MSE Blog: Living without Sky – we did it!

Tropez

jorok wrote: »

Freeview offers the 5 main channels with virtually all the original programming available in UK.

Boardwalk Empire, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Penny Dreadful, Ray Donovan, The Newsroom, Falling Skies, The Borgias, The Following, True Detective, Blue Bloods, The Leftovers, Banshee... just a few reasonably popular programmes that were featured on channels not available on Freeview/Freesat before any other broadcast. Some of those shows have since appeared on FTA/terrestrial TV, or are available through other mediums, but not all.

Repeats aren't always bad either. I missed The Sopranos and The Wire during their original runs but Sky Atlantic and Sky On Demand has allowed me to catch up with them.

Yes, the same episode of OFAH trotted out for the 99th time this decade on GOLD really is quite pointless and grows old but Sky's output does have a lot going for it for me. I can appreciate that everyone has different tastes though.

Subscription TV is also the only way to watch the majority of live sporting events, unfortunately.

wiogs

Tropez wrote: »

Boardwalk Empire, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Penny Dreadful, Ray Donovan, The Newsroom, Falling Skies, The Borgias, The Following, True Detective, Blue Bloods, The Leftovers, Banshee... just a few reasonably popular programmes that were featured on channels not available on Freeview/Freesat before any other broadcast. Some of those shows have since appeared on FTA/terrestrial TV, or are available through other mediums, but not all.

Repeats aren't always bad either. I missed The Sopranos and The Wire during their original runs but Sky Atlantic and Sky On Demand has allowed me to catch up with them.

Yes, the same episode of OFAH trotted out for the 99th time this decade on GOLD really is quite pointless and grows old but Sky's output does have a lot going for it for me. I can appreciate that everyone has different tastes though.

Subscription TV is also the only way to watch the majority of live sporting events, unfortunately.

Don't go spoiling the argument with facts!:D

VisionMan

Tropez wrote: »

Boardwalk Empire, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Penny Dreadful, Ray Donovan, The Newsroom, Falling Skies, The Borgias, The Following, True Detective, Blue Bloods, The Leftovers, Banshee... just a few reasonably popular programmes that were featured on channels not available on Freeview/Freesat before any other broadcast.

Of course they weren't, because Sky bought them.

Tropez wrote: »

Subscription TV is also the only way to watch the majority of live sporting events, unfortunately.

Totally true and this is the only reason I had it. But with the explosion of internet TV providers, there are now other, cheaper platforms to watch sport on.

Sky's good for those that actually watch it, but its an established fact that 75% of the content consumed via subscription providers are free to air channels.

Tropez

VisionMan wrote: »

Of course they weren't, because Sky bought them.

Which was my point. The previous user had argued that "virtually all" original programming was available on the five main terrestrial channels. I don't doubt that there's a lot of original programming on those five channels, perhaps even a majority, nor do I doubt the statistic that a high proportion of programming consumed is on those channels or FTA alternatives but there's a substantial number of popular television programmes that are not available on those channels, or that only appear on those channels after a significant delay, because the first-run rights are held by channels only available via a Pay-TV subscription. Therefore, I question the "virtually all" statement that was made.

Totally true and this is the only reason I had it. But with the explosion of internet TV providers, there are now other, cheaper platforms to watch sport on.

That may be the case, but aside from a handful of things, the only way to watch a lot of the sport that I watch, without resorting to iffy streams of questionable legality, is via Sky.

Sky's good for those that actually watch it, but its an established fact that 75% of the content consumed via subscription providers are free to air channels.

I know, I've seen BARB's figures on the subject.

As I said above, I can appreciate people have different tastes.

Personally speaking, I watch very little that is broadcast on the FTA channels. I fully agree there is an awful amount of fluff channels on Sky that I have no interest in. Of the hundreds of channels that are available through Sky and that I have access too, there's a handful I watch regularly and a slightly larger number that I watch infrequently but I also probably watch some of those channels more in a month than I would watch the five main terrestrial channels in a whole year.

Of course I could live without Sky, which is why I'm on a discounted package because I don't believe the full price provides good value for money. The price I am paying though I do believe is reasonable for what I currently receive.

VisionMan

All fair and true comments you have made above, Tropez. And I agree with all of them. I believe its fair to say Sky is now TV for the affluent and not the masses. Sky via discount however, is the way to go and via such a route can provide serious value for money. And with the explosion of competition Sky now faces, these are interesting times....

Tropez

VisionMan wrote: »

All fair and true comments you have made above, Tropez. And I agree with all of them. I believe its fair to say Sky is now TV for the affluent and not the masses. Sky via discount however, is the way to go and via such a route can provide serious value for money. And with the explosion of competition Sky now faces, these are interesting times....

I agree with that. When I first subscribed to Sky it was £30 for everything but obviously with each year the subscription increases, there's all the extras and suddenly, if you're not careful, your bill could be coming close to £100 per month (and with phone and broadband possibly that or more!).

I hope to see the likes of Amazon and Netflix grow over time. Netflix UK is a relatively poor service at present in comparison to its US or Canadian counterpart but it has scored a couple of big wins in the movies arena, nabbing the first-run rights to The Hobbit and Hunger Games films before Sky Movies. The latter not really my cup of tea but it is definitely popular.

And Sky really should drop extra fees for HD. It's not even 1080p HD. When Amazon gives you HD on Prime for its basic fee, and Netflix does it at the second tier sub-level which is, I believe, £1 more expensive than it's basic tier, there's really no excuse for Sky to keep asking extra for HD other than greed.

cifpower

Anyone can live without Sky. I like it for easiness really. I watched quite a few channels (80% free though) but I like the freedom to browse the other channels, watch and record in HD and being able to watch them out and about on Sky Go. Not bad for £16.50 a month (half price for a year natch - would never pay full price)

gettingtheresometime

we got a beagle and with the amount of walking one of those needs in the evening/weekend we found that by getting rid of Sky we could save ourselves £60+ a month.

What annoyed me though was when we cancelled we were bombarded with offers of discounts of up to 50% for a year.........its one of OH's pet hates as he feels that if they can afford to do this when he's leaving then why can't they do it at any other time

KxMx

Now TV is well worth a look if you've got Sky that you don't use much but would miss if you got rid.

The list of programs not available on the Entertainment Pass gets smaller and smaller.

JimmyTheWig

PasturesNew wrote: »

I've got a freeview box attached to an old portable telly somebody lent me.

Do you watch it that much to make the licence fee worth paying?