CHANNEL 4 is the latest channel to make changes to how it broadcasts on satellite.
As a result, some viewers on Sky and Freesat may lose access to the home of the Great British Bake Off and Gogglebox.
According to Radio Times, from the end of November, Channel 4 will only be available in HD on satellite.
A spokesperson for Channel 4 told the magazine that it is “changing the technology we use to broadcast our channels to Sky and Freesat households – ensuring we are delivering the highest quality HD viewing experience to all, and, opening up the potential for new services in the future”.
Fortunately, this shouldn’t be a problem for most British households.
But anyone with an older Sky or Freesat box is only capable of SD (standard definition), this poses a big problem.
Sky has already been shifting customers with legacy SD-only boxes across to newer HD-capable sets with a free upgrade to Sky Q.
Sky customers who don’t currently use a Sky HD, Sky+HD or Sky Q box have been notified throughout October that their account will be automatically cancelled if they don’t upgrade.
Channel 4 is not the only station making the move, BBC and ITV have also been busy closing their SD broadcasts on satellite this year.
Changes only affect satellite services, so Virgin Media and Freeview remain as they are.
However, Channel 4’s other channels – E4, More4 and Film4 – are expected to continue on satellite in SD, according to RXTVInfo.
That’s because HD versions of these channels are encrypted via satellite and are only available to Sky subscribers who pay for them.
Instead, Channel 4 is making technical changes to a new standard which means those SD channels won’t work on legacy boxes either.
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