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Bell Fibe TV Adds 2 New Greek Channels


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The thing is there are only 3 companies that own rights to Greek Programming and channels in Canada.

 

OTN

Ethnic Channel Group

Soundview.

 

I'm not exactly sure off hand who owns what in Canada.

 

But as it stands now we have:

 

OTN(ANT 1)

Mega

Alpha

Star International

RIK SAT

4E

SKAI or NGTV which ever its called

?Mad World or Greek Music which ever its called

Greek Cinema

OTN Plus/Sports which I believe is Sports Plus owned by OTN which has yet to launch but I'm figure  either this month or next since was approved in November.  

 

The way Fibe TV has their Greek combo now is if you want the Greek Combo you have to take RIK,OTN,Star,CHIR(radio) & SKAI for $20, you can't get the old combo anymore. Those that presently have it are grandfathered in.

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NGTV also has STAR Channel content, and taking a look at their site it seems they acquired content from ACTION 24 and Vouli as well.... Quite the mix, SKAI, EPSILON, STAR, ACTION 24, Vouli.

 

Interesting, I did not know that they offer content from so many channels, especially Star?!  If I am not mistaken, isn't Action 24 an over the air station in Athens that used to be a sports station and is owned by the guy who owns Olympiakos?  Dis this air anything significant that is worth watching?!

 

 

But what is the point of Bell Fibe offering STAR if NGTV already offers their popular content?

 

Good question, Star does not air a lot of Greek content and arguably there are only 2 or 3 shows that might be considered popular so I am not really sure why this channel was added nor why Star International even exists?!  I think they just jumped on the bandwagon with the rest of the Greek channels who have launched international services, trying to cash in thinking that those in the diaspora are starved for content from Greece and will subscribe to just about anything- think again! ;)   I think Bell Fibe should dump Star, now that they carry NGTV- the fact that they have now included Star International in their Greek combo package and are forcing it on all new subscribers, should tell you how well it was doing before when it was sold on its own.

 

 

As for appealing to Greek-Americans, it seems most of their in-house shows are gone and they are focusing on this Greek acquired content.

 

Wow, I didn't know that they had gutted the channel of original content, I wonder what the reason is for that?!  Here I was thinking that they should make the channel national, make it available in other parts of the USA but without any original productions and the niche content they have acquired from Greece, I don't think too many providers would agree to carry it?!

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The thing is there are only 3 companies that own rights to Greek Programming and channels in Canada.

 

OTN

Ethnic Channel Group

Soundview.

 

Actually the 3 companies are OTN, ECG & Titan Television.  Soundview acted as a sponsor for some channels to get them on the approved list, I don't think they own the rights to any of them?!  Here is the breakdown of who distributes what:

 

Odyssey Television Network

OTN1- ANT1 Satellite

OTN2- MEGA Cosmos

Alpha Sat*

Greek Cinema*

Sport Plus*

 

Ethnic Channels Group

Greek Music Channel

NGTV

 

Titan Television

4E

RIK Sat

Star International

 

*- OTN is the official distributor for these channels, they are foreign services (no CDN content)

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  • 3 weeks later...

If I am not mistaken, isn't Action 24 an over the air station in Athens that used to be a sports station and is owned by the guy who owns Olympiakos?  Dis this air anything significant that is worth watching?!

 

Yes it is a local Athens station. From the looks of NGTV's schedule, the only thing I see them airing from ACTION 24 is some cooking show.

 

 

Wow, I didn't know that they had gutted the channel of original content, I wonder what the reason is for that?!  Here I was thinking that they should make the channel national, make it available in other parts of the USA but without any original productions and the niche content they have acquired from Greece, I don't think too many providers would agree to carry it?!

 

 

Maybe it is cheaper for them to acquire this content from Greece than to produce their own stuff to fill the schedules. I don't have access to this channel but I actually think it is a decent offering from a programing standpoint. They are taking content from 3-4 niche channels and offering the best programs. In this regard, the channel is arguably more well rounded --- giving viewers a little bit of everything. (News, sports, entertainment, gossip, cooking, cinema, etc.)

Edited by Grk101
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  • 2 months later...

Now that the "free preview" of Sports Plus is now over, here is the break down of how much it'll cost you if you want to watch Greek TV on Bell Fibe:

 

[Old]Greek Combo $10(note no longer available to new subs, old subs grandfathered in)

 

OTN

Greek Cinema(list as ERT in IPG)

CHTO 1690 AM 

CHIR Greek Radio

 

Add on's $7.50(note must take Greek Combo to greceive)

Mega

 

Add on's$5(must take Greek Combo to receiver)

Alpha

4E

RIK Sat

Star International

NGTV(listed as SKAI in IPG)

Greek Music(listed as Mad World in IPG)

 

Add on's $10(note must take Greek Combo to receive)

Sports Plus

 

So if you had the 'OLD GREEK COMBO' to get 12 Greek channels it'll cost you $57.50 before tax as well as added on to your other packages you may have.

 

VS

 

New Greek Combo$20(available to new subs or if you drop 'Old Greek combo', you lose your "grandfathered" status and must sub to the new Greek Combo)

 

OTN

RIK SAT
Star International

NGTV(SKAI)

CHIR

CHTO(not available in new combo package)

 

Add on's $7.50(must take New Greek Combo to receive)

Mega

 

Add on's $5(Must take new Greek Combo to receive)

Alpha

4E

Greek Music(Mad World)

Greek Cinema(ERT)

 

Add on's $10(Must take New Greek Combo to receive)

Sports Plus

 

So with the "New Greek Combo" to get 11 channels you'll end up paying $57.50 plus taxes on top of your other packages. 

 

So with the "Old Greek Combo' you get one more channel CHTO vs the "New Greek Combo" you get less one channel CHTO. CHTO is better then CHIR

 

you basically pay the same amount more or less. Now is it worth pay $57.50+taxes for 11/12 channels? 

 

Some say YES!!

 

Some say NO!!!

 

its all on how one likes the channels I guess.

 

But the way Bell Fibe has the New ones

 

RIK etc it appears they've left room for at least 8 more Greek channels to be added if they where to remap all  the Greek Channels in the 2000's

 

2760 4E

2761 RIK SAT

2762 Star 

2763 Sports Plus

2764 to 2778 Empty

2779 CHIR

The other Greek Channels(7) are in the 600's & 800's.

Edited by MCIBUS
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I wouldn't even pay that much I have a iptv sub that costs less and get 150 channels in 720p

I too have the Android TV box. And you get over 65 live Greek Channels including MEGA, ANT1, ALFA, STAR TV, RIK SAT, KRITI TV and much more....
And they come in very clear if you have good high speed internet. I only paid one price for this device and it is worth the investment. Not only Greek channels, but tons of other programming as well............
 
I to have Bell TV with the Greek combo which has ANT1, Greek Movie Channel and MEGA COSMOS. I scolded them a while ago as to why there are many
Greek Channels on Fibe TV and only 3 on Bell TV. Bell admitted that there are much more customers on Bell TV than Fibe TV. And then I asked why do you have
all those Greek Channels on Fibe and not on Satellite TV when most of your customers have Bell TV. They did not give me a reason for that. Perhaps they were trying to get
me with Fibe Internet. I said forget it ! Too expensive and not very reliable from what I hear from a few people including my next door neighbor.
They said afterwards that they will synchronize both Fibe and Bell TV programming, but they did not give me a specific date as to when. I already warned them what my intensions are 
for Bell Satellite TV if I don?t see a change in their channel lineup.
For older retired Greek speaking people who don't have the internet, like my parents cannot afford to spend an extra $50.00 plus a month just to get a few more Greek channels.
They are with Rogers since ALFA is available for $5.00 extra / month as long as they have the other Greek channels.
But all that will change by next year with the CRTC ruling with pick and pay system and all that International bundling will be also thing of the past.............:)
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I to have Bell TV with the Greek combo which has ANT1, Greek Movie Channel and MEGA COSMOS. I scolded them a while ago as to why there are many Greek Channels on Fibe TV and only 3 on Bell TV. Bell admitted that there are much more customers on Bell TV than Fibe TV. And then I asked why do you have all those Greek Channels on Fibe and not on Satellite TV when most of your customers have Bell TV. They did not give me a reason for that.

 

Hey Mike0257, Welcome to the forums!

 

How long ago did you contact Bell, I am curious as I have been hassling them on and off for the past few months about adding Alpha Sat to satellite.  Who did you talk with, if I may ask, I am a bit stunned that they told you that there are more Greek subscribers on satellite then on Fibe?!  The frontline customer reps don't know jack, they just feed you BS most of the time.  If they actually do have more customers on satellite then why the heck won't they add Alpha Sat which IMO is the only channel available on Fibe that is worth adding to satellite.  You will never get all the channels they have on Fibe TV added to satellite because they don't have the capacity to add as many channels as they want- IPTV on the other hand has unlimited capacity.

 

I think they are trying to get people to switch to Fibe TV as that is the service they want to push and its the future.  Bell Satellite will remain for those in rural areas but I believe they will focus more and more on Fibe TV going forward.  I have Bell TV as well for my parents and have no interest in switching to Fibe TV either (although its not yet available in my area). I do not like the new combo they have created which has channels I am not interested in.

 

As for pick and pay coming soon, Bell fought this tooth and nail and was not at all happy that the CRTC approved this so I am very weary as to what they plan to offer.  They recently introduced pick and pay and are charging $4. per channel, although not all channels are available on their own.  That is too expensive, other providers that offer pick and pay charge between $2-3 per channel.  I don't like the $25 basic package, it's still too high IMO but not much you can do about it- if you want TV service your options are pretty limited, especially if you want the Greek channels where Bell & Rogers are your only options.

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Hey Mike0257, Welcome to the forums!

 

How long ago did you contact Bell, I am curious as I have been hassling them on and off for the past few months about adding Alpha Sat to satellite.  Who did you talk with, if I may ask, I am a bit stunned that they told you that there are more Greek subscribers on satellite then on Fibe?!  The frontline customer reps don't know jack, they just feed you BS most of the time.  If they actually do have more customers on satellite then why the heck won't they add Alpha Sat which IMO is the only channel available on Fibe that is worth adding to satellite.  You will never get all the channels they have on Fibe TV added to satellite because they don't have the capacity to add as many channels as they want- IPTV on the other hand has unlimited capacity.

 

I think they are trying to get people to switch to Fibe TV as that is the service they want to push and its the future.  Bell Satellite will remain for those in rural areas but I believe they will focus more and more on Fibe TV going forward.  I have Bell TV as well for my parents and have no interest in switching to Fibe TV either (although its not yet available in my area). I do not like the new combo they have created which has channels I am not interested in.

 

As for pick and pay coming soon, Bell fought this tooth and nail and was not at all happy that the CRTC approved this so I am very weary as to what they plan to offer.  They recently introduced pick and pay and are charging $4. per channel, although not all channels are available on their own.  That is too expensive, other providers that offer pick and pay charge between $2-3 per channel.  I don't like the $25 basic package, it's still too high IMO but not much you can do about it- if you want TV service your options are pretty limited, especially if you want the Greek channels where Bell & Rogers are your only options.

 

Yassou Hellas Hab,

 

I contacted them just over a week ago and I had a long conversation with them. It was a rep with Bell TV that I was talking to and I just played dumb with him at first.

One the conversation got going; he sort of knew afterwards that I knew a few things when I put him on the spot. And he did admit that there are more subscribers with Bell TV than with Fibe TV.

I also asked him about the Multicultural subs with Fibe compared to Bell TV and says yes there are more with Bell TV. 

Fibe is only available in major cities and not in rural areas and it seems that he was also trying to get me to switch internet with Bell. It seems that the reps are being trained to sell Fibe TV to existing Bell TV customers

 

I said forget it. It will never happen.......

 

What really raised his eyebrows when I told him that I may cancel my service because of the Android box that I have with over 60 live Greek Channels from Greece. And Free............

And he was speechless when I said that once I install an over the air antenna to get all the locals channels in HD and all the Buffalo NY HD channels

& all for free. No more Rogers or Bell. Something both providers don't like to hear. There are many people getting fed up being gouged by these greedy providers and are now starting to

fight back. 

 

Just have to remember that free TV from an antenna combined with web based services (IPTV or Android) can create a powerful TV package. You can save hundreds of dollars yearly and no more 

monthly cable or Satellite bills......

Edited by mike0257
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That might be fine for those in the GTA but others not as close as the those in the GTA are out of luck. The signals(US) are not as strong and come in weak,like here in Ottawa.

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The iptv that Cocksta is referring to is hard to beat !! Excellent value for the money

 

Is this thing legal?!

 

Also, it looks like the channels they offer are direct from Greece not the international feeds we get here in North America?!  There is a 7 hour time difference with Greece, unless there is a time shifted option I don't see the point of subscribing to these as you won't be able to watch much do to the time difference (i.e. prime time in Canada/USA would be early morning in Greece).

 

the quality picture of antenna is horrible looks like vhs  on rogers not sure what its like in bell

 

Its not much better on Bell but the problem has to do with Odyssey not Antenna.  The channel we receive here is a Canadian service with programming from Antenna NOT the actual channel as they receive in the U.S. and Australia.  If you were to receive Antenna Satellite directly you would see a difference in picture quality.  OTN is a low budget outfit that probably has decades old equipment plus the channel is transmitted in SD which results in pretty crappy picture quality.  It would be nice if Antenna would start broadcasting in HD (or at least widescreen format), not sure why they don't since they are in a much better financial situation then other Greek broadcasters and thus can afford to upgrade.

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Is it legal? I don't know. Was Mytv and EllastV legal? I had them both. I just see it as another IPTV service...thats is extremely inexpesnive compared to $70/month of Ellas tv this is only $75/3 months

 

There is a shift option or cach up option whatever the name is. I just like to share the news because this is a real nice set up that in 19 years in the US i have never had

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Most of this IPTV is grey-market and it gets murky when you look at the specifics. It seems like the legal side is catching up to them. Over the years, we have seen various pay sites offering Greek streams shut down. (and then re-open under new names, but thats besides the point.) There are now the "big" set-top box based IPTV companies like EllasTV and TVCosmos, and it gets complicated with them too. I know EllasTV took down their NOVA stuff a long time ago I am told, and I recently was informed that they have removed all ANT1 group content from their platform as well. Now the interesting part is that Titan/GMG has actual deals with them for the international feeds from all the rest of the major Greek channels, so they are legal on that front with many of those channels. But then it gets murky when you consider they are also carrying the direct feeds to those channels too, as well as many other direct channels from Greece....

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NGTV(listed as SKAI in IPG)

If it really is NGTV you guys are getting, they should change the name/description since NGTV is not solely SKAI content anymore. It also seems redundant to carry Star International, in light of the NGTV programing change.

Edited by Grk101
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  • 1 year later...

As I don't really watch the greek channels(mother does), the odd time I've seen the channel I've seen Star International programming on the IPG & on the TV with their TV id in the corner. I'm not sure if I've seen any Skai programming or logo? I'm not sure what programming NGTV shows from Star International, but since we boyj get NGTV * Star International I'm guessing some of its the same? The only one I'm know for sure isw Str News.

 

But this may all changes depending on what happens in Greece with the licences and possible channels being dropped in Canada?

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  • 9 months later...

It appears OTN has gotton Star International approved, yet this chnnel has alrady been Approved for Canadfa 2 or so years ago, by I think by Soundview or Ethnic Channels Group.

 

I'm not exactly sure whats going on here though? I'm assuming it evetually be added by Fibe as they seem to add all ethnic channels approverd.

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  • Lazarus changed the title to Bell Fibe TV Adds 2 New Greek Channels

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