Virgin media pin needed

[AR214]

Virgin media requires a pin all day, none of the other channels. All parents setting is off and I've turned the box on and off. 

[Anonymous]

@AR214 Virgin Media? Have you thought about asking them? 

[caesarome]

@AR214 

Do you mean the Virgin One channel, so are you in Ireland ?

[AR214]

I'm in Ireland, I'm with sky so yes I mean the channel! All other virgin media channels and all channels working but virgin media one needs a pin. All pin settings are off. 

[Anonymous]

Found this on Virgin Media:

The watershed pin is a mandatory OFCOM directive ofcom.org.uk/mandatory-daytime-protection and affects Sky as well as Virgin, they can't transmit (or re-transmit) any programme or film rated higher than 12+ out of watershed hours without the viewing PIN being locked on.

It was introduced as part of an agreement that Sky got to broadcast higher rated films that would ordinarily have been behind a watershed during the day. It affects various channels such as Sky Cinema, Sky Documentaries and Sky Comedy. They all have mandatory PIN protection for shows they broadcast outside the watershed hours. This also applies to normal programs, movies, box sets etc.

On Demand also has PIN protection based on the watershed hours.

This also applies to some Startover programs, if you have missed the start you can watch live without a pin, but if you watch from the start you need a pin.

[Daniel0210]

@Anonymous 

As the customer is in Ireland (presumably the ROI), it's covered by ComReg not Ofcom so the exact same regulations may not apply. Perhaps someone from ROI can confirm? 

[Anonymous]

Irish TV companies do tend to follow Ofcom regulations according to information I've seen online, so my earlier reply is the most likely explanation as to why a PIN is required. 

[82bit]

Bizarrely, and almost unrelated(!) but Crystal Maze is occasionally pin protected too I've found. Pretty darn annoying - especially if you've got stuff your older children should be ok watching, but can't because you'd have to give them the PIN - which you wouldn't want them knowing ideally. What we need is a Parental Control PIN AND a separate 'System PIN' for purchases/account management etc... 

[nolte]

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@Daniel0210 wrote:

@Anonymous 

As the customer is in Ireland (presumably the ROI), it's covered by ComReg not Ofcom so the exact same regulations may not apply. Perhaps someone from ROI can confirm? 

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so, for sky channels the Ofcom regulations on pin protection does come on here (ie sky showcase, sky atlantic, sky premiere) where the content is rated 12, 15 during the day.

i have gone to virgin media one and it went straight through without any pin for me on sky q 

but i think if there is an issue, it might be the tv listings issue reported elsewhere.

i don't watch a lot of virgin media programming, but for rte 1, rte 2, and tg4, i've never seen pin protection come up on the content. i was recently watching a simpsons treehouse of horror episode on bank holiday monday here on rte 2 at 4:30 and there was no pin on it. (and the third part of the episode i can not watch due to the content of it)

[ozsat]

This channel has had problems with their EPG over the weekend and I suspect the PIN requirement is a part of that.

Hopefully they will fix after the weekend.

https://helpforum.sky.com/t5/What-s-On/Virgin-one/td-p/5012709 

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@AR214 wrote:

Virgin media requires a pin all day, none of the other channels. All parents setting is off and I've turned the box on and off. 

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[Marlu-Nyu]

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@82bit wrote:

Bizarrely, and almost unrelated(!) but Crystal Maze is occasionally pin protected too I've found. Pretty darn annoying - especially if you've got stuff your older children should be ok watching, but can't because you'd have to give them the PIN - which you wouldn't want them knowing ideally. What we need is a Parental Control PIN AND a separate 'System PIN' for purchases/account management etc... 

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@nolte wrote:

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@Daniel0210 wrote:

@Anonymous 

As the customer is in Ireland (presumably the ROI), it's covered by ComReg not Ofcom so the exact same regulations may not apply. Perhaps someone from ROI can confirm? 

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so, for sky channels the Ofcom regulations on pin protection does come on here (ie sky showcase, sky atlantic, sky premiere) where the content is rated 12, 15 during the day.

i have gone to virgin media one and it went straight through without any pin for me on sky q 

but i think if there is an issue, it might be the tv listings issue reported elsewhere.

i don't watch a lot of virgin media programming, but for rte 1, rte 2, and tg4, i've never seen pin protection come up on the content. i was recently watching a simpsons treehouse of horror episode on bank holiday monday here on rte 2 at 4:30 and there was no pin on it. (and the third part of the episode i can not watch due to the content of it)

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Just in relation to (e.g.) The Crystal Maze on Challenge. 

I cannot stress this enough. Ofcom does not enforce a mandatory PIN for programmes from 5:30am to 9:00pm with a 12, 15, or 18 rating on any platform. 

However, Ofcom states that channels and content must be appropriate for the targeted audience and the audience that would likely be watching. Sky, Virgin Media, Freeview, Freesat, all do abide by this Ofcom rule but take their own actions to abide by it.

Sky enforces the mandatory PIN to cover themselves and to abide by this rule. This is why a 12-rating of The Crystal Maze on Challenge at (e.g.) 4:30pm is PIN protected on Sky but not on (e.g.) Freeview. As Challenge is not a channel for children,  it's unlikely a child will watch it.

This is why 12 or 15 rated content and programmes can be aired before 9pm on (e.g.) Freeview. This goes for all content. It's the likely audience who would be watching the channel at that time. Also, it's down to viewers to self-regulate too. 

For example, if Challange was to show a Sky Kids segment say from 6am to 9am, and then a 12-rated The Crystal Maze came on at 9am, that wouldn't be allowed, as children still could be watching. 

[Marlu-Nyu]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Irish TV companies do tend to follow Ofcom regulations according to information I've seen online, so my earlier reply is the most likely explanation as to why a PIN is required. 

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I actually think the PIN was required for Virgin Media One today as according to Sky's EPG servers, the channel was not broadcasting (no listings, channel not showing up on TV Guide on Sky TV Guide site). I would assume the system thinks this is a manual tuned channel. If the Parental Controls are on, accessing manual tuned channels requires a PIN. It will be fixed tomorrow when the listings return. 

[Marlu-Nyu]

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@Marlu-Nyu wrote:

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@82bit wrote:

Bizarrely, and almost unrelated(!) but Crystal Maze is occasionally pin protected too I've found. Pretty darn annoying - especially if you've got stuff your older children should be ok watching, but can't because you'd have to give them the PIN - which you wouldn't want them knowing ideally. What we need is a Parental Control PIN AND a separate 'System PIN' for purchases/account management etc... 

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Just in relation to (e.g.) The Crystal Maze on Challenge. 

I cannot stress this enough. Ofcom does not enforce a mandatory PIN for programmes from 5:30am to 9:00pm with a 12, 15, or 18 rating on any platform. 

However, Ofcom states that channels and content must be appropriate for the targeted audience and the audience that would likely be watching. Sky, Virgin Media, Freeview, Freesat, all do abide by this Ofcom rule but take their own actions to abide by it.

Sky enforces the mandatory PIN to cover themselves and to abide by this rule. This is why a 12-rating of The Crystal Maze on Challenge at (e.g.) 4:30pm is PIN protected on Sky but not on (e.g.) Freeview. As Challenge is not a channel for children,  it's unlikely a child will watch it.

This is why 12 or 15 rated content and programmes can be aired before 9pm on (e.g.) Freeview. This goes for all content. It's the likely audience who would be watching the channel at that time. Also, it's down to viewers to self-regulate too. 

For example, if Challange was to show a Sky Kids segment say from 6am to 9am, and then a 12-rated The Crystal Maze came on at 9am, that wouldn't be allowed, as children still could be watching. 

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Also, I want to point out this article from the Sky Community that explains furter about the PIN-protection and Ofcom's role: 
https://helpforum.sky.com/t5/What-s-On/PIN-protection-before-9pm-watershed/m-p/4961625

[TimmyBGood]

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@Marlu-Nyu wrote:

I cannot stress this enough. Ofcom does not enforce a mandatory PIN for programmes from 5:30am to 9:00pm with a 12, 15, or 18 rating on any platform. 

Statement published 5 November 2018

The Ofcom Broadcasting Code (“the Code”) allows for films rated up to ‘15’ by the BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) to be broadcast during the daytime on premium subscription channels and up to ‘18’ on pay per view film channels, provided that they are protected by a mandatory PIN code. This form of protection is called mandatory daytime protection (“MDP”) and cannot be removed or bypassed by viewers.

Following our consultation in March 2018, this document sets out Ofcom’s decision to extend the application of the MDP rules in the Code to permit scheduled television channels to show programmes, which can currently only be shown after the 9pm watershed, before this time, but only if mandatory daytime protection is in place.

Ofcom has carefully considered all consultation responses in reaching this decision and this statement concludes the review. The revisions to the relevant rules to extend MDP beyond premium film content will come into force on 1 January 2019.

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/broadcast-standards/mandatory-daytime-protection 

[nolte]

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@Marlu-Nyu wrote:

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@82bit wrote:

Bizarrely, and almost unrelated(!) but Crystal Maze is occasionally pin protected too I've found. Pretty darn annoying - especially if you've got stuff your older children should be ok watching, but can't because you'd have to give them the PIN - which you wouldn't want them knowing ideally. What we need is a Parental Control PIN AND a separate 'System PIN' for purchases/account management etc... 

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@nolte wrote:

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@Daniel0210 wrote:

@Anonymous 

As the customer is in Ireland (presumably the ROI), it's covered by ComReg not Ofcom so the exact same regulations may not apply. Perhaps someone from ROI can confirm? 

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so, for sky channels the Ofcom regulations on pin protection does come on here (ie sky showcase, sky atlantic, sky premiere) where the content is rated 12, 15 during the day.

i have gone to virgin media one and it went straight through without any pin for me on sky q 

but i think if there is an issue, it might be the tv listings issue reported elsewhere.

i don't watch a lot of virgin media programming, but for rte 1, rte 2, and tg4, i've never seen pin protection come up on the content. i was recently watching a simpsons treehouse of horror episode on bank holiday monday here on rte 2 at 4:30 and there was no pin on it. (and the third part of the episode i can not watch due to the content of it)

---

Just in relation to (e.g.) The Crystal Maze on Challenge. 

I cannot stress this enough. Ofcom does not enforce a mandatory PIN for programmes from 5:30am to 9:00pm with a 12, 15, or 18 rating on any platform. 

However, Ofcom states that channels and content must be appropriate for the targeted audience and the audience that would likely be watching. Sky, Virgin Media, Freeview, Freesat, all do abide by this Ofcom rule but take their own actions to abide by it.

Sky enforces the mandatory PIN to cover themselves and to abide by this rule. This is why a 12-rating of The Crystal Maze on Challenge at (e.g.) 4:30pm is PIN protected on Sky but not on (e.g.) Freeview. As Challenge is not a channel for children,  it's unlikely a child will watch it.

This is why 12 or 15 rated content and programmes can be aired before 9pm on (e.g.) Freeview. This goes for all content. It's the likely audience who would be watching the channel at that time. Also, it's down to viewers to self-regulate too. 

For example, if Challange was to show a Sky Kids segment say from 6am to 9am, and then a 12-rated The Crystal Maze came on at 9am, that wouldn't be allowed, as children still could be watching. 

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Ofcom leave in the past fined sky for pre watershed broadcasts of Game of Thrones on Sky Atlantic and Entourage on Sky Comedy where the mandatory pin protection did not work.

I would have said neither Sky atlantic or Sky comedy are intended for children to be watching, but ofcom still took action for those 2 pin protection failures but still ofcom fined sky for it so to say "ofcom does not enforce" seems wrong