upgrading for their dual fuel services.

Epson's manuals will talk you into buying Epson inks only.

BT will talk you into upgrade to Infinity.

Nikon, Canon, etc., etc., their manuals will tell you to buy their brand lens.

If there is something wrong with your car and it happens to be Ford, chances are Ford will suggest you take it to a Ford-approved garage and get Ford parts.

Need I go on?

I don't think you have to upgrade to Infinity, if you're a BT customer, then you're a BT customer, regardless of which of their services you use, as far as I know, there's no such thing as you have to be an Infinity customer to qualify as a BT customer.

As far as I can see, either....

If you are a BT Broadband customer (regardless of which of their range of services you use) then you get to watch BT Sports free.

If you are not a BT Broadband customer (even if you use BT just for using the phone while you use a different company's broadband), then to access BT Sports on Sky, you just pay extra to get BT Sports package included in your Sky.

As far as I can tell, if it is listed in Freeview, then maybe either a decoder or phone up BT and pay for PIN to key in for 24hrs access on Freeview. (That part, I could still be wrong, but why else is it listed in Freeview?)
 
Major Eazy said:
Oh come on!!

Sales people working for companies will try to talk you into buying their own services or upgrades or whatever they want you to buy.

e-on will talk you into upgrading for their dual fuel services.

Epson's manuals will talk you into buying Epson inks only.

BT will talk you into upgrade to Infinity.

Nikon, Canon, etc., etc., their manuals will tell you to buy their brand lens.

If there is something wrong with your car and it happens to be Ford, chances are Ford will suggest you take it to a Ford-approved garage and get Ford parts.

Need I go on?

I don't think you have to upgrade to Infinity, if you're a BT customer, then you're a BT customer, regardless of which of their services you use, as far as I know, there's no such thing as you have to be an Infinity customer to qualify as a BT customer.

As far as I can see, either....

If you are a BT Broadband customer (regardless of which of their range of services you use) then you get to watch BT Sports free.

If you are not a BT Broadband customer (even if you use BT just for using the phone while you use a different company's broadband), then to access BT Sports on Sky, you just pay extra to get BT Sports package included in your Sky.

As far as I can tell, if it is listed in Freeview, then maybe either a decoder or phone up BT and pay for PIN to key in for 24hrs access on Freeview. (That part, I could still be wrong, but why else is it listed in Freeview?)
Click to expand...

Steady on mate, talk about an attitude problem.
I said that is what I was told by the BT salesperson, which is why I DID NOT sign up.
It is listed on my Freeview as you have pointed out, but so are loads of other channels which I cannot get unless I subscribe to them - Sky, Eurosport.
If I need to pay anything - pin, set top box etc., then that means it is not FREE.
Our PC is in a different room to our TV, so I am not going to run 5 metres of cable trying to connect them, and if I want sport on the internet, then there is plenty available.
 
Craig1912 said:
or get a Sky box- how else are you going to watch it if you either don't have a box or don't want to watch it on your PC?
Click to expand...

So basically, although I am a BT customer it will not be FREE!

FREE - a very simple concept to understand;)
 
Major Eazy said:
Oh come on!!

Sales people working for companies will try to talk you into buying their own services or upgrades or whatever they want you to buy.

e-on will talk you into upgrading for their dual fuel services.

Epson's manuals will talk you into buying Epson inks only.

BT will talk you into upgrade to Infinity.

Nikon, Canon, etc., etc., their manuals will tell you to buy their brand lens.

If there is something wrong with your car and it happens to be Ford, chances are Ford will suggest you take it to a Ford-approved garage and get Ford parts.

Need I go on?

I don't think you have to upgrade to Infinity, if you're a BT customer, then you're a BT customer, regardless of which of their services you use, as far as I know, there's no such thing as you have to be an Infinity customer to qualify as a BT customer.

As far as I can see, either....

If you are a BT Broadband customer (regardless of which of their range of services you use) then you get to watch BT Sports free.

If you are not a BT Broadband customer (even if you use BT just for using the phone while you use a different company's broadband), then to access BT Sports on Sky, you just pay extra to get BT Sports package included in your Sky.

As far as I can tell, if it is listed in Freeview, then maybe either a decoder or phone up BT and pay for PIN to key in for 24hrs access on Freeview. (That part, I could still be wrong, but why else is it listed in Freeview?)
Click to expand...

Wind your neck in a bit heh?

BT state that you have to have a fibre connection to receive sport through their vision/youview box. It's there in black and white on the link posted. Why? No idea. Maybe the sports plus the rest of their on demand products need the higher bandwidth to function correctly. I severely doubt they would risk misselling products to the extent you are accusing them of.
 
Major Eazy said:
I'm no expert but actually....

They are not accessible on Freeview freely unless your Freeview box is one of those that have a card slot for a decoder and you paid extra to unlock for those services.

They are not supposed to be viewable unless you phone up the channel provider (in that case, BT itself) and pay for a PIN to key in, which offeres you limited viewing time, usually 24hrs or something. (Just like with Television X or other channels.)

Otherwise if they don't work on Freeview, then technically they shouldn't be listed at all. If it is listed, then it is either free to view or in some cases, it is encrypted, just like G.O.L.D. or ESPN (spelling?), and chances are the 3 BT Sports channel are more likely to be encrypted unless you have that Freeview box with a decoder card, or you contact BT and pay for PIN, hence they are listed anyway.

As for why do they show up on Sky, well all or most channels you find on Freeview will be found on Sky too, BBC One is on Freeview and Sky, ITV1 is on Freeview and Sky, Channel 4 is on Freeview and Sky, so why shouldn't BT Sports be on Freeview and Sky too? That's why it's listed on Freeview and listed on Sky.

Most of the times, I would just hide or delete any channels on Freeview that needs a decoder card or need to have PIN or something, as they tend to be listed but not viewable. There is a different between "won't work" and "not accessible".
Click to expand...

you've obviously got alot of spare time on your hands!

Wether there is a difference between won't work and not accessible the fact is you won't be able to watch it on Freeview without taking further action. From the BT site there is no indication that it will be "accessible" through Freeview
 
andy700 said:
So basically, although I am a BT customer it will not be FREE!

FREE - a very simple concept to understand;)
Click to expand...

It is free providing you have the means to watch it. Have you a PC or tablet? if so you can watch it on there for "free" It isn't costing me anything.
 
andy700 said:
Steady on mate, talk about an attitude problem.
Click to expand...

Sorry, was up late at night after trying to get kids to bed on time, wasn't focused.

I said that is what I was told by the BT salesperson, which is why I DID NOT sign up.
It is listed on my Freeview as you have pointed out, but so are loads of other channels which I cannot get unless I subscribe to them - Sky, Eurosport.
If I need to pay anything - pin, set top box etc., then that means it is not FREE.
Click to expand...

When Freeview started, they only show all the free to view channels.

Later on, there was new additional STBs, services, etc., such as Freesat or Freeview HD or one of those STBs with decoder cards, so therefore there are encrypted channels that are sharing the same wavelenght as the ones that are really free to view. Hence they're listed anyway, even if you can't view them.

After paying a one-off cost for the STB, just hide the encrypted channels or delete from list, and there you have it, free to view channels.

And of course, they are not really that free, after all whatever camera you use, your camera paid for you to watch ITV, Channel 4, and the likes. :)
 
Craig1912 said:
It is free providing you have the means to watch it. Have you a PC or tablet? if so you can watch it on there for "free" It isn't costing me anything.
Click to expand...

Cheers Craig, I have a PC upstairs on the same connection, and watch loads of sports from all over the World on there (mainly cycling), but the quality is dire compared to the "big set" in the living room.
I shall sit this one out for the moment and see if BT come in with a more flexible way of viewing.
 
So it's up and running as of today.

Bayern v Man City tonight.
 
dinners said:
So it's up and running as of today.

Bayern v Man City tonight.
Click to expand...

Yep, I watched that as well. I hope that Ian Darke isn't going to be their main football commentator? Isn't he a boxing man?

Looking forward to the Aviva Premiership rugby starting.
 
I watched live baseball last night FREE on my ipad, going to look at an ipad to hdmi connection soon, as we won't get fibre for a couple of years yet in our village.

TV has a CAM (Conditional Access Module) slot, but that now seems to be a lame duck, can get the a top up TV Cam from ebay for £3, but that looks to be because nobody and I mean nobody does the cards anymore, and I'd be willing to pay a small one off charge for cam and card too.


Not sure why the insist on infinity, as I'm watching espn fine full screen on my 28 iMac and a second channel on the ipad both at the same time on plain 16 meg broadband.
 
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