Sky+ turns 21 today!
Sky+ was launched in September of 2001. By July 2002 the service had 25,000 subscribers, and by September 2009, there were 5.9 million customers using Sky+. Today, on its 21st birthday, we're taking a look back at this set top box and what makes it so great...
Sky+ Technology
Sky+ was our first digital satellite and personal video recorder (PVR). Basically meaning you could watch live TV, and record it! It used twin digital satellite tuners to connect to independent Astra feeds.
The EPG (Electronic Programme Guide) was made by us. It had an extensive view of the next 7 day's worth of content for customers. In May 2006, we launched broadcasting in HD, but the EPG did not change for another 3 years until March 2009.
A mini TV was put in the menu, and a middle ribbon for getting major options. The green button stayed in the planner and the Anytime service was on the red button.
We then introduced the IPTV fed Anytime+ feature. It gave us an entirely new aesthetic, and making content searching much easier.
Sky+ Features
Record, Pause, Rewind
Using an internal hard drive, this was a huge step-up from the standard Sky Digibox. Customers could use their remote to record and save all of their favourite shows with functionalities like: recording multiple programmes, setting up reminders, scheduling recordings, manually recording, recording radio channels and setting up series links.
Customers could also pause and rewind live TV using their remote control! For football fans, there's also the amazing Slow Motion function; just press the rewind button until you reach the point you want to replay, then press and hold down the play button for at least two seconds to watch your programme in slow motion. To go back to normal speed, press the play button again.
Remote Recording
Customers could also schedule recordings when they are away from home using their smartphone devices. To do this, you could download Sky Go and schedule recordings via the app, or you could send an SMS with details of the programme name, time, date and channel. In 2007, Sky allowed customers to do this via their website.
Who still has a Sky+ box?
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