A set-top box (STB), also known as a cable box, receiver, or simply box, and historically television decoder or a converter, is an information appliance device that generally contains a TV tuner input and displays output to a television set, turning the source signal into content in a form that can then be displayed on the television screen or other display device. It is designed to be placed alongside or "on top" of a television set.
Freeview is the United Kingdom's sole digital terrestrial television platform. It is operated by Everyone TV and DTV Services Ltd, a joint venture between the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5 and Sky. It was launched on 30 October 2002, taking over the licence from ITV Digital which collapsed that year. The service provides consumer access via an aerial to the seven DTT multiplexes covering the United Kingdom. As of July 2020, it has 85 TV channels, 26 digital radio channels, 10 HD channels, six text services, 11 streamed channels, and one interactive channel.
Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos, television shows and films digitally on request. These multimedia are accessed without a traditional video playback device and a typical static broadcasting schedule, which was popular under traditional broadcast programming, instead involving newer modes of content consumption that have risen as Internet and IPTV technologies have become prominent, and culminated in the arrival of VOD and over-the-top (OTT) media services on televisions and personal computers.
Sky UK Limited, trading as Sky, is a British broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television, internet, fixed line and mobile telephone services to consumers and businesses in the United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of Sky Group and, from 2018 onwards, part of Comcast. It is the UK's largest pay-TV broadcaster, with 12.7 million customers as of the end of 2019 for its digital satellite TV platform. Sky's flagship products are Sky Q and the internet-based Sky Glass, and its flagship channels are Sky Showcase, Sky Max, and Sky Atlantic.
Top Up TV was a pay TV service in the United Kingdom that was launched in March 2004, operating on the digital terrestrial television platform. The service aimed to "top up" Freeview customers by providing additional content and services through encrypted TV channels unavailable to other viewers.
Internet Protocol television (IPTV), also called TV over broadband, is the service delivery of television over Internet Protocol (IP) networks. Usually sold and run by a telecom provider, it consists of broadcast live television that is streamed over the Internet (multicast) — in contrast to delivery through traditional terrestrial, satellite, and cable transmission formats — as well as video on demand services for watching or replaying content (unicast).
Electronic programming guides (EPGs) and interactive programming guides (IPGs) are menu-based systems that provide users of television, radio, and other media applications with continuously updated menus that display scheduling information for current and upcoming broadcast programming. Some guides also feature backward scrolling to promote their catch up content. They are commonly known as guides or TV guides.
Freesat is a British free-to-air satellite television service, first formed as a joint venture between the BBC and ITV plc and now owned by Everyone TV. The service was formed as a memorandum in 2007 and has been marketed since 6 May 2008. Freesat offers a satellite alternative to the Freeview service on digital terrestrial television, with a broadly similar selection of channels available without subscription for users purchasing a receiver.
Freesat from Sky (FsfS) was a British satellite television service from Sky UK. It offered over 240 free-to-air (FTA) channels in its EPG. This is a greater number than its competitors, Freesat, which has 200+, and Freeview, which has 70+. It also had up to six HD channels and used to have Sky Active interactive data service. Sky was not actively promoting the service and the service has quietly been discontinued for new customers as of 2021.
Skyworth, officially Skyworth Group Co., Ltd., is a Chinese holding company. Its subsidiaries design, manufacture and sell televisions and other audio-visual products. They also invest in properties. Headquartered in Nanshan High-tech Park, Shenzhen, as of 2010, Skyworth has operations in Hong Kong and Inner Mongolia as well as in various locations in Guangdong including Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Dongguan.
Freeview is New Zealand's free-to-air television platform. It is operated by a joint venture between the country's major free-to-air broadcasters – government-owned Television New Zealand and Radio New Zealand, government-subsidised Whakaata Māori, and the American-owned Warner Bros. Discovery.
4TVInteractive was an Electronic Programme Guide (EPG), launched in 2002, for television services in the United Kingdom. The service, which supplied up to 14 days worth of listings data, was available through compatible digital terrestrial television receivers. The service was created by 4TV Limited, before the launch of Freeview's DVB seven-day EPG in 2004, and had been operated by Inview Technology since November 2006.
Digifusion was the brand name of Fusion Digital Technology Limited, a British consumer electronics company that began trading in 2002, producing a range of digital terrestrial televisions and receivers. Fusion was part owned by Beko, the Turkish electronics giant, who were responsible for all product manufacture.
DigitAlb Sh.A is an Albanian media, digital satellite and terrestrial TV platform based in Tirana, Albania. The TV platform began terrestrial broadcasts on 15 July 2004, and satellite broadcasts by the end of that year. At the same time, DigitAlb began broadcasting some channels of defunct AlbaniaSat's satellite platform SAT + which eventually went bankrupt. DigitAlb closely collaborates with absorbing sports package SuperSport while having introduced wireless DVB-H technology for wireless TV for the first time in Albania since 2006. On 15 July 2022, to celebrate 18 years, Digitalb launched its OTT service.
Radio Times Extra is a means of extending advertising into the medium of digital programme guides provided by Inview Technology. It offers full television listings and synopses forward 14 days, as well as editorialised selections include 'pick of the day'.
Freeview is the brand name of the digital terrestrial television platform in Australia intended to bring all of free-to-air (FTA) broadcasters onto a consistent marketing platform, to compete against subscription television, in particular Foxtel. The strategy coincided with the expansion to 3 digital channels for each FTA network and the phasing out of analogue television in Australia. Important services from Freeview include its free-to-air channels with an enhanced EPG across all channels. Freeview also certifies televisions, set-top boxes and personal video recorders (PVR) which meet its standards.
Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV (HbbTV) is both an industry standard and promotional initiative for hybrid digital TV to harmonise the broadcast, Internet Protocol Television (IPTV), and broadband delivery of entertainment to the end consumer through connected TVs and set-top boxes. The HbbTV Association, comprising digital broadcasting and Internet industry companies, has established a standard for the delivery of broadcast TV and broadband TV to the home, through a single user interface, creating an open platform as an alternative to proprietary technologies. Products and services using the HbbTV standard can operate over different broadcasting technologies, such as satellite, cable, or terrestrial networks.
TV Genius was a United Kingdom-based software company that specialize in TV search engines, TV recommendation engines, and EPG development. It was acquired by Red Bee Media in August 2011, and by Ericsson in July 2013. TV Genius became an integral part of the RedDiscovery portfolio with its core work related to TV solutions provided across TV, mobile, web, set top boxes, and devices like PlayStation and Nintendo Wii. The company worked with television operators in pay TV, IPTV, TV listings publishers, and mobile TV providers. It was known for its 3-screen TV search and for developing the Facebook-integrated EPG.
Real Digital was the brand name for a digital satellite television and radio service in the United Kingdom which was transmitted from SES S.A.'s Astra satellites located at 28.2° east and Eutelsat's 28A satellite at 28.5°E. Real Digital had planned to launch in Ireland. The service ceased transmitting on 31 March 2012 to "undergo essential maintenance work", and promised to return in approximately seven days. On 26 April 2013, David Henry informed The Guardian that the service intended to launch in the autumn.As of January 2015, the service had not launched. The company was dissolved in September 2018.
Julie Austin is the chief executive officer of Inview Technology, the world-wide digital switch over enabling company and supplier of middleware for TV set top boxes. She is married to the inventor Ken Austin and lives in North Wales.
