Free to Air Satellite Receivers

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FTA or Free to Air satellite is encoded in MPEG2 and not encrypted (some also consider traditional analog C band broadcast that are not scrambled to be FTA). It is legal for people to receive and view FTA satellite broadcasts. FTA uses a small dish similar to those used by subscription based services such as DirecTV and Dish Network (C band requires the large 6ft dish).

Free to Air satellite TV is a subset of TVRO, and was originally transmitted on C Band, but now utilizes Ku "Kurtz under" band, which allows for the new smaller dishes. The old C Band dishes were very large.

Free to Air satellite broadcasts are received with a FTV or Free to View receiver. Many such broadcasts are International, and some are regional based. There is a region code component of Free to Air similar to DVD. A complete list of available channels are available on www.lyngsat.com.

It is noteworthy to mention that Australia's ABC "Australian Broadcasting Corporation" is available as a FTV broadcast.

Scrambled Broadcasts and FTA Testing

A "tester" is often a term used to describe someone using an aftermarket firmware on their FTA receiver. For example, FTA receivers made by the major companies are not equipped to de-scramble Dish Network or DirecTV. Some sources claim to have a "patch" or modified firmware that is supposed to descramble these broadcasts. Note that not all 3rd party firmware is designed to descramble and that there are legal purposes for such modifications. Many hobbyists experiment with Free to Air Satellite Testing not to circumvent scrambled broadcasts, but rather to experiment with the technology itself.

!Notice! NEVER INSTALL A 3RD PARTY FIRMWARE ON YOUR FTA RECEIVER FOR THE PURPOSE OF DESCRAMBLING PAY SATELLITE SERVICE SUCH AS DISH NETWORK OR DIRECTV. BECOME A SUBSCRIBER TO RECEIVE QUALITY PROGRAMMING SERVICE FROM DISH NETWORK OR DIRECTV.

Installing a 3rd party firmware on your FTA receiver will void your warranty and could render the FTA receiver inoperative to the point where you cannot recover the original configuration. Such a receiver is then said to be "bricked" as in it has been made less useful or it will not operate at all and thus is like a brick, rather than a satellite receiver.

A legitimate firmware can often be obtained by the manufacturer of the receiver and may be installed to correct bugs or glitches in the original firmware, as well as provide valuable updates in regards to the internal database of satellites and transponders.

There is a vast variety of true FTA in-the-clear programming available, enough to justify the investment into an FTA receiver. Individuals that modify their FTA receivers or use 3rd party firmware in an attempt to circumvent ECM (electronic counter measures) implemented by the major providers often contribute to the FTA industry getting a bad reputation.

  • Use your FTA Satellite receiver to watch in-the-clear free satellite broadcasts
  • Subscribe to a digital satellite service provider to watch quality premium programming

Legitimate FTA Use and Subscription Digital Programming Providers

Legitimate FTA manufacturers interested only in selling FTA receivers and equipment to individuals looking to use that equipment for the reception and viewing of in-the-clear broadcasts make up the vast majority of the FTA market.

For the reception and viewing of scrambled programming it is recommended that you simply pay for a subscription based service such as that provided by Dish Network or DirectTV.

If you

(a) watch a lot of television,
(b) appreciate quality high definition programming,
(c) wish to have as little downtime as possible, and
(d) are not highly technical

then you should consider subscribing to Dish Network. Overall, Dish Network has better programming rates and more HDTV programming than cable TV providers and DirecTV.

Our recommendation for a subscription based digital satellite service is Dish Network. You can further avoid downtime by using a larger after market dish with your dish network receiver as opposed to the standard 20 inch dish they provide. For example, replacing the dish network 20 inch dish with an after market 36 inch dish will help reduce "rain fade," which is a condition where reception is reduced as a result of weather.

Consider the Alternatives

A Dish Network subscription is worth paying for if you watch a lot of television. On the other hand, casual viewers or individuals that watch no more than one or two stations, ever, will find that a Dish Network subscription is not necessarily a good value. Although they do offer some networks a la carte, the selection is very limited and many of the popular networks are only included in packages. This holds true for DirecTV as well. The casual viewer may find that the packages simply offer more programming than wanted for too great an expense. The low end programming packages often neglect to include that "one desired channel" and contain a lot of garbage channels.

Furthermore, some suspect Dish Network themselves to be politically bias, arranging their programming to facilitate politically left news organizations being predominately available in all packages while limiting the availability of more moderate news organizations.

Certain promotional events and charity related events either sponsored by or promoted by Dish Network have also seemed to lean to the political left. This detracts individuals not wishing to pay money to a politically influenced company.

Even if the company is politically neutral, which it may or may not be, the programming packages often force individuals to subsidize networks that have offensive or politically charged programming. A la carte is a better option, yet Dish Network and DirecTV do not embrace A la carte, instead they prefer to force programming packages on their customers. This is the biggest problem with Dish Network and DirecTV. There has been some movement towards the federal government forcing these providers to offer true a la carte programming.

A viable alternative that has been around for decades is good old traditional C band satellite television. C band is the satellite television service that requires you to have that BUD (Big Ugly Dish) and thus the dish itself makes this option practical for only certain people. Keep in mind that many used C-band receivers are now nearly useless since C band has also transitioned from analog to digital. In its new digital form, C-band is alive and well. Motorola 4DTV Satellite Technology allows you to use the large satellite dish to receive digital c-band television.

If you are not opposed to the large size of a traditional 6ft dish, you will find that all their programming is offered a la carte, and you will also be able to receive the free (true FTA) channels. You may wish to investigate further C-Band Satellite Information available from this wiki.

Hopefully, someday, the small dish digital providers (ie Dish Nework and DirecTV) will offer ALL programming via a la carte as well as in packages. Until then, neither can be recommend for the casual viewer. This is where some believe that FTA "testing" is justified without regards to the legal implications.

Visit the DirecTV and Dish Net Alternatives for Satellite Television Service page for more information.

 

IKS Receivers - The new way to FTA in 2010

See the Free to Air Testing With IKS page for details on post N3 testing.

deprecated information below (out of date).

 

 

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