NationStates Jolt Archive

Until about a week ago it never even occurred to me that this could be something someone would actually waste a thought on, but things have changed and now the day has come, where I put this as an official poll question on NS. [dun-dun-duuuuuuhh]

How many tv-channels do you get (for free)?

I recently moved to France, where they get (and now try hard not to laugh out loud) a grand total of 5 (five) channels.
:D
I thought it was downright hilarious until I realized that I myself was going to be stuck with just five lousy channels for at least a year... :eek:

Britain, we get Five at the best of times, all the rest of the time we get 4, "Damned TV licenses!" *wobbles fist in anger*

oh for free?none.

Default stations for Nova Scotia are CBC, ATV (which is actually CTV), Global and some channel that's in French. Oh, and you need to turn to channel four to watch movies on the VCR.

Huh... and I really thought it was bad over here...


I guess I'll just have to keep on watching dvds on my laptop then.
Good thing there's a video place in the same building I live in.
I shall spend lots of money there. :)

"I live in the US" means seven. They give off a weak signal for channels 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, and 13 for free

TV for fre? HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!! I haven't gotten free TV since like about 1980.

"I live in the US" means seven. They give off a weak signal for channels 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, and 13 for free

And 28 and a couple Spanish speaking stations.

I think the insinuation behind the 30-100 ("muahaha!") is that they were stealing cable.

I live in the US. We get about 7, maybe 8 channels for free around here. Mostly local programming and government funded stuff. Thank God for cable and satellite.

I shamefully enough, voted "I live in the US" without reading through....I've had the big ol' cable package my entire life, and now have the deluxe digital cable package (HD included), because we're swanky, so admittedly, I had NO IDEA which ones were "free".

Call me an elitist.

See that? That's my nose, way in the air. Scoff. ;)

Assuming you live somewhere that isn't out in the wops, you should be able to get reception on channels, 1, 2, 3, C4(music chan), Prime and in many places, some random local channel.

Britain, we get Five at the best of times, all the rest of the time we get 4, "Damned TV licenses!" *wobbles fist in anger*
unless you have freeview, in which case its about 20 digital channels or so (at a guess)

but i forgot about that when i voted :headbang:

hieh!


Sorry. Inside humour. Couldn't resist

Technically speaking it's impossible to get free television. In Britain you also have to regularly pay for a television licence, which a compulsory thing to have if you own and use a TV, thanks to the BBC.

That aside, though, there are 5 standard terrestrial (analogue) channels in the UK, all with very imaginative names -- BBC 1, BBC 2, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5. With Freeview, however, whose only charge is the initial cost of the set-top box (around £20 I think they are now), you get about 30-odd channels. There's no additional monthly fee for this, so I assume it qualifies as 'free'. And that's what I have.

The ideal situation for free stations in the U.S. would give you the following options, but this is only really applicable in larger cities.

ABC
CBS
NBC
FOX
UPN
WB
PBS
Local
(perhaps an extra Spanish station, or a second local station, depending on where you live)

But I've been getting premium cable since before I can remember, right now I have about 250 channels...but it ain't cheap! :p

Since I have the digital box thinger, I get the following channels for free.

ABC
ABC 2
SBS
SBS World News- (full of news in Chinese, Greek, Spanish, Arabic etc.)
7
9
10
A few random infomercial type crap channels

...SBS, ABC...7, 9, 10.

So 5.

I never watch TV anyway.

CBS
ABC
NBC
FOX
PBS
PAX

Plus local channels.

Depends on your definition of "free", really. I don't think there are any scams you can pull to waiver entirely the £100ish per year TV Licence Fee we have in the UK. Being blind or old reduces it, though.

I get the five "free" English channels but I sometimes get the optional Welsh one.

Ok...I've done some 'research': for only 22€ per month you can get an extra 20 channels. yee-haw ...I think I'm giving up on the whole tv-thing. Too expensive ;)

I think tv-quality (if there is something akin to that) is a fixed size, so the more channels, the more diluted ;)

Zero. Not having a TV kind of forces that number.


If I had a TV it would be eight - BBC 1, BBC 2, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, RTE 1, RTE 2 and TnaG.

Zero. Not having a TV kind of forces that number.

My respect for you just climbed 10%.

My respect for you just climbed 10%.

10% of nothing is still nothing.

I have Freeview
Loads more channels
The same amount of TV

The best things on their is ABC1 and Cartoon network

On freeview (in the UK) you can get about 30 free channels, al long as you pay your TV Licence.

10% of nothing is still nothing.

Certainly not. Everyone begins with a small amount of respect points. :p

I get the five "free" English channels but I sometimes get the optional Welsh one.
having lived in wales for the last 2 years, i can safely say i fucking hate S4C :mad:

On freeview (in the UK) you can get about 30 free channels, al long as you pay your TV Licence.
That's about what I'm used to... we paid some small fee for TV/radio every couple of months and got 30+ channels for 'free'. (Of course, that includes about 15 German channels, 5 French ones, 2 or 3 Italian, CNN and BBC world, and about 10 channels in 'random' languages... such as... Spanish, Turkish, and some other where I could never quite figure out what they were ;))

oh, kanabia, allow me to scramble for respect points as well? i herewith solemny swear that i refused every offer to be bought a TV ever since i moved out of my parants' out of principle. in fact, i never owned a TV in my life.

but we don't have free TV here in germany anyways. you have to pay a monthly fee if you own a "broadcasting device", even if you don't even have it plugged in :headbang: . sounds kinda like what you said about the UK.

oh, kanabia, allow me to scramble for respect points as well? i herewith solemny swear that i refused every offer to be bought a TV ever since i moved out of my parants' out of principle. in fact, i never owned a TV in my life.

Good boy. *pats and gives 10 respect points*

You can put them in your sig if you really like. "Kanabia gave me 10 respect points!!!" :D

I live in the US. However I also live in live out in the country, I only get ABC, PBS, and UPN. However on satellite I get FOX and CBS (nonlocal). :(

bbc1
bbc2
itv
c4
c5

yes we make do with that, ive done so for 12 years of my life

ah the olden days, when the simpsons ran twice a week on wednesday and friday.
then it was friday double episode, then it was cancelled, now its every living moment of my life!!!!

well, kanabia, that would be a "good girl", but hey. humbly admiring your generocity, i accept your respect points as well as your offer t put them in my sig. i shall always be your devout servant.
:D

well, kanabia, that would be a "good girl", but hey. humbly admiring your generocity, i accept your respect points as well as your offer t put them in my sig. i shall always be your devout servant.
:D

Oooh, sorry! I automatically think everyone on the internet is a guy until told otherwise. (there are girls on the internet? SINCE WHEN?!?) :p

And yay! A devout servant. I always wanted one. :)

oh, that's okay. i mean, it's not like this is allowed, right? i can only get onot the internet while my man's asleep and i can sneak onto his computer and use his internet permission...*looks 'round suspicously - hasn't somebody mentioned the CIA's looking into this forum? *hides**

as for the servant thing- oh, i'm not alone. but, oh most respected one, please allow me to tell you the others may not dare to declare their servitude as openly..you know..it's so hard bearing this fear of receiving rejection from you..*sniffs*

:D

Actually, it's nearly impossible to get free channels in New York anymore. Back in the day, we didn't get anything because all of the towers were on the world trade Center, and were too high for anything in Manhattan, but outside of it, at least you could get something. Now, the closest transmision tower is in Conneticut!

However, I do have several hundred channels thanks to the good people at direct TV. 133 for the standard price and then several hundred more for extra money, including 16 channels for the 'Extra Innings' Package.

as for the servant thing- oh, i'm not alone. but, oh most respected one, please allow me to tell you the others may not dare to declare their servitude as openly..you know..it's so hard bearing this fear of receiving rejection from you..*sniffs*

:D

*pats* You needn't worry about that. :D

5. I only watch 2 of them, and only once or twice a week.

Honestly I'm not sure how many free channels I get. I get something like 300 channels or so. Now I've got my curiousity bugging me about that........... :confused:

Here in Sweden, it depends if you have digital television or not.

But, over the standard terrestrial television network there are 3 television channels:

SVT1
SVT2
TV4

Of course, you have to pay a television licence fee if you own a television to pay towards SVT, SR and UR.

If you have digital television there are several other free channels (i.e. you don't need to subscribe), e.g. TV3, SVT24, Barnkanalen, Kunskapskanelen, Kanal 5 etc...