Freeview/Launch of ITV Play

marty · Post by **marty** » Sat Apr 15, 2006 12:59 am

Anyone with Freeview should have noticed by now that Men & Motors is to be replaced by ITV Play. ITV Play is ITV's 5th channel and is a so called 'interactive' channel - basically enticing people to phone in to try and win cash. ITV estimates its profits will be between 20 and 30 million quid in the first year. Personally I think this is scandalous as there are far too many of these wretched programmes on TV already preying on the hopes of ordinary people (such as me). Most of them are extremely difficult to get through to on the phone and ALL calls are charged - even if you DON'T get through. I'm not sure this is true with ITV Play but I'm sure phone calls will greatly contribute to their profits. To compound matters they've taken a perfectly good station off freeview. I don't know what I'm gonna do without The Professionals and Police, Camera, Action! Anyone with Freeview who disagrees with ITV's policy please email them at dutyoffice@itv.com to register your disapproval. Thanks.

Hendrik · Post by **Hendrik** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 8:14 am

my step-father was irate. sure i would be too, if i was in the country.

Mid A 15 · Post by **Mid A 15** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 8:02 pm

I agree wholeheartedly. I used to like catching the odd episode of The Sweeney or Professionals.

Who watches all that quiz stuff though? I guess one channel of it is ok but there seems to be loads of them.

J.R. · Post by **J.R.** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 9:06 pm

Marty----

If you are referring to such testicular (or is that terrestrial), programmes as "The Mint" and "Deal or No Deal", you can enter those via their websites FREE OF CHARGE !

'Erself is a bit of an addict, I hasten to add !

marty · Post by **marty** » Fri Apr 21, 2006 12:10 am

I just don't understand why they have to take away a perfectly good channel. What was particularly annoying was the response I got from ITV after emailing them. They said that ITV has a "limited capacity" on freeview! This is absolute tosh as they already have FOUR channels AND their news channel which they stopped broadcasting on a year ago and which is just sat there doing sod all. The launch of ITV Play (or should that be ITV Pay?) is just a cynical money-making ploy - you get charged 60p per call whether you get through or not. The majority of people don't get through. It's a con. Bring back Men & Motors!!!

matthew · Post by **matthew** » Fri Apr 21, 2006 1:58 am

marty wrote:I just don't understand why they have to take away a perfectly good channel. What was particularly annoying was the response I got from ITV after emailing them. They said that ITV has a "limited capacity" on freeview! This is absolute tosh as they already have FOUR channels AND their news channel which they stopped broadcasting on a year ago and which is just sat there doing sod all.

Not that it excuses anything, but the technology behind Freeview is such that a channel sitting there doing nothing uses up little or no broadcast capacity. So even if they removed their now-defunct news channel, that wouldn't free up anything other than a channel number.

The other thing to bear in mind is that some channels are broadcast at higher bitrates than others. A higher bitrate means higher quality, but the channel uses up more of their precious capacity. They probably think they can get away with transmitting something that's essentially advertising at a lower bitrate than the quality programming you know and love.

That doesn't explain why they used to have room but don't any more. You didn't expect the *whole* answer, did you?

Hendrik · Post by **Hendrik** » Fri Apr 21, 2006 7:52 am

men and motors was one of the best channels on freeview. infact, after BBC 4 (i like the documentaries), it WAS the best.

and you're right, it's not like they're short of 'GIVE US YER FOCKIN' MONEY!' programs. price-drop tv, bid-up tv, QVC, another one which i can't remember, and that's just the buying stuff ones. there's another two gambling ones at least.

seriously, what's the most effective way of starting a mass petition?

marty · Post by **marty** » Fri Apr 21, 2006 9:37 am

Hendrik wrote:seriously, what's the most effective way of starting a mass petition?

There already is one:

http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/menandmotors

It's got over 2100 signatures so far - please go and sign it.

Great Plum · Post by **Great Plum** » Fri Apr 21, 2006 11:07 am

I don't have freeview!

Tim · Post by **Tim** » Wed May 10, 2006 10:00 am

What, a company making a "cynical money-making ploy" - say it ain't so!!!

Surely there isn't anything cynical about it? It's their job to make money, isn't it? I think if this was the BBC you might have a leg to stand on, but, not with commercial broadcasters, sorry mate...

(you could live in hope that the market, saturated as it is with quizzy dross, will express its demand for soft-porn-and-cars and this will lead to new channels emerging... but the broadcaster has to make money out of it somehow. Personally I was somewhat disappointed when they got rid of the trampolining dwarf and the topless darts on LiveTV but there we go, there's always Bravo)

Tim

cj · Post by cj » Wed May 10, 2006 11:50 am

Great Plum wrote:I don't have freeview!

Ditto, or satellite, or in fact terrestrial since mid February. And I'm loving it! I seemed to have found extra hours in the day that never existed before. But as we don't take a daily paper and I don't always get to the news on the radio, I have no idea what is happening in the world. Apparently there were elections last week...

Laura M · Post by **Laura M** » Wed May 10, 2006 12:08 pm

Men and Motors was great Magnum PI is a legendary show I just luuurve Tom Selleck!! Shows like the Mint though do become strangley mesmerising particularly after a night out!!