Hello. I'm pretty sure the answer to my question is 'Yes' but I'd just like confirmation:

Would I be able to receive ALL the FTA channels on Sky by using 'non-Freesat' mode? (I'm thinking of Fiver, FiveUS etc which aren't on 'normal' Freesat).

If I'm right, I won't have to use one of the Quad LNBs outputs to feed my old Sky box...

Many thanks.

No.

Five US and Fiver etc. are not FTA, they are FTV (free to view).

Take your sky card out of your Sky box and you won't be able to receive them, you need a Sky card to decrypt them to receive them.

On Freesat you can receive every channel a Sky box can without the Sky card in.

Hope this helps.

Fiver and Five US are not FTA, they are FTV, i.e. encrypted requiring a Sky card to access them. They will eventually become FTA when Five can find a couple of slots on 2D for them.

Edit: carvell beat me to it

Thank you both, that's very useful. I take it Sky must go out of their way to annoy people - why else would it be necessary to have a card for channels that are freely available elsewhere i.e. Freeview.

Regards

It's a fairly complicated scheme involving which transponders the channels come from. For them to be FTA they'd have to move transponders.

But yeah, it is annoying!

For what it's worth, everyone is pretty sure that Fiver and Five US will be on freesat at some point in the future.

You would be completely wrong, without Sky there wouldn't be any satellite channels in the first place. It's necessary to have their card for copyright reasons, and many other channels free on Freeview are actually subscription channels on satellite, because the channel then gets subscription payments for it.

As others have suggested, if space can be found on 2D (which there's plenty of really), and a channel can afford to it - then they will probably go fully FTA.

It's entirely down to money - as simple as that - if a channel can make more money going FTA, then they will.

It's not really Skys fault. The programme makers notably the Hollywood movie makers insist that some material is only broadcast to UK licence holders (which Freeview largely is). A somewhat ridicolous rule has evolved that only channels transmitted from Astra 2D which has a narrow beam focussed in the UK qualifies for free to air UK PSB broadcasters. Due to lack of space a few channels can't be fitted on onto 2D so they are encrypted and need a freesat from sky card in a sky box to decrypt them. These cards are supposed to be only available to UK residents.

You live and learn. Any inferred criticism of Sky is hereby retracted!

On the other hand Sky could may be move some encrypted subscription channels of 2D to wideband transponders to make room for more fta stuff.

As in all things there's more than 1 point of view

Seem to remember there used to be 2 satellite providers to the UK some time ago. Also I'm pretty sure there are other satellites up there, other than the one Sky use.

I didn't feel any need to specify "in the UK"

Wind back 5 years, and you needed a Sky card for BBC, ITV Channel 4 and five, and E4, and More 4 were actually subscription channels on sky.

Things have got better, and will get better still as five have declared their intention of making fiver and fiveUSA FTA eventually.