BBC America is Lame

CowboyDren

SatelliteGuys Pro
Original poster
Jul 18, 2005
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Is there a legal way to get the real BBCs in the US, maybe nearly real-time? Even if it requires PAL or SECAM satellite equipment, can it be done?
 
Is there a legal way to get the real BBCs in the US


Nope ...

If you have family over in the UK - there are ways that you can get the content streamed to your pc over here in the US .. but nothing legal ... no. Not unless you are a UK resident and you pay the License fee.
 
Let's say that I am a resident and do have a current account. Are you saying that it's technically possible without resorting to IP-based solutions? Does a bird over North America repeat the signal(s)? I know the rules on this forum, and I'm not asking to break laws or contracts, or even asking for pointers, just asking a hypothetical question.

I'm just frustrated by watching four-year-old Dr. Who and last years' Top Gear. :)
 
No. No satellite that covers the UK and the US has BBC. Only way to get TG new eps in the US is via the danged old internet. :)
 
yup - other than a slingbox or computer hooked up with something like orb.com (assuming you were a uk resident and paying a license fee) there are other methods to get the tv shows you like within an hour or two of air-time - but none of them are legal .. :)
 
Why would a satellite over the US broadcast the BBC to the US?

For the same reason that a satellite over the US broadcasts

African
Filipino
Italian
Russian
Arabic
French
Japanese
South Asian
Armenian
German
Korean
Ukrainian
Chinese
Greek
Polish
Urdu
Israeli
Portuguese

channels .... so that ex pats from those countries can view their favorite shows.

Yeah yeah - i know about broadcast rights and the reasons why the BBC can't be had over here - but if we are following logic here .. given the plethora of foreign based channels on US satellites .. one could easily forgive someone for asking .. "why not" ... couldn't they ?
 
No. all of those channels have a legal right to broadcast outside of the Commonwelath and are distributed by valid means. About the only way you could get the BBC here would be if there isa bied broadcasting to Canada. parts of the US might get that.they are
 
No. all of those channels have a legal right to broadcast outside of the Commonwelath and are distributed by valid means. About the only way you could get the BBC here would be if there isa bied broadcasting to Canada. parts of the US might get that.they are

Obviously my post went right over your head ...

like i said - i understand the broadcast rights etc ...

You asked why would they broadcast here - i gave the answer ... to serve ex-pats ....

You didn't say - why do you think they would legally be able to broadcast here. which i suspect was the question you were going for ... in which case the answer would of course be "legally they can't" as we have already said ...

But in answer to your question - "why would they broadcast here" my answer "to serve the expat community" is a valid answer, albeit one that cannot be achieved right now due to various broadcasting rights issues.

:)

Course .. many of us would be more than happy to pay the equivalent of the license fee to be able to receive a "live" broadcast of the BBC's output. Shame it'll never happen ....
 
OK why would they broadcast here if they are forbidden by British law to do so? Their situation is different from the other on your list.

Maybe your post went over my head or maybe mine went over yours since I was not talking about broadcast rights.. But the bottom line is that they cannot.
 
there is allot more UK based programs on expressview & star choice although most are a bit out of date. We watch coronation street every day but they are about 6 months old. BBC canada is fair & BBC kids/BBCK runs allot of comedies at night. If you are looking for more UK (and now some Austrailian) based tv programs you might consider looking into bev or Starchoice.
 
I dont know if/how the setup worked, but I remember a few years ago on my drive to work, the last little bit was thru a restidential area. There was a house that had a sky tv dish pointed almost due east right at the equator (this was in Scottsdale, AZ). I hear some British expats in Spain get BBC via fta satellite equipment they purchase in the UK. Would that be a possible way to get it?
 
A Sky-TV dish in Scottsdale would have been pointing at the Ku-band signals
of SKY MEXICO from 58 West (PanAmSat 9, now known as Intelsat 9).
They are getting BBC World 24/7, which is a news service, not to be confused
with any BBC entertainment service.

Canada does have better British offerings due to their ties to the UK via the Commonwealth, so Star Choice would be the next step up short of getting an Internet solution and a Sling Box. But you will need a Canadian address.
 
Actually, I think it would be interesting to be able to watch the "real" BBC channels in real time here in the US. I would guess that "one day" we will be able to. I'm not sure why they would turn down a revenue stream potential by not offering it to satellite companies as a pay service.

On another note, has anyone watched the newer "Weakest Link" episodes shown on BBC America? What the heck happened to that game show host. She looks totally different, like her face went through a FoodSaver! :D
 
Maybe they replaced her with the Ann droid from the first season of Dr. Who V2.
 

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