your views on our uk tv quote...?

Hello all,

We have been given a quote by parador properties on getting uk TV in spain when wemove to S. Costa Blanca next year.  I'm just wondering if anyone can confirm if this is a good deal, and whether the tv providers are any good. 

Astra TV services will provide us with the following:

BBC 1 & 2

ITV 1,2 & 3

channel 4

Channel 5

Sky one

Sky movies 1 & 2

Sky sports 1, 2 & 3

Eurosport

MTV

UK gold

Living TV

UKTV food

History Channel,

Discovery Channel

Sci-Fi

Nickelodeon

National Geographic

And full Spanish network.

This is for 599 euros installation and 19 euros monthly subscription.  Is that any good?  Plus, I may be naieve here....I was hoping for a wider range of channels, we don't mind paying a bit more, but we wanted more movies, music, E4 (so I can get Friends!!) plus more childrens channels as I have a baby who will obviously watch more cartoons etc.  I know he'll be bi-lingual growing up ion Spain, but I'd like to understand the things he's watching too!!!!

Any advice please???

Thanks, Jenna

Or apartment already has a communal dish, so we can get the feed. We have an old Sky digibox that we are taking and we will be buying a Sky free to air card for £20 before going (see http://www.freesatfromsky.co.uk/). Our neighbours also have what they say is the "BBC" package with about 30 chanels or so. They paid about 450 Euros set up and there is no ongoing monthly fee.

Mark

Don't touch Parador with a barge pole!!!!

http://www.eyeonspain.com/Secure/MsgBrdsPosts.aspx?thread=2853&dev=T61&name=Torre%20Alcantara

You might be interested to have a look at the posts on this thread, which gives details about someone who does the TV installation without the monthly subscriptions.

Diane

With the Sky free to air, I have been told you need to activate it in a box in the UK. That will explain the regional differences in ITV and BBC channels as it depends where they were registered as to where the regions are. If you (or family) have a home address in the UK then you should be fine, just make sure it has ben put in your home digibox before going to Spain!!

Mark

Hi everyone

I,m really confused now - especially having read the link. We paid the 499Euros for sky & pay 19Euros per month. We have a slightly different package to the one quoted (ie, get Boomerang not Nickleodeon) but basically not much different. Are you all saying that now we have the aerial etc we will still receive sky if we cancel the monthly subscription? I understand that sky is illegal but thought that if we didn't pay monthly someone could still cut us off. Please help - confused!!

Anne21 where abouts are you in Spain.

I'm in Torrevieja and I have tv re-broadcast by Cina.  When I first took over the house I paid 90e pa for Annalogue tv which I could also get in the bedroom, later they changed over to digital and I had to pay 160e for the box and 15e pm.  This has since gone up to 19e pm for Halmark and three other channels to be included in the package, if you pay in cash then it's 180e pa.

Cina has 2 reserved channels and whenever Big Brother is on one of these is dedicated to E4.

Cina is trying to go legit and some of the programmes have changed, we now have Calle 13 and Sci Fi with Spanish adverts so I think they are re broadcast from Spanish Digital.

How long this hookie tv lasts remains to be seen that's why I will not pay up front for a year and still pay by Direct Debit.

Some others on here are describing Sky programmes which they get by having an individual box and large ariel receiver.  To get this you have to have this system set up in UK, then when you go to Spain the card also goes on it's holiday.  You either bring over a box with you or some helpful sole will supply you with one.  Some people have been caught out as when they have problems they ring Sky and let it slip they reside in Spain and Bham card is blocked.

I think Sky tried to get round this by linking card to phone line but whether that applies to Digital + only I couldn't say and I'm one of the unfortunate people who subscribe to Virgin.  But then again at least my husband has Setanta.

Hi Semijubilada

We are a bit further down than you on the Mar menor. Don't have one of the big sky aerials - just one of the many flimsy ones that may (or may not!) receive a signal - dependent on weather & crane movement as far as I can gather!! Think I may be getting mixed up with the big aerial receivers as you say. Thanks for the info

Just remembered it's called a microwave system and it has a rectangular mesh ariel, is this how you receive yours?

That's definately what mines called, it's such a strange name that it's hard to forget.  My mesh ariel points in a different direction to my neighbours but the signal's ok so I can't complain.

Or at least I think it is as I don't go over until next Wednesday.

Hi All

Not sure what package we are on. I know we paid 599 eoros and pay 19 euros a month. Going over next week so will see what we have channel wise. As I said in an earlier thread am a bit miffed as were told at start that communal aerial would only be for spanish TV. Reason we had our own. Will let you know when we come back what we get on our package. Ours is a big square receiver on our roof but the picture is good, except for ITV they are out of sync slightly. 

For 19 euros you should receive HallMark, ITV3 and RTE2, these were omitted from the original 15e a month charge then the charges went up and everyone had to pay 19e so these channels were included.

As to the movie channels those quoted by Parador are incorrect as all the movie channels have been renamed, on other forums people are complaining as the current channels being shown are not as good as sky movies 1 and 2.

If you want a full service then you will have to bring over a card that is registered to a UK address.  Other than that then personally if I was starting again with the TV I'd go for one that was a one off installation.  A friend had it installed at her rental in La Cinuelica Los Altos and so far she's had no complaints.  I think there's a good chance that the plug will be pulled by Sky and it's a matter of weighing up the cost, the installation charge seems to be the same it's the extra monthly charge that you have to take into account.

Also as you're in Algorfa then it would also depend on the reception there, the microwave or square mesh system is a re transmitted signal from someone with an extra large ariel/dish.  Have a look around you when you're next out and see what sort of dishes others have on their roofs.

If you have a dvd recorder how about recording some of the childrens programmes, they all seem to be repeats to me especially CBB's.  Whenever I visit my sister the same one's are on and I don't go around that often.  Like most Grandmothers now when she was made redundant in 1996 she started caring for her daughters children when they went back to work, Jasmine starts full time this year so her time will finally be her own.

Are you bringing over a TV from the UK, if so then you will have to have the digital receiver installed via a video recorder as there is a differrence between Spanish and English tv's, I'm not technical enough to explain the difference but that's what happened with my neighbours system.

I had to have my digi box re-coded on my recent trip and now have now & next on most of the channels. 

Chatting to the engineer found out that he doesn't subscribe to the system he maintains, he has a ginormous dish in his garden and gets over 300 channels!

He also said it is illegal to have the large Sky dishes installed on your house and if spotted by the Guardia they will be removed at your expense! 

Whilst searching the channels I found that TVE3 had been replaced by Fox channel (spanish adverts) don't know if this is a new thing as I found it one my second week.  Also not listed in the TeleMicro magazine but Calle13 is.