Is SKY gonna be illegal by July

spongebob

in July This is the law (and must be enforced by Comreg )

Section 20 of the linked word.doc deals with Crypto and appears to make SKY illegal on the grounds that they are non compliant with Euro Digital Crypto standards.

Intruiging !

Thoughts?

Charles Slane

Hi Muck,

I had a look at Section 20, but I don't see which part you reckon will make Sky illegal.

I'm obviously missing something significant.

Can you explain what you mean ?

carrolls

A person who places on the market for sale or rent or otherwise makes available consumer equipment intended for the reception of digital television signals that is capable of descrambling digital television signals, shall ensure that such equipment possesses the capability to-(a) allow the descrambling of such signals according to the common European scrambling algorithm as administered by a recognised European standards organisation, and
(b) display signals that have been transmitted in clear, provided that, in the event that such equipment is rented, the rentee is in compliance with the relevant rental agreement.

I think Sky are already in compliance with the above points.

spongebob

Originally posted by carrolls
I think Sky are already in compliance with the above points.

This Bit

shall ensure that such equipment possesses the capability to-(a) allow the descrambling of such signals according to the common European scrambling algorithm as administered by a recognised European standards organisation

I though SKY crypto was proprietary and not a 'common European scrambling algorithm' like the law will require from July ....in fact if it was originally deployed since 1996

chernobyl

By European law, all satellite broadcasters should offer their services in atleast 2 flavours of encryptions to allow cosumer choice, yet only Stream, Telepiu and Canal+ Nordic ever did so.

EDIT: how could i forget the hardcore issue.
Yeah, the porno guys used to simulcrypt but thats not very commom now. The Hummy 5400 guys really burned them.

Stream and Telepiu are now one and Canal+ Nordic is exclusively Conax too.
The law was a ****ing joke, only to be laughed at.

European scrambling algorithm

=DVB no?

DMC

In answer to the thread header, something with 250,000 subscribers would tell me that it wont.

telecinesk

Yes. Sky should be made illegal on encryption grounds. IE You cannot get an NDS cam and use a common interface receiver.. Then again certain modified receivers will handle Nds provided a card could be blown.mmmm..
Didnt this crop up a few years ago and nothing was done? Somone know about that bit of EU law??
Anyone clarify this>

spongebob

therefore RTE cannot be uplinked and made available within that encryption cloud either, that would be illegal broadcasting IMO

it must be unscrambled or else encrypted according to the Law.....the law being the Transposed EU directive I linked in the first post.

I can't see COMREG telling SKY to re-engineer all their boxes, or to 'withdraw' their service but I can see the TV companies coming under strong regulatory pressure not to offer their product for uplink save where the downlink is cryptographically compliant.

Fun Times

John R

Even if this does make Sky's practices illegal, I assume that it would require someone to initiate legal action against them to enforce it. I can't imagine the Irish government being pro-active in this respect, they aren't about anything else why would this be different? A possibility would be that a consumer could take action, claiming damages from sky because of non-compliance. Anyone have deep pockets?

As it is a european law it should also have equal significance on sky's UK operations.

Anything that would force them to release CAM's would be very nice indeed but I can't see it happening.

watty

This is about people selling hypothetical "Digital TVs", i.e. TV sets with a Digital Terrestrial, Digital MMDs or Digital Satellite tuner/decoder built in.

It means that the set must have a standard CAM /CI socket, alongside whaterver other proprietary CAMs built in it might have.

It doesn't apply to broadcasters (Ones outside Ireland can transmit whatever they like).

It doesn't apply to equipment sold previously

It doesn't apply to dedicated standalone boxes at all.


Since Sky won't let anyone make ANYTHING with a NDS/Videoguard cam built in AND any other CAM or CI slot, it means any Digital Television with a built in Satellite receiver/decoder (i.e "digital" tuner") will need an external Sky Digibox. So nothing new!

It *Might* mean that if there ever is an Irish Terrestrial Digital TV service and you buy a TV with "digital" tuner built in that it *might* accept a CAM for European Satellite pay TV and work with and aerial and/or and LNB.

But if you want Sky, then you plug a Digibox into the SCART!

It *might* that a Sky Digital only decoder/tuner built into a TV would be illegal.


It is to do with your Digital TV still working no matter what Digital services there are. A TV that could ONLY pick up Sky would be a seriously bad idea, some people wouldn't realise this, so the "PROPOSED" legislatiojn is consumer prodection. It doesn't force Sky to do or change anything.


If you had the money, you could flog or give away whaterver proprietary "add on" Digital receiver box (so called set top box) you liked, rent space on Astra / Eutelsat, uplink from someplace with no diplomatic relations or control by EU (USA or African states?) and transmit whatever you liked.

You can even make the "key" be a 9G DVD you post out every month and have an integral CD/DVD player in your box that loads the key. Only the "key" would be keyed to built in box serial numbers. If you have no sub the key don't work.
(on a sub, this is no more expensive than sending out the Sky Magasine and could have the magasine on it).

spongebob

Originally posted by watty
This is about people selling hypothetical "Digital TVs", i.e. TV sets with a Digital Terrestrial, Digital MMDs or Digital Satellite tuner/decoder built in.

If you had the money, you could flog or give away whaterver proprietary "add on" Digital receiver box (so called set top box) you liked, rent space on Astra / Eutelsat, uplink from someplace with no diplomatic relations or control by EU (USA or African states?) and transmit whatever you liked.

It sez

A person who places on the market for sale or rent or otherwise makes available consumer equipment intended for the reception of digital television signals

Equipment ...not TV with Decoder

It is a Europe wide directive and appears to control the downlink crypto into EU countries.

M