Safe to the summer??... who knows

We read an article over the weekend from the Portugal news that quotes a BBC representative saying that the BBC signals will be received throughout Europe until the summer. They have put this down to a number of technical issues. You can read the whole article here...

This is not to say that we will stop to looking for an alternative way to receive English programming. But with the pressure now off we can ensure that the solution is the most stable and economic for our clients.

And Breathe...

Well it looks as if Santa has come early for the ex-pats of Southern Spain with news that the proposed transition of the BBC and Freeview channels onto the new UK spot beam has hit problem. This is not to say that it won´t happen in the future, dates in March are now being bandied about, but for now Eastenders is safe.

The reason for this has been given as a faulty transponder, but this will not be the end of the matter and the satellite signal will eventually find its new home. There has been a kind of official word on the BBCblog, they even acknowledge the non UK views, but I am afraid not with good news.

So what are we to do? Future Lifestyle will continue to test various systems to find the best way to continue to get UK programming. We believe that this is a good thing the delay will enable people within the industry to find a good, reliable solution. We have been approached by several suppliers of IP solutions in the past couple of weeks. Some are viable solutions, some were chancers hoping to cash in on the hysteria of the people (how very Costa del Sol).  This rest bite will hopefully make the opportunists get bored and move on allowing us to do our jobs.

Another upside to the delay is that members of the team had notice an increase in Christmas party invitations in the last week or so, something we believe was linked directly to the impending changes. What better way to try and get the best deal than ply us with drink and mince pies!

So for now panic over, but rest assured that we will be working behind the scenes to make sure that when the transition happens (and it will happen) it is smooth and as painless as possible.

  

To keep up to date with this and other goings on of Future Lifestyle why not ´like´ our Facebook page (facebook.com/FutureLifestyleSpain) or follow us on Twitter (@FL_Spain)

Signal Strength Latest.

An update on our preliminary spot beam signal strength tests. Early signs indicate to a large increase in the dish size needed to receive this signal south of Barcelona.  

We have found that a dish of 2.4 meters or greater will be required to ensure the signal strength and quality needed to view the channels transmitted on this satellite. If you think that the average dish needed at present is 1.3 meters you can see it is quite a jump in size. Not only will the size of the dish present installation problems for some people who would like to continue to view the likes of the BBC, but at a price tag of somewhere in the region of €2,000 plus the cost of installation, it may not be realistic for everyone.

Please be aware that these are just the first stage in testing and that until the switch is made over to the new satellite the exact dish size needed is unknown.

To keep up to date with our testing like our Facebook page at facebook.com/FutureLifestyleSpain

So what to do? 

Well now may be the time to really look at the way you watch TV. 

Satellite services are (in our humble opinion) beginning their swan song. Increased bandwidth, internet enabled entertainment devices and our own demand for quality programming convenient to our lifestyle the explosion of IPTV is upon us!

Services in the UK like Netflix (million users) Love Film (two million users) and even supermarkets (Tesco with BlinkBox) prove that this the future of home entertainment. Spain has their own version in the form of Youzee, where you can watch movies in both Spanish and their original language. But that is just the tip of the iceberg, every broadcaster worth their salt in the UK offers some form of “watch again” service. Allowing people to catch up on programs they want to watch, when they want to watch them.

Country related

 

One of the problems with internet services is that your IP address* will indicate from what country and even what town you are in. And with some of these services being country specific you can be greeted sometimes with a polite message telling you that you cannot watch / listen to this program from your current location (try listening to the football online on a Saturday afternoon).

So does this mean we are still no further forward? We have lost the satellite signal, you said there is an option, but as we are outside the UK the services won´t work!

Well these services mentioned aren´t the only ones available online. As we all know the internet is vast expanse, full of ideas and services. We could spend months writing about this option or that one. However instead we believe it is easier for you to contact us, tell us what you want to watch and how you want to watch it. We will then recommend the best solution for your needs.

Contact us at info@futurelifestyle.es or call 902 107 227 to book your free consultation. By “liking” our Facebook page we will keep you informed of not only the current home entertainment technologies, but of future trends and services.

 *An IP address is a number assigned to your computer when you go online. Each country has its own set of numbers making it easy to identify the location of your computer 

Satellite news, am I going to lose out?

We have recently found out that the new satellite commissioned to carry the BBC, ITV, Ch4 and Ch5 signals has been fitted with a UK Spotbeam. 

So what does this mean exactly? Well let’s not get too technical here and keep it to the points you need and want to know.

So why are they changing satellites? Like any technology satellites have a shelf life and the current satellite was due to be decommissioned early next year.

What is a spot beam? Much like a spot light in a theatre, a satellites spot beam will highlight only one area of the “stage” and not flood the whole area.

Predicted UK Spotbeam footprint

 What will happen to my TV channels? That´s the million € question really. Until the satellite is in place and transmitting no one can be a 100% sure. For UK residents the transition should be seamless and will not notice the changeover. However for people living outside the UK the signal may be weakened or lost altogether. Viewing some channels (BBC ect) may no longer be possible. 

Why are they moving to a spot beam? Well to be honest its pure speculation on our part, as you can image there is no official word as officially UK TV is not available outside the British Isles.

Firstly there are broadcasting rights, copyrights and territories. Program are produced and are paid to be shown in certain territories. They are unhappy that people are getting to view their hard work for free.

Also, as we all know in the UK we pay the licence fee for BBC TV and radio programmes to be made and broadcast. People outside the UK are not liable to pay the licence fee, which when you times the £145.50 fee by these people works out to be a pretty penny.

When is this going to happen? No fixed date has been given, but the satellite is already in the air and over the next week will be slowly moving into position. Then it will be broadcasting test transmissions for a short while before the switch over.

What next? Future Lifestyle with our team of satellite engineers will be carrying out signal tests once the satellite is in position to see the effect of the signal. We will report back our findings and post them on our Facebook page and blog. 

What are the alternatives?  With the growth of online content and internet enabled devices such as TV´s, games consoles and media centres, IPTV is going to become best way to receive English speaking entertainment.

At Future Lifestyle we have been great champions of IPTV and online content in general. You become the chief executive of your own TV station, watching the programs or movies when and where you want. One thing that has plagued the residents of Marbella is low internet speeds, however that could be about to change (read our fibre optic rumour blog).

We are always looking forwards so that we can bring our clients the latest home technology solutions. From the latest flat screen TV´s to complete home automation systems we can help you every step of the way.

Have a look at the services we offer on our website and “like” our Facebook page to keep up to date with all our latest news and offers.

Marbella to get going!!

Rumour has it that the long awaited upgrade to the Telefonica infrastructure is finally being implemented. 

A conversation with a Telefonica engineer last week on site revealed that they have started laying fibre optic cable from the top end of the Golden Mile (the Banus end) and are heading east. This is believed to be able to produce speeds of up to 100Mb!! For those unfortunate souls that are unable to get this new wonder cable don´t despair you are not forgotten.  New VDSL lines over copper cable will up your speeds to around 30Mb.

100mb internet speeds to hit Marbella!!

With current speeds ranging between 3 & 10mb (or part of more like) we were due a upgrade of some description to cope with demand for ever hungry bandwidth applications.

No official word as yet of when we will get this new (long overdue) service, but we will endeavour to keep you posted. Make sure you “like” our Facebook page to get the latest news about this and over tech and home entertainment news.