Top Up TV set to Launch on 31 March 2004

[rudelad]

They have announced the launch date: 31 March 2004
Check out http://www.topup.tv

How many of us are excited?

 

[MartinImber]

I'm not

Just waiting for them to fail!

 

[MarkE19]

Now, now Martin. That's not the attitude........




......wait until they fail and then start laughing

 

[Spok]

I will certainly not be suscribing. We dumped our cable service and went over to Freeview because we do not want to pay for television. Not because we are hard up, but because there is nothing on these channels worth paying for. The good programmes always find their way onto the other five main channels eventually anyway.

Does anyone know if TOPUP TV is using spare bandwidth or are we going to see a drop in bitrate for all the other channels to make room. If so, I will be very angry. A drop in the already low bitrate would mean a drop in picture quality.

Spok.

 

[MartinImber]

C5 bit rate has dropped - quality is lower

 

[MatthewS]

Originally posted by Spok
Does anyone know if TOPUP TV is using spare bandwidth or are we going to see a drop in bitrate for all the other channels to make room. If so, I will be very angry. A drop in the already low bitrate would mean a drop in picture quality.

The channels on TopDownTV are being broadcast on Muxs 2 and A (Mux listing). The only 'Freeview' channels of note that will be affected are ITV1, ITV2, C4 and five (.....and bid-up.tv!! ). five broadcasts in variable bitrate so it's difficult to track the average, and I'm not sure what changes to their bandwidth quota have been made, but it _seems_ to me that the quality has dropped since TUTV has started broadcasting. And I'm sure you'll be delighted to hear that the TUTV previews (in what way is that looping rubbish a preview???) are mostly higher bitrate than the other channels on the Muxs!

Matt.

 

[MarkE19]

(in what way is that looping rubbish a preview???)

Well its just like the real thing - repeat after repeat

Mark.

 

[MatthewS]

Originally posted by MarkE19
Well its just like the real thing - repeat after repeat

LMFAO!!!

 

[bxd]

Hi,

April 1st might be a more appropriate launch date.

No TUTV for me !!!

Brian.

 

[Lawe]

Originally posted by rudelad
They have announced the launch date: 31 March 2004
Check out http://www.topup.tv

How many of us are excited?

I can't believe they what us to pay them £20 to register or as a "special" 1/2 price offer on the net to get 10 channels of well....

 

[AOD]

Aside from those with ex On Digital boxes, will any other hardware be usable with the service on the launch date? I know a CAM for IDTVs is supposedly in the pipeline, but this won't be available at launch, will it?

TOTV are being very cagey about this, it would be nice if they could say "Company X are launching this product that will support TOTV", but no, it's all suitably vague.

My other half has expressed an interest in TOTV and just as I was thinking of buying a Freeview recorder of some sort.

Now I may have to sit tight until a compatible recorder hits the shelves, or TOTV goes belly up, whichever happens first.

 

[MarkE19]

I know a CAM for IDTVs is supposedly in the pipeline, but this won't be available at launch, will it?

From the TUTV web site:

1. You own an Integrated Digital TV (IDTV)
2. You can receive Freeview (including the channel "Five")
3. You purchase a new Top Up TV "Conditional Access Module" ("CAM") (expected to be available from May 2004)

Mark.