Sky+ HD is the brand name of the HDTV service launched by Sky plc on 22 May 2006 in the United Kingdom and Ireland to enable high definition channels on Sky to be viewed. For the first 2 years after launch, the service was branded Sky HD. The service requires the user to have a Sky+ HD Digibox and an HD ready TV. Customers who pre-ordered by paying a deposit before 6 April 2006 were the first to receive the service, with installations starting on 21 May 2006.
As of 21 August 2014 the number of Sky+HD boxes currently in use stands at over 10 million.
A subscription to the original HD pack carries an extra fee of £10.25 (€15.00 in Republic of Ireland) a month on top of the standard Sky subscription. This fee allows customers to view any HD channels which correspond to the channel packs they subscribe to. Thus, Discovery HD and National Geographic HD will only be available if you have the entertainment extra package in addition to HD. Before that someone without the Knowledge Pack (part of the Entertainment Extra as of September 2011, which corresponds to the Variety Pack) could not view the SD Discovery or National Geographic but they can view the HD versions. Additional Pay-Per-View events on Sky Box Office HD are not available to customers unless they subscribe to the Sky HD pack.
Sky HD may refer to:
Sky Italia is an Italian digital satellite television platform owned by Sky plc. It is similar in many ways to Sky in the United Kingdom and Sky Ireland in Ireland, which is partly owned by 21st Century Fox, and like that network it is a major sports broadcaster.
Pay TV services on Sky Italia are encrypted in NDS VideoGuard. The VideoGuard set-top boxes that have been provided since July 2010 are identical to the Sky+ HD boxes used in the UK. Pace, Amstrad and Thomson, all Digibox licensors, have been producing Sky Italia boxes (Sky Box, Sky HD, My Sky and My Sky HD) identical to their Sky Digital, Sky+ and Sky+ HD offerings, albeit with the potential removal of the second card slot and UHF modulator.
Sky Italia was founded in July 2003 by the merger of TELE+ and Stream TV. Since July 2010 Sky Italia has been giving the 'Sky Digital Key' and the My Sky HD box for free to every new customer (since July 2009 HD channels have been available with no extra cost to all Sky Italia subscribers). The 'Sky Digital Key' is a USB device which has to be connected to the 'My Sky HD' box and to the aerial cable, allowing the customer to receive every DTT SD and HD free channel on the Sky HD or My Sky HD box.