In fact dont even get a new box, use the one you have if its OK, just get the card

I would like to thank everyone for your replies.. I only used UK.NOVA for the programes the wife missed.. and now its gone..wonder if The Box is next to go..

We dont get BBC or ITV on sky here anymore on a small dish They moved everything to the Sky Spain sat.. Thats why people are now getting BBC and ITV now in Spain..

thebox 's servers are not based in the US or UK, unlike UKNs servers, so they should be safe (for a while).

Eh??

UK TV is on 4 satellites located at 28 east - Astra 1N, 2a, 2b , and Eutelsat 28a. With channels on the temporary 1N, channels that previously required 2.4m dishes can currently be viewed on 1m dishes.

People get those channels in Spain as the satellites have various beams, some of which cover Europe - and Spain. Just like they did when those channels were on Sky.

BBCs left Sky encryption about 7 years ago, ITVs about 5 years ago, with the last leaving this year.

Spanish TV is on a number of satellites - Astra 1's at 19 east, and Hispasats at 30 west. There are no BBC ITV etc on these "Spanish" sats, apart from BBC World News and BBC Prime / Entertainment channels.

The last time BBC1,2 ITV1,2,3,4 etc were on "a spanish sat" were in the old analogue days, beforw Sky digital, when the chanenls WERE on Astra 1 at 19 east satellites.

Ya know Satty - sometimes you are quite scary xxxxx

Glad you used "scary" and not "sad" like you sometimes do!!!

Ok - so i spelt it wrong xxxxx

To The Guy.. I lost BBC and ITV in Gran canarie when they moved sats this year..

Yes.

All channels on the Astra 2D satellite, inc bbc and ITV, were moved to 1N earlier this year.

Astra 1N, which from Oct last year, has been located with the other UK TV satellites at 28 east.

It is there temporarily. When its temp job has finished - expect mid 2013, then the satellite oiwners / operators SES Astra, have said it will move to 19 east and join the rest of the "Astra 1" fleet.

And this change from 2D to 1N meant many on the edges of reception, you, Greece, Cypurs, east europe, to lose channels that they could previously get. Yes, even in Cyprus their 4m dishes can not struggle to get BBC and ITVs. Yet for us in Spain, manychannels that were sometimes unavailable on 2.4m dishes (like Film4) are currently available on 1m dishes.

Why? Well thats down to the fact that 1N is being used, and its beams were not designed for whenthe satellite is at 28 east for UKTV. Its beams are designed fo its 19 east location.

It was your statement "They moved everything to the Spain sat." that lead me to post.

are plug in you HD box to the net ........

Still trying to get my head round this.
Does it mean that BBC and ITV will move to 19e next year with 1N, and therefore no longer be accessible via dishes focusing on 28e for the main group of Sky channels ?

No

The channels will move off 1n and onto 2e or 2f - which will be at 28 east
2f goes up this year - curent scheduled launch is 24 or 21st /9/2012
2e goes up q2 next year - (yes out of sequence!)
Then say SES, 1n will move to the rest of the "astra 1" fleet at 19 east, where it was designed for.

Which channel will move onto which satellite (2e or 2f) or when they will move is not known for sure - if it is 2f then could be as soon as before xmas, if 2e then by easter - all depends on testing and positioning. But you can pretty much say that the main UK channels bbc itv will be on the UK beams of these satellites, just as they werre when they were on Astra 2D.

Then later (q1 2014) 2G will go up.
And then presumably the two other current astra satellites, Astra 2a and 2b will, along with 2d, be put into "graveyard orbit" and retired, or moved elsewhere for for back up..

Astra 2s are located at 28 east and are used, with eutelsat 28a, for UK TV .

So no need to change dish alignments, the channels are staying wherethey are, its just the satellits that will be moving.

So under the new sat set-up,will the former 2f group once again have a restricted footprint from a narrow beam or is it likely that the whole Sky group move onto narrow beams making Spanish reception very difficult in most areas ?

The new satellites,2e, 2f and 2g, have been built with beams for pan european, uk (this you would perhaps call a narrow beam), african and supposably middle east coverage - and beams for satellite internet ober the uk and europe.

UK TV channels will be spread over the 3 Astra satellites (and Eutelsat1/Eurobird1) using their UK and pan european beams... just like they have been for many years - so no change there.

but which channels will be on what beam is unknown... apart from the highly likely scenario of BBC ITV C4 and Fives being on the uk beam - just like when they were on Astra 2D - no change there.

(And some Nigerian channels will be on the nigerian beam - currently they are on an nigerian beam on 2b (i thnk)

The only possible change will be in reception, as although the new satellites are more powerful than their predecessors, beam technology has improved a lot over the 15 years since 2d was launched. Which we have seen by the steep reception drop off of Astra 1N and the loss / reduction of reception in areas like Canaries and Greece and Cyprus.

BUt until the new satellites are up and running, true reception of what chanensl on what beams will be unknown - I dare say that even Astra cannot predict 100% the true signal footprint. (I had heard the even the smallest minute error on its reflectors can cause something like a 50km change in signal footprint).

If I were Sky, from a make money point of view, I would put the less premium SD channels on the harder to receive UK beam, and the HD channels, that require you to spend a bit more money for, on the easier to receive pan european beams. in a way they do that already, for example Sky Sports 4 and Sky Sports News can go off mid afternoon on 2.4m dishes, yet the HD versions ofthose chanenls canbe receive 24/7 on a 80cm dish. So the idea is not new.

Although the channels on Sky do not buy rights for pan European broadcast, the may well know thatthey can get a share of subscrptions from expats. Also, the UK beams will be charged at a premium rate (like they were for 2D) ,and the pan euopeans at a lesser rate. So for broadcasters it will be go free to air (ie not sky) but pay for premium satrellite space that limits reception by being on a narrow beam, or pay for encryption, but with cheaper pan european coverage, but the impact of being available to other countries in lessened as viewing cards can only be issued to the UK. And think of the sudden drop in subscription revenue and impact on profits if Sky totally alienate the 500,000plus expat subscribing population.