Satellite tv, white card, loss of channels Andalucia

 Hi everyone,

We have a cortijo in Andalucia Nr.Huescar.

We have a large satellite dish and up to this year have been able to receive all the channels I pay for in England via my white card which I take to Spain.   

In June I lost channels BBC1,2,4,,ITV 1, and 5 but got all the other ones ie free movies etc., so have assumed my dish has moved.  We have bought a satellite finder kit whilst in England and bringing it back to Spain at the end of September.  Have looked on the Satellite finder for my area and got the details and hope we can  re-align it.- Any advice would be appreciated.

I have bought a white sky card to bring back giving me freesat, but when I tried it in my box in England it didn't give me chanel 5..

Can anyone tell me why or give advice.    I am trying to avoid ringing Sky!

Regards

Joan

In June I lost channels BBC1,2,4,,ITV 1, and 5 but got all the other ones ie free movies etc., so have assumed my dish has moved.  We have bought a satellite finder kit whilst in England and bringing it back to Spain at the end of September.  Have looked on the Satellite finder for my area and got the details and hope we can  re-align it.- Any advice would be appreciated.

If you have lost the BBC channel then your dish has moved, or your LNB has gone.

BBC channel have not needed a sky card for over 8 years now, as the BBC channels are "free to air".

If you are doing it by your self, then get a sky box and portable TV by the dish. Choose a good stong signal, (sky news) and max the signal on your "beeper", then try a signal for True Movies, then go for ITV2 or 3 or 4, then go for C4 (104) and then BBC2 England. Very small movements required.

I have bought a white sky card to bring back giving me freesat, but when I tried it in my box in England it didn't give me chanel 5..

You do not need any card for Freesat,. Freesat provides access to the free to air channels - ie those channels that requrie no viewing card. The only way you can get Freesat is with a Freesat receiver. You cannot use a Sky card with a Freesat box. YOu cannot get Freesat on a Sky box. You cannot get Sky Pay / encrypted channels on a Freesat box (the only "sky channel" you can get on Freesat is Sky News, and even then not on the Fresat EPG, but in only by putting the FReesat box into "nonFreesatmode!"

I am trying to avoid ringing Sky

If you got a white card (known as a "freesatfromsky" card, or "free to view" card)  and could not even get C5 in the UK, then I dare say your card is not activated, so a call to sky to get the card activated will be required....as per the instructions on the letter that came with the card when you received the card. OF course this depends on the onscreen messages you get when trying Five, or other FTV channels (like Pick TV or Sony TV) that the FSFS / FTV card "unlocks". Card not authorised means it has not been turned on by Sky and you must call them and get it turned on. The "fives" will not show in the Sky guide until the card is activated. Without calling Sky, there is no other way to get the card activated.

 Hi,

Thanks for your reply and advice.

In England I have a sky+ box and I pay for 2 entertainment packs.  I have two cards for this, as I have a multi-room box in the bedroom.  I have disconnected the box in the bedroom and taken it to Spain and the card I have works fine giving me all the channels I get in England in my villa on the Costa Blanca.

I also have a cortijo in Andalucia and this is where the problems start.  I will try to re-align the dish when we get back there to get back BBC etc.  I have bought a satellite locater, but to date cannot find any instructions on use.

The white card I have bought was for use with my sky box in Andalucia.

If I put it in to my box here in England and phone sky to activate it, will I then be able to take the card to Spain and use in my box there.

Will it mess up my English Sky + box?

Help

Joan

 As far as I know your sky viewing card to receive paid-for channels can only be paired to one box at a time.

It's important to ring Sky from an English mobile telephone  and not a Spanish landline.  Apparently they can tell where the calls are coming from.

You cannot switch cards into different boxes without ringing sky to advise them, they will then authorise the card to the box you have it in... it is not portable without this authorisation.

Barry

If I put it in to my box here in England and phone sky to activate it, will I then be able to take the card to Spain and use in my box there. Will it mess up my English Sky + box?

A Sky card can be activated in ANY Sky box. However, Sky may be difficult as they will see that a Sky sub card is already paired to that box, and so it may mess up your Sky sub card on that box.

You cannot switch cards into different boxes without ringing sky to advise them, they will then authorise the card to the box you have it in... it is not portable without this authorisation

Any Sky card will work in ANY Sky receiver without pairing, for the "free to view" channels and the 6 mix (or from the 1st Sept Entertainmen and Enterrainment  Extra) channels.

It only needs pairing for Sky Sport, Sky Movies, and recording the encrypted channels on Sky+ boxes.

So yes you can switch cards into different boxes - even without ringing sky to advise them.

With the old blue cards you could have mutliple cards paired to one box...but no longer with the white cards

 Hi again,

Thanks so much for your advice.  

My sky box in the bedroom is not connected to a telephone line so can I put this new sky card in that and phone Sky to get it authorised for channel 5.

J x

My sky box in the bedroom is not connected to a telephone line so can I put this new sky card in that and phone Sky to get it authorised for channel 5

If that box is already paired used with a Sky subscription card, then, like i said before, it may be tricky, and if done could mess with the sub card paired to that box.

Box connected to the phone line is irrelevant for "freesatfromsky" cards, you must physically call the number on the letter that came with the sky card for activation.