Can I stop paying Sky and use my satellite receiver to get Freeview ?
Yes, but only "sort of".
Freeview is the name of the (BBC-backed) digital TV system that uses hilltop transmitters to rooftop aerials. It is run separately from the "Sky" satellite-to-dish service.
free-to-VIEW is a term for satellite channels that need a viewing card to watch, but not to collect a subscription. free-to-AIR channels are ones that can be received without needing a viewing card or subscription.
The free-to-AIR satelite service backed by the BBC and ITV is called Freesat. The free-to-VIEW service operated by Sky is called fSfS or Freesat from Sky.
As long as you have finished your first year, you can leave Sky when you want.
To do this just give Sky a call and tell them you don't want to subscribe any more.
If you stop subscribing you will be able to watch the hundred or so free-to-air channels listed on free channels list. This service is called Freesat from Sky (fSfS).
Some of the channels on the Freeview service are subscription only on satellite, specifically: 4Music, Challenge, Dave, Dave ja vu, Quest, VIVA and Yesterday . See these links to compare the TV channels on Freesat-from-Sky and Freeview, and to compare radio stations on Freeview and fSfS. Many homes have free satellite and Freeview to get the full range of channels.
You will still need to keep your Sky viewing card. If you stop subscribing on a Sky contract, you can keep using that card to watch 5USA, 5* and PICK TV, the so-called "free-to-view" channels. (All ITV channels are free-to-air).
It is not possible to plug an aerial into a Sky Digibox to receive Freeview channels because the boxes have not been designed this way.
You will continue to get the full Sky EPG listings; you just will not be able to watch subscription channels.
If you want to go for High Definition, HD, you can swap out your Sky box for a Freesat one very easily.
A card is not needed to watch BBC services, but it is needed to get the correct BBC ONE and BBC TWO regions on 101 and 102.
Another option is to disconnect your Sky Digibox altogether and Upgrade from Sky to Freesat - ukfree.tv. If you have an HD-Ready TV and a standard Sky box, this is a good option.
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mrs e chappleSunday 16 October 2005 10:24PM
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natalieSaturday 18 February 2006 12:06PM
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Norbert WysockiFriday 3 March 2006 3:47PM
We are now cancelling the sky contract because value for money it sucks.
Has anybody else had the same problem?It sounds like your box has switched from R-G-B mode to Composite or SVideo mode. Check the Settings/Picture menu. Also, check your SCART cable that connection your TV to your digibox has not become disconnected, as they do this sometimes. H
HoldgajWednesday 26 April 2006 2:30PM
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KeithFriday 28 April 2006 8:17AM
Can anyone tell me if freeview will ever be transmitted from the Machen transmitter into Caerphilly? (Wales)
I cannot get Wenvoe or Mendips signals as I am located on the West side of the basin, so would probably need a 60ft plus mast to try and get a signal from other areas. p.s. to the south is 280 mtrs mountain, north 310mtrs, west 290mtrs, and east Machen mountain at approx 200+ where uhf transmission comes from at present (do digital)
Are we doomed to stick with sky, it is such a rip-off. and as for HDTV (lol) does not seem a future possibility.
If we won the lottery perhaps!
Can we get a reduced TV licence fee?
Rehards KeithR
RoySaturday 13 May 2006 6:30PM
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Sadiq AhmedTuesday 4 July 2006 5:55PM
I need to connect a plasma screen with S-Video connection (female type) to a Sky box with Scart connection. At the moment I am using a TV but I wish to replace this TV with the Plasma.
Is this possible?You can, if your Sky box is outputting s-video correctly. It would be much better to use a SCART connection with a red-green-blue connection as the picture will be much better than s-video. B
BarryTuesday 31 October 2006 9:14AM
Barry: "No satellite signal being recieved" mean just that ... there is no signal from your dish into the back of your Sky digibox! First UNPLUG THE POWER from the box and then ensure that the cable from the dish is connected in properly - especially that there are no stray wires on the connector. If when you reconnect it you still get the message, then you dish has been damaged or misaligned. C
chris bateSunday 19 November 2006 8:59AM
You can use one of the spare outputs from the dish's Quad-LNB with a SATELLITE RECEIVER to watch Freesat in another room. You MUST NOT attempt to connect two boxes to the same LNB port! J
j diamondThursday 23 November 2006 5:29AM
I live in a bungalow.
thanking you,
J.diamondV
VijaySaturday 25 November 2006 7:24PM
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wilWednesday 13 December 2006 12:10AM
is there any way round this.
thanks
wilwil: I'm not sure exactly what you mean. The satellite decoder will decode a single channel from a single multiplex from the satellite and output this via a SCART connection. You MAY be able to also output this single channel though an RF connection (if the box has one). As the box only outputs a single channel, there is no way it can allow you to watch any other channel. N
nickWednesday 13 December 2006 3:40PM
I live in the south of Spain and i have a reciever and dish that allows me to pick up Syy news but none of the other speaking languge channels , like bbc channels or itv channels. Is this because my dish is not big enough 80 cms.
Also if i was to buy a sky reciever box with a free to view card then maybe you could advise me as to were i would get this card and how much sould i be paying?
Thanks for any help
NickN
NickWednesday 13 December 2006 3:46PM
Thank again
NickNick: you are pointing at the wrong satellite for a start, you need to use Astra 2 at 28.2E not Astra 1 at 19.2E. IN THE UK ONLY you can get a Freesat from Sky card for £20 from www.freesatfromsky.com but these only work with Sky Digiboxs and are only required for Channel 4 and five. You need a massive dish (1.2 meters) in the south of Spain to get the BBC and ITV channels, but these are FREE TO AIR and no card is required. D
David AndrewsThursday 21 December 2006 12:50PM
Consett
is it worth me getting someone out to assess the aerial and maybe putting a proper one up or would i be wasting money. is this just a quirk of receiving a digital signal on a hd ready television. i feel a bit disappointed please help. many thanks daveDavid Andrews: a roof-top aerial is always recommended for reliable Freeview reception. There are no Freeview HD transmissions, so there is no HD involved in your setup. Digital channels are never 'grainy' which suggests you are watching analogue TV. If the pictures freeze from time-to-time, the channels are digital and your aerial is unsuitable. The digital signals are very weak and require a decent aerial for decent reception. B
BeckyFriday 22 December 2006 8:45PM
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MesutMonday 25 December 2006 12:54PM
West Malling
- Plug your freeview to your antenna and search for channels. If your antenna is digital then you will be able to get all free channels
- continue using your sky box connected to your sky dish, this should already be up and working for you even you don't cont subscribing to sky. Becky: keep using your Sky box. As long as you leave your card in the box you will get all the public service channels including the correct BBC one, BBC Two and ITV1 region. Freeview requires that your aerial is pointing at transmitter that is transmitting the service, and no special digital aerial is required but you MAY need to upgrade it to a wideband type, but it depends on your location. Click on the TV reception tab at the top of the page and enter your postcode to find out. M
MaxTuesday 26 December 2006 12:05PM
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natalieThursday 28 December 2006 12:36AM
natalie: if your Freeview box will not tune automatically, it is unlikely that a manual tuning will make any difference. However, click on "TV reception" tab at the top of the page, enter your postcode and click on the transmitter name in the text to get a list of the frequencies used by the transmitters in your locale. M
MPSaturday 30 December 2006 11:55PM
Free to air or Free to view on Sky now includes itv2 and sky three.
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KayTuesday 2 January 2007 11:11PM
HertfordKay: multiplex 2 uses 64QAM mode which is harder to receive. If you cannot watch it then you probably need a larger aerial. J
JeffMonday 8 January 2007 9:58PM
Please may I ask for your advice on the cheapest option get access to the freeview channels
Many Thanks
JeffJeff: for Freeview, use a Freeview box attached to your aerial. If you want to watch Freesat instead, you need to run a satellite-grade cable from one of the spare outputs on the LNB on the satellite dish to the location of your spare box. You expired card should still allow access to Channel 4 and five. D
David LondonSunday 14 January 2007 5:08PM
London
Cheers
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Peter FranklinTuesday 16 January 2007 4:30PM
Benfleet
PeteT
tracey evansWednesday 24 January 2007 11:30AM
many thankstracey evans: no. A satellite reciever requires connection to a satellite dish to function. S
S. SodhiThursday 1 February 2007 2:53PM
We can receive the 'freechannels' on Sky and all other subscribed channels. However we cannot see any menus or schedules. You can change channels, but none of the menus are shown on screen. Any idea why this may be happening? Is this dish problem or digibox problem?
The only thing that has chnaged on the box was to allow one of them 'TV-link' Optical 'eyes' to control sky from another room...
any ideas?S. Sodhi: it sounds like your TV is connected to the SCART connection on the Digibox that is marked 'VCR' rather than 'TV'. I
IanTuesday 13 February 2007 5:42PM
I have an old sky box and an old sky card, i cancelled my subscription to sky and have since moved house so do not have a satellite. will i be able to use the box and card to get freeview channels using an indoor aerial?D
Dave TibblesMonday 19 February 2007 1:13PM
Dave Tibbles: yes, I have been on about this for ages! E
EddyTuesday 6 March 2007 7:13PM
I'm thinking of stopping my sky+ sub as I'm onto my seventh box and have had over 100 failed recordings in one year (more than in my whole previous life).
My question is if I stay with sky but stop sky+ how do I record say 2 or 3 different programmes onto my conventional (reliable) DVD recorder, when I'm on holiday and no longer have SKY+ functionlity. In other words can I get a Sky+ box to switch itself over from one channel to another at times I specify without Sky + functionality. I'd hate to rely on the EPG as I've found it completely unreliable, missing the beginning and end of progs. Can I tell it to switch over to channel x at so and so a time?
Cheers
EddyEddy: if you stop paying Sky their £10 subscription fee, the Sky+ box will revert to a normal, single-receiver Sky Digibox. The Sky+ recording functions are replaced by the 'autoview' option of a normal box. J
Janice FinnFriday 9 March 2007 4:05PM
Peterborough 
13:11
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