View source for Engineering:Sky+ HD

{{Short description|Satellite pay television service from Sky Group}}
{{EngvarB|date=November 2013}}
{{Infobox broadcasting network
| name                   = Sky HD
| logo                   = [[File:Sky+ HD.svg]] 
| owner                  = Sky Group
| parent                 = Sky Group
| launch_date            = {{Start date and age|2006|05|22|df=yes}}
| dissolved              = {{Start date and age|2016|10||}}
| replaced_by            = [[Engineering:Sky Q|Sky Q]]
| website                = {{URL|www.sky.com/products/ways-to-watch/sky-plus-hd/}}
}}
'''Sky+ HD''' was the brand name of the [[Engineering:High-definition television|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 two&nbsp;years after launch, the service was branded '''Sky HD'''. The service requires the user to have a Sky+ HD [[Engineering:Digibox|Digibox]] and an [[Engineering:HD ready|HD ready]] TV. A subscription to the original HD pack carries an extra fee of £10.25 (€15.00 in Ireland) a month in addition to the standard Sky subscription, allowing customers to view HD channels corresponding to the channel packs subscribed to. Additional Pay-Per-View events on Sky Box Office HD are not available to customers unless they subscribe to the Sky HD pack.

As of June 2014, subscription numbers for Sky+HD stood at over 5.2&nbsp;million, an increase from 4.8&nbsp;million the year before.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.trustnet.com/Investments/Article.aspx?id=201407250700133172N |title=BSkyB Results for the twelve months ended 30 June 2014 |publisher=BSkyB |date=25 July 2014 |access-date=30 June 2017}}</ref>

From October 2016, Sky+ HD is no longer being offered as it was replaced by [[Engineering:Sky Q|Sky Q]]. Existing customers can continue their subscription with Sky+ HD.

==History==
Launched in May 2006, Sky HD brought high-definition television to the consumer market, initially consisting of nine HD channels. Prices on launch were announced as £299 for a HD set-top box, with an additional £10 a month HD subscription on top of any existing packages.<ref name="guardian_skyhd_launch">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2006/mar/24/bskyb.broadcasting |title=Sky to launch HDTV in May |work=The Guardian |date=24 March 2006 |access-date=1 July 2017}}</ref> Customers who [[Finance:Pre-order|pre-order]]ed by paying a [[Finance:Deposit account|deposit]] before 6 April 2006 were the first to receive the service, with installations starting on 21 May 2006 following over 40,000 advance orders of the service; the number of Sky+HD pre-orders surpassed the total sales in the first year of Sky+.<ref name="preorders_40k">{{cite news |url=http://dtg.org.uk/news/news.html?id=1646 |title=Sky HD advance orders hit 40,000 |work=DTG |date=5 May 2006 |access-date=1 July 2017 |archive-date=22 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180622164635/http://dtg.org.uk/news/news.html?id=1646 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The HD package launched with a one-year minimum subscription duration.

The launch line-up consisted of Sky One HD, Sky Arts HD, Sky Movies 9 HD, Sky Movies 10 HD, [[Engineering:Sky Sports|Sky Sports HD]], Discovery HD, National Geographic Channel HD, Sky Box Office HD 1 and Sky Box Office HD 2 (now Sky Movies Box Office).

In January 2010, customers started being offered the Sky+ HD box as standard, with the HD package being optional at the same subscription price. The Sky+ box was subsequently withdrawn, meaning the Sky+ HD became part of a standard installation. As of late 2013, the £10.25/month HD pack stopped being offered to new customers, instead suggesting customers subscribe to the Family package, then carrying a £5/month premium over the cost of the regular Variety package.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sky.com/products/ways-to-watch/sky-plus-hd/|title=Sky+HD – Movies, Sport and Entertainment in Stunning HD|work=sky.com}}</ref> Access to HD versions of Sky Sports and Sky Movies requires a separate HD pack subscription, priced at £5.25 per month.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sky.com/shop/tv/high-definition/|title=HD TV|work=sky.com}}</ref>

Sky+ recording facilities are included as part of a standard Sky TV subscription package, yet entails a fee of £10.25/month if a customer does not subscribe to any Sky TV package. Viewers who do not take a subscription Sky TV package or the Sky+ service will still receive all free SD and HD channels, but cannot use the recording facilities. Uptakers of the subscription-free Freesat from Sky service are provided with a recorder-less box branded 'SkyHD' rather than Sky+ HD, given SkyHD boxes provided by Freesat from Sky do not contain hardware for recording.

As of November 2016, Sky offered over 50 HD channels, more than any competitor.<ref name="howmanyhdchannels">{{cite web |url=https://www.choose.co.uk/guide/who-offers-the-best-hd-tv-package.html |title=Where's best for HD TV? |work=Choose |date=15 November 2016 |access-date=25 June 2017}}</ref> Numerous [[Engineering:Free-to-air|FTA]] HD channels are available which do not require a subscription, only an HD capable digibox such as the Sky+ HD box, including BBC One HD, BBC Two HD and Channel 4 HD.

==On Demand==
{{Main|Software:On Demand (Sky)}}
On 27 March 2007, Sky launched its ''Sky Anytime on TV'' Push-Video on Demand service for owners of Sky+ HD set top boxes. Programmes in high definition and standard definition are recorded overnight to a reserved 140GB of disk space, to give the effect of video on demand.

This has also been used to bring viewers high-definition programmes from channels that at the time didn't broadcast in HD. These have included Sky News (''Technofile'', ''Diana: The Last Word''), Disney Channel (''High School Musical 2'') and Nickelodeon (''iCarly'').

==Set top boxes==
[[File:Sky hd 001.jpg|thumb|300px|An original Sky+ HD Digibox (V.1) backpanel]]
The first generation of Sky+ HD Digibox were produced by [[Company:Technicolor SA|Thomson]], with Sky subsequently adding Samsung, Pace and Amstrad as manufacturers afterwards. In 2009, a manufacturing fault led to a batch of up to 90,000 units manufactured by Pace requiring replacement; Sky offered customers 3 months free HD pack subscription for the inconvenience.<ref name="Pace recall">
{{cite news
|url=http://www.digitalspy.com/tech/satellite/news/a146765/fault-hits-90000-sky-hd-boxes/
|title=Fault hits 90,000 Sky+ HD boxes
|publisher=Digital Spy
|date=14 February 2009
|access-date=1 July 2017
}}</ref>

For connectivity with [[Engineering:HD ready|HD ready]] televisions, the box outputs via a [[Engineering:HDMI|HDMI]] connector (adapters to [[Digital Visual Interface]] are available). The box is [[Engineering:High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection|High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection]] (HDCP) compliant. Sky boxes manufactured prior to January 2008 also had analogue component connections ([[YPbPr]]), but as the HDCP copy protection cannot be applied to this type of output it is no longer included. Traditional standard-definition (SD) connections are available via [[Engineering:SCART|SCART]] and [[S-Video]]. All programming is currently output from both HDMI and SD connections, although individual broadcasters have the option to require HDCP (and therefore HDMI) in the future.

All HD channels are broadcast in [[Engineering:1080i|1080i]] format (though the box can be set to scale this to [[Engineering:720p|720p]] if the user wishes), using the H.264/MPEG-4 AVC compression standard, from Astra 2A, Astra 2E, Astra 2F and Eutelsat 28A satellites at 28.2°E and 28.5°E in a new [[Digital Video Broadcasting|DVB]] transmission standard, [[Astronomy:DVB-S2|DVB-S2]]. BBC HD was initially broadcast using [[Astronomy:DVB-S|DVB-S]] but switched to DVB-S2 on 6 June 2011.<ref>{{cite web|last=Pryde |first=Alix |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2011/06/changes_to_bbc_hd_channels_on.html |title=Changes to BBC HD channels on satellite on 6th June |publisher=BBC |date=2 June 2011 |access-date=26 July 2013}}</ref>

The Version 5 EPG ([[Engineering:Electronic program guide|electronic program guide]]) is almost identical to the one found on Sky+, with the exception being that by pressing ''TV Guide'' and then number 2 on the [[Engineering:Remote control|remote control]], listings for only the HD channels are shown. An update was sent to the HD boxes early on 20 March 2007, which also included code for Sky Anytime (now OnDemand).
Version 8 of the Sky Guide, dubbed the Sky+ HD guide, included a Mini TV, improved search functions and a refreshed interface.

[[File:Sky DRX895w.jpg|thumb|right|Sky+ HD DRX895W Set Top Box, with remote and power cable]]
On 1 October 2010, Sky began the process of downloading [[Open-source software|open-source software]] to Sky+ HD receivers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2010/10/01/sky-adopts-open-source-set-top-software/|title=Sky adopts open source set-top software|publisher=Broadband TV News|date=1 October 2010}}</ref> Unlike the majority of software upgrades made by Sky, the open source licences require Sky to notify customers that the download has taken place. Subscribers are notified with an on-screen message that refers them to a dedicated section of the Sky website.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www1.sky.com/opensourcesoftware/SkyHD/|title=opensourcesoftware|publisher=British Sky Broadcasting|access-date=2 October 2010}}</ref> The website also includes a download of the open source components including the building environment. Sky says that it has found a number of Open Source Software developments that provide capabilities that benefit the software used in the Sky+ HD box.

===Release history===
Below is a list of boxes that have been manufactured for use with Sky+ HD.<ref name="skyepginfo_boxes">{{cite web |url=https://skyepginfo.co.uk/Firmware/SkyPlusHD.php |title=Sky+HD Firmware |work=Sky EPG Info |access-date=17 June 2017}}</ref> All boxes are now discontinued and no newer models are expected, since the launch of Sky Q.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! rowspan=2 | Model
! rowspan=2 | PVR
! rowspan=2 | Brand
! rowspan=2 | Version
! rowspan=2 | Dimensions (WxHxD)
! rowspan=2 | Launched
! colspan=2 | Hard drive storage
! rowspan=2 | Latest firmware
! rowspan=2 | Notes
|-
! Supplied
! Available
|-
| {{version|c|DRX895WL}} || PVR6 || Sky || 4F31xx || 351x73x265 || Circa Dec 2014 || 2TB || 1.5TB || R024.092.11.00P || Built in Wi-Fi Lite Box (Telephone, eSata & Composite Ports removed)
|-
| {{version|c|DRX890WL}} || PVR5 || Sky || 4F31xx || 364x73x255 || Circa Dec 2014 || 500GB || 250GB || R024.092.11.00P || Built in Wi-Fi Lite Box (Telephone, eSata & Composite Ports removed)
|-
| {{version|co|DRX895W}} || PVR6 || Sky || 4F31xx || 351x73x265 || Sep 2013 || 2TB || 1.5TB || R024.092.11.00P || Replaced with DRX895WL (Built in Wi-Fi Lite Box)
|-
| {{version|co|DRX890W}} || PVR5 || Sky || 4F31xx || 364x73x255 || Sep 2013 || 500GB || 250GB || R024.092.11.00P || Replaced with DRX890WL (Built in Wi-Fi Lite Box)
|-
| {{version|co|DRX895}} || PVR6 || Sky || 4F31xx || 351x73x265 || Oct 2012 || 2TB || 1.5TB || R024.092.11.00P || Replaced with DRX895W (Built in Wi-Fi)
|-
| {{version|co|DRX895}} || PVR6 || Sky || 4F31xx || 351x73x265 || Jan 2010 || 1.5TB || 1TB ||R024.092.11.00P || Replaced with 2TB model
|-
| {{version|co|DRX890}} || PVR5 || Amstrad/Sky || 4F31xx || 364x73x255 || Jan 2010 || 500GB || 250GB || R024.092.11.00P || Replaced with DRX890W (Built in Wi-Fi)
|-
| {{version|o|DRX780}} || PVR4 || Amstrad || 4F30xx || 399x81x295 || || 300GB || 160GB || R010.070.91.17P || DR Stream No Longer Active
|-
| {{version|o|HDSKY500}} || PVR4 || Samsung || 9730xx || 398x81x283 || || 500GB || 250GB || R010.070.94.13P || DR Stream No Longer Active
|-
| {{version|o|HDSKY}} || PVR4 || Samsung || 9370xx || 398x81x283 || Circa Aug 2008 || 300GB || 160GB || R010.070.94.13P || DR Stream No Longer Active
|-
| {{version|o|TDS850NB}} || PVR4 || Pace || 9F30xx || 398x80x285 || Circa Aug 2008 || 300GB || 160GB || R010.070.94.13P || DR Stream No Longer Active
|-
| {{version|o|DSI8215}} || PVR4 || Thomson || 4E30xx || 398x81x283 || May 2006 || 300GB || 160GB || Sky+ 8.3.2 || Phased out Summer 2013
|-
| colspan="10" | <small>{{Version|l|show=11100}}</small>
|}

Sky also manufactured a standard Sky HD box without a hard drive, aimed primarily at customers subscribing to Sky Multiroom, as a cheaper alternative to receive HD channels if record and playback were not required.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Model
! Brand
! Version
! Dimensions (WxHxD)
! Launched
! Latest firmware
! Notes
|-
| {{version|c|DRX595L}} || Sky || 4F7xxx || 273x52x204  || || R011.075.59.17P || SKYHD STB for Multiroom & Freesat from Sky, (Telephone Port removed) (PVR inside)
|-
| {{version|co|DRX595}} || Sky || 4F700x || 273x52x204 || March 2011 || R011.075.59.17P || Replaced with DRX595L (Lite Sky Box)
|-
| colspan="8" | <small>{{Version|l|show=11100}}</small>
|}

==Developments==
===Increase in HD channels===
In over three years since launch, the number of HD channels available increased significantly, thus Sky+ HD was the world's largest HD offering outside North America.<ref>{{cite news
 |last=Forrester
 |first=Chris
 |title=BSkyB: On way to 30 HD channels
 |publisher=Rapid TV News
 |date=30 April 2008
 |url=http://rapidtvnews.com/index.php/bskyb-on-way-to-30-hd-channels.html
 |access-date=6 May 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080502152719/http://rapidtvnews.com/index.php/bskyb-on-way-to-30-hd-channels.html
 |archive-date=2 May 2008
 |url-status=dead
}}</ref>

Sky brought an update to its Sky+ app, this features a similar looking design to the Sky+HD box bringing the services more in line with one another.

On 30 July 2009, Sky confirmed the launch of a "pull" video-on-demand (VOD) service for 2010, adding to the current Sky Anytime "push" VOD service.<ref name="Sky 3D" /> The service, delivered by broadband internet, would utilise the Ethernet port of existing Sky+ HD boxes. Sky's Anytime+ will only be available to Sky broadband at launch but sky say it will be on all service providers in the near future. Although the service may be similar to [[Company:DirecTV|DirecTV]]'s VOD offering that also uses an operating system built by NDS Group. NDS Group was formally a Permira/News Corporation company, but currently part of [[Company:Cisco|Cisco]]. Sky have started the phased roll-out of the new guide software for this service.

On 29 April 2010, BSkyB revealed that their new video-on-demand service would be named '''Sky Anytime+'''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://paidcontent.co.uk/article/419-sky-christens-true-vod-service-sky-anytime-as-arpu-rockets/|title=Sky Christens True VOD Service "Sky Anytime+" As ARPU Rockets|publisher=paidContent:UK|date=29 April 2010}}</ref> "It will be a broad offering at launch with a large range of content across the range of content that we show," CEO Jeremy Darroch said. "[It will feature] progressive download using the broadband return pathway and the hard disc in a combined way. All of the boxes are VOD-ready, so we'll be able to roll it out to all of the box population." Sky Anytime+ began a staggered roll out from 26 October 2010. In March 2011 it was confirmed by Sky that the Thomson Sky HD boxes would not be suitable for the new Anytime+ service. Customers with Thomson boxes were being offered New boxes.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://corporate.sky.com/media/press_releases/2010/sky_introduces_anytimeplus.htm|title=Sky Introduces Sky Anytime+|publisher=British Sky Broadcasting|date=22 October 2010}}</ref>

On 1 February 2011, BSkyB introduced a new EPG for Sky HD subscribers which switched the standard definition channels with the high definition simulcast. For example, Sky News HD, which was on channel 517, switched to channel 501. The same happened for other non-regional HD channels, including Syfy, Comedy Central, Sky Sports, E4 and Sky1.

===3D===
Following demonstrations in December 2008,<ref>{{cite news
  | title = Interview: How Sky 3D is drawing closer
  | publisher = [[TechRadar]]
  | date = 27 May 2009
  | url = http://www.techradar.com/news/television/interview-how-sky-3d-is-drawing-closer-602584
  | access-date = 27 May 2009 }}</ref> Sky announced on 30 July 2009 its intention to launch a [[Digital 3D|3D]] channel during 2010, featuring a broad selection of 3D programming, which is expected to include movies, entertainment and sport.<ref name="Sky 3D">{{cite web|url=http://hexus.net/ce/items/entertainment/19532-sky-launch-3d-tv-2010-following-record-skyhd-growth/?set_mobile_full_site_cookie=1|title=Sky to launch 3D TV in 2010 following record Sky+HD growth|publisher=British Sky Broadcasting|work=Hexus|date=30 July 2009|access-date=1 July 2017}}</ref> Existing Sky+ HD receivers will automatically be compatible with the new 3D service, although customers will require a new 3D compatible HDTV set to view in 3D. A 3D trailer has been in circulation in UK cinemas for the new service.
It is thought that it will use the new [[Multiview Video Coding|MVC]] video codec. The first programme that was broadcast by Sky in 3D was the Arsenal vs Manchester United football match on Sunday 31 January 2010. The 3D match was available in nine hand-picked pubs in England and in Ireland.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.skysports.com/football/news/11979/5889013/sky-makes-3d-history |work=Sky Sports |title=Sky makes 3D history |date=28 January 2010 |access-date=1 July 2017}}</ref> On Monday 29 March 2010, Sky 3D appeared on the EPG at number 217, showing "Programs Start on Saturday". Sky launched its 3D services on 3 April with the Manchester United vs Chelsea football match being broadcast in over a thousand pubs across England in 3D.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thedrum.com/news/2010/04/03/13335-sky-television-claim-first-3d-broadcast-as-a-success|title=Sky Television claim first 3D broadcast as a success|publisher=The Drum|date=3 April 2010}}</ref> As of October 2014 Sky 3D is on channel 170.
The Sky 3D channel closed on 9 June 2015; 3D content remains available via on-demand channels. To this end, there will be a new 3D segment in the Sky Box Sets, Movies, Store and TV Guide sections.

==See also==
* Sky
* Sky UK
* Sky Ireland
* [[Engineering:High-definition television|High-definition television]]
* [[Engineering:High-definition television in the United Kingdom|High-definition television in the United Kingdom]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
*[http://www.sky.com/hd Sky HD] at sky.com

{{BSkyB}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sk Hd}}

[[Category:High-definition television]]

{{Sourceattribution|Sky+ HD}}