Dear Owners and Guests, We Would Like to Inform You That, Due to A
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Dear Owners and guests, We would like to inform you that, due to a change in the satellite broadband services for Europe and the Middle East, BBC, ITV and Channel 4 television channels or radio stations are no longer broadcasted to certain areas of Spain. As a result of this, most of the main British domestic channels are no longer available in the resort. The Resort Management is looking at this moment for alternative and legal solutions in order to offer this service again. Unfortunately, no due date can be provided yet. At this moment the selection of channels broadcasting in English is restricted to BBC World, True Movies 1, True Movies 2, True Entertainment, True Drama, CBS Action, CBS Reality, CBS Drama, Travel Channel, Pop, Bloomberg, Horror Channel, Magic Music, CNN INT, Sky News INT, CNBC Europe and Euro news. We apologize for the inconvenience. Please, read the following press clip if you would like to have more information on this topic. By Elizabeth Roberts The switch to the UK spot beam has been a hot topic of discussion in southern Spain, with expats nervously waiting this day for years. A BBC spokesman said they were never supposed to be able to watch the corporation’s domestic service, since it is only supposed to be available to license payers in the UK, Channel Islands and Isle of Man. The service was switched to a new satellite on Thursday, Feb 6, which will improve reception for the target audience and prevent the "overspill" beam from extending to southern Spain. Expats in Spain who want to continue watching the BBC will have to pay for a satellite package such as BBC Worldwide instead, or find a way to stream programmes via the internet. The satellite switch means some may also have lost ITV reception. The Olive Press reported that viewers in the Costa del Sol are affected as well as those in Andalusia, southern Portugal, much of Catalunya, the Canary Islands and Italy. Fiona Catchpowle, who lives in Cartama Estacion, near Malaga, Andalusia, admitted: "All UK broadcast channels are a guilty pleasure we should never have been watching in the first place, due to licensing regulations. There are, however, many people in the expat community who are distraught at the loss and will miss their little piece of the UK and are rushing to find a way around it." A BBC spokesman said: “In the early hours of Thursday Feb 6, the BBC’s free to air satellite broadcast footprint was optimized – which has improved the signal strength for some UK audiences. This also means the overspill of the BBC's services has been reduced, so viewers outside the UK will find it even harder to receive them. This is appropriate because the BBC’s domestic services are for license fee payers living in the UK, Channel Islands and Isle of Man only." An ITV spokesman said: "ITV is a UK-only broadcaster, and does not have a license to transmit our domestic family of ITV channels outside the UK and we do not seek to promote these services elsewhere. "If people could access our content outside the UK, this was by default and not by design. As part of the satellite operator's ongoing renewal program, our services have recently transferred to new satellites with a tighter beam." She said viewers outside the UK may lose channels received via satellite as a result. Thank you. The Resort Management .