Satellite TV

Some of your questions have already been answerred to in various topics.
You need a permit to place a sattelite dish and only foreigners can apply for it.

Don't ask me where to get the permit as i sadly do not know. Maybe there are others here who know.

Where can we get the permit? WOW, this is something new. Please do tell me if anyone of you knows where to get it. Thank you!

Woolala
"Life is like a race, and you can run at your own speed.
Why? Because, You are your own competitor and you will always win....
if you run with conviction until the very end."

Having a satellite dish is ILLEGAL for EVERYONE in China! God forbid we catch the BBC news or Discovery Mythbusters (rebellious lads that they are), seeing as how all foreign channels are now bloody blocked on Zhuhai cable. Even Shenzhen carries CNN! That being said...asked around. In China, where there's a will there's a way for darn near everything. Or send me a PM. ;)

China’s regulation on satellite dishes issued in 1993 prohibits individuals or work units from the production, distribution and installation of unauthorized satellite dishes to receive foreign programs. It was issued by the then Premier Li Peng in 1993 under State Council Decree No. 129 (commonly called “the 129 Decree”).[3]

Satellite dishes are legally allowed only in hotels above three stars, office buildings and apartments that are designed for foreigners. Individuals will be fined up to 5,000 RMB for installing a satellite dish. An organization can be fined as much as up to 50,000 RMB.

Note:

[3] China’s State Council’s Decree No. 129. http://www.chinasarft.gov.cn/manage/publishfile/19/617.html

Best regards

Here are some sites that may be good to help some... In order to choose the most convinient Tv programs for each one, if you plan to have a fixed dish. In case of needed help...drop me an email.

http://www.satcodx.com/

look for your mother language and after check

SatcoDX3,4 and 5 all thouse birds are available in terms of azimuth and elevation in Macau and Zhuhai. Have to pay attention of the sat beam... it means... The dish size depends on the sat beam.

Have another good as well

www.lyngsat.com

Enjoy

Best regards

"It was issued by the then Premier Li Peng in 1993"

Gee, what a big friggin' surprise. Now my feelings for dear Mr. Li have grown even deeper...

____________________

"This is not the conclusion of an incident, but a new beginning. Lies written in ink can never disguise facts written in blood."
Lu Xun, 1926

We saw there are many dishes in Guangzhou installed at the private apartment. This company help us to install one. their have good service.
http://www.guangzhouexpert.com/satelliteTV.html

To find a satellite service provider isn't hard. Be able to watch it legally must takes a lot of efforts before you can enjoy it. Be sure to PM me if foreigner can really get this permit. I would love to get one.

Woolala
"Life is like a race, and you can run at your own speed.
Why? Because, You are your own competitor and you will always win....
if you run with conviction until the very end."

Not impossible to get the dish .. but its illigal to install/watch. i have to agree with 'aeroclube' what he/she mentioned in the comment is right.

-Anu.

I have seen the site mentioned by guinaigu and in fact seems to be the Satellite Agila2 at 146 degrees East, Azimuth 120º and elevation 48º. It is a good one due to several reasons.
1 - The dish is to small and cheap.
2 - there are many TV programs.( seems to be by package, at least 5, may be a little expensive the smart card to have acess to all)
3 - Fixed installation, it is good. ( i mean non tracking antenna )
4 - for the most popular programs they need only one polarization - Horizontal - easy to manage.

I leave here another option and check it by yourself. In Jida there are close to Shangai restaurante one electronic market and in there at the second floor there are many computer shops and have only one for Sat dishes installation. Look for that one and see what they can do. I guess they can help you to register at Zhuhai Broadcast Bureau Authority and it will be more convinient.
Hope this information it helps.
If anyone can not found the shop, please let me know and this coming weekend i will look for the adress.( I only know at the moment how to go there)
I would like to make a comment.
In case of a tracking antenna on C band, of course the antenna is more big but you can have acess to many free Sat TV as well the ones you have to pay and only the ones you want to watch. ( means that sometimes you pay for a pack and you just want one channel from that pack.)

Best Regards
Albert

Aeroclube,
I am very much a Libertarian in that I feel people should pretty much be able to do most anything they want to as long as it does not cause harm or loss to others. Thus, I don't care in the least if people have satellite dishes here. That being said...people need to remember that it it 100% ILLEGAL to do so in China. My father-in-law is a cop here. I know for sure that they are not in the least "buddy buddy" when foreigners break the law. There. Ya'll have been warned.
I want my Discovery channel back!

Canrun,

I don't know if there are any change.... Check your email please.

Best regards

Ya think that dish might attract the attention of Jing Jing and Cha Cha? ;)

http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2006/01/image_of_internet_police_jingjing_a...

(use a proxy...)

In Fact Jing Jing and Cha Cha will not come. the satellite tv problom is much more comlplicated now. The Government is very rude to those poor people. But to rich people they always think twice before action---they worried behind of them maybe have some bigger person inside the government ot higher level government.

In Guangzhou, you can see many satellite tv dishes in those "luxury" complex, the government`s people never come. You can go to the Long Kou Xi Lu have a look, Regal Court and the Eton 18.

TO expats, the government is also do very carefully. but now, to the black people they is not gentalmen any more.

'ILLIGAL' is the word for the thing you are suggesting Guinaigu ... if many ppl do it doesnt mean its legal .. the suggestion for applying for the permit in guangzhou is the right way .. but i dont know how many ppl can get the permission .. anyways .. if you are caught 5000 RMB is the fine.

Best option i can suggest is watching online channels that internet offers .. if you can .. you can connect the computer to the TV and watch uninterrupted TV programmes and movies.

-Anu.

Thanks for sharing info. Canrun .. do you have any idea when zhuhai TV is gonna start giving those english channels again? .. :)

-Anu.

Ya know? this topic just keeps going round and round and round, chasing it's own tail.

Now, Aeroclube wrote:
> Satellite dishes are legally allowed only in hotels above three stars, office buildings
> and apartments that are designed for foreigners. Individuals will be fined up to 5,000
> RMB for installing a satellite dish. An organization can be fined as much as up to 50,000 RMB.

Look at this! Read it again.

Perhaps try it this way,

"Am I a 3+ star hotel? Am I in one? Am I in an office building designated for foreigners? Am I resident in an apartment building designated for foreigners?"

If the answer is "Yes" then probably it is legally possible for you to talk to the local management to find out if you can install a sat dish, if there is not one already there.

If the answer is "No" then it is probably a very risky prospect to intall a sat dish.

Now, I took the time and asked the management committee, here in Huafa Xincheng, if I could install a sat dish, they said, "No problem, just ask the Zhuhai TV Stn to do it, blah, blah, blah..."

Walking around the complex here, I have seen a dish installed at ground floor appartment, on the ground, in the garden. It is notably unobtrusive. More than that I do not know, and I haven't gone far enough to install my own, yet but I intend to.

On the old www.macauzhuhai.com site there was a news article about the creation of a new police taskforce to inspect and control satalite dish installations in the Xiangzhou area so if you're in Xianzhou you might need to look into the situation more carefully.

***perhaps JJ can resurect that article or at least a link to it's origin***

I don't think getting a clear definition on this topic is going to happen.

So, there are two paths open:

1) Find out if you are resident in such a locality as to 'qualify' according to the abovementioned regulations. So go ask your housing management and Zhuhai TV about it, [if you're really daring, talk to the designated policing taskforce.] Then do the right thing accordingly.

2) Ignore the regulations, be discrete about your installation, and take a punt that no-one will complain, report, or notice that you have sat tv.

regards,

T. Tempest. DCA
____________________
"I'd love a thousand words in a foreign language." Tang Yuchuan

It would be nice to know when ZHTV will restore it's extended content, and what content it will include.

Having said all that, verbal diarhea that it may be ;-)

Does anyone have any follow up to one of the original questions that promted this thread?

>Is there a good local service provider?

Aeroclube wrote:
> In Jida there are close to Shangai restaurante one electronic market and in there at the
> second floor there are many computer shops and have only one for Sat dishes installation...
> If anyone can not found the shop, please let me know and this coming weekend i will look
> for the adress.

Aeroclube did you get any further with this?

regards,

T. Tempest. DCA
____________________
"I'd love a thousand words in a foreign language." Tang Yuchuan

"Thanks for sharing info. Canrun .. do you have any idea when Zhuhai TV is gonna start giving those english channels again?"

Yep...as soon as it's annexed by Shenzhen. ;0

Seriously...it's been off for, what, around eight months or so now? There is ABSOLUTELY no excuse for this. First off, we were forced to "upgrade" to the new boxes and then...POOF!...my Mythbusters disappeared. The expats in Shenzhen and Guangzhou don't have to put up with this. Really, it makes an illegal satellite dish basically our only option (that is, unless you enjoy Top Model like I do on HKTV!) ;)

Up, up and away in six months and counting... :)

I think you find that illegal satelite dishes are just as prevalent in Shenzhen. Even the hotels often dont have one unless you go 5 star. The hotel I stay at only gets World and Pearl as English channels. Not even CCTV9 or ESPN/Star sports which it used to have.
A question. If you are registered as a foreigner in an apartment doesn't that make the complex you are in "an apartment building housing foreigners"(presumably registered ones) and hence legal - or am I missing something here?

"If you are registered as a foreigner in an apartment doesn't that make the complex you are in "an apartment building housing foreigners"(presumably registered ones) and hence legal - or am I missing something here?"

My personal gut reaction is that this means places like Horizon Cove or What What New Town where they herd all the expense-account folks together so they can shop at Park-N-Shop and pretend it's Peoria. Just a guess. I live in a run-down dump, anyhow. (And I do respect/envy you expense account folks!...)

According GD information, is allowed to apply in Guangzhou City, not all GD province, if your house is in a building (community) where 80% or more of residents are foreigners.

These are the regulations in Guangzhou.

http://english.gz.gov.cn/vfs/subsite/QFZZQNCH-UEYR-RYE4-CQEP-PO0PXEO7LOR...

Chinamonty.
Yep, that's right. I talk to them and it is only for Guangzhou. Hope you get it.

Surely the regulations will be basically the same for everywhere. each city will just cut and paste their symbols on top of the same instructions.

In a recent PM I was told that the regulations are different for Zhuhai cf the rest of Guangdong. That's life in the fasrt lane, we need to find out what is the truth regarding this for our "local" [that's Zhuhai SEZ] situation.

regards,

T. Tempest. DCA
____________________
"I'd love a thousand words in a foreign language." Tang Yuchuan

I agree Doc
That's life in the fasrt lane, we need to find out what is the truth regarding this for our "local" [that's Zhuhai SEZ] situation.

"The truth." In China? Bwwa hahaa! Spit take.

Canrun

It is one of the best commentary this week. But I don't agree with you.

"But I don't agree with you."

I respectfully say: about what? Are we not all living "down" one giant "looking glass" here in the Middle kingdom(at times)where "the truth" is dictated by the Guanxi one has and the color of his license plate?

If one wants a satellite dish and he knows the guy with "connections" who carries a man-purse and drives a black Audi, then he's gonna get a satellite dish and with no hassle. That's "the truth" in his situation.

Now, yes, as an American I know that many could give me the whole Bush/Cheney lecture we've all heard a hundred times. I got it. Lies, all. That's correct.

But, seriously, here in China when does "the truth" ever really come into play? The nail that reveals "the truth" gets hammered down VERY quickly.

I close with my favorite quote (and sometimes signature) by Lu Xun and I (most respectfully) await your reply:

"This is not the conclusion of an incident, but a new beginning. Lies written in ink can never disguise facts written in blood."
Lu Xun, 1926

Nice quote. However, this is not a "bloody" dispute. the 'truth has always been subjective and dependent on the prevailing regime. That too, is not in question here.

What is, is the information we need right now, for this location, at this time, to follow in the footsteps of that, as you say, "man-purse" individual and gain our dish.

Sure, I can follow the "illegal" path, like an ex-confucian who's just rediscovered the Dao, but that is not the point here; what is the point is how do we actually get what we want, and what are the hoops we have to jump through?

There will always be hoops, there will always be obstructions, there will always be diffculties. It matters only how we resolve them and move forward. I challenge you, to also, move forward.

regards,

T. Tempest. DCA
____________________
"I'd love a thousand words in a foreign language." Tang Yuchuan

"I challenge you, to also, move forward."

I am, Doc...after six years I'm finally getting around to leaving China. ;)

Interestingly, I just came across a rather telling quote at one of my favorite China blogs, ESWN. It says:

"Culturally speaking, we do not have a tradition for seeking the truth. Instead, we are more interested in effects." An enlightening post on "the truth."

English: http://www.zonaeuropa.com/200707.brief.htm#089

Chinese: http://www.nanfangdaily.com.cn/southnews/spqy/200707270227.asp

I'm not sure about Zhuhai, but this was my personal experience in Suzhou.
I was living in a complex and there are not that many expats, therefore not qualified as expat community. I was trying to install satellite so I start asking around, and finally I got the following answers: I needed to go to condo admin to get a "permit" to install dishes (some condos has internal regulation which does not allow installation of dishes), with this paper, I went to Suzhou's broadcasting bureau (government agency which controls all broadcasting related issues) and apply for an official "permit", this permit is annual and has a fee (I can't be sure if 12 months or 6 months and how much was the fee), at that time government has stopped all application (new regulation was coming out), so the clerk asked me to come back in 1 month. There's a catch though, the dish has to be installed by licensed installers and they charge you 2K per install and there are not that many packages. To apply all those paperwork, one needs to show his foreign passport, which means dishes are allowed in Suzhou for expats only, I'm not sure about Zhuhai's regulation since everything in China is regional, even the bank.

Regards,
Michael
______________________________________________________
Einstein: "The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it."

Hi guys.

I am back on this topic. From 2007/07/20 i try my best to get info about the subject. The latest email info i got was...
For Zhuhai please call this - Zhuhai authority on parabolic antenna -(0756) 2135541. Well, until now, no results. Sometimes number busy, sometimes no answer...
I would like to ask all interested on it to try and place them our intention... ( Single Satellite Legal Dish Installation ).
Hope someone can be more lucky than me, because i allways call them from Macau on weekdays... I have done on Weekend from my Home in Zhuhai, but no answer...
Let all of us to know if there are any news...
Thanks

Calling government agencies by phone is like calling donations, you got no answer or when they answer, hung up right away, I tried couple of times to call in Suzhou, got fed up and went there personally, and had to track the responsible through several rooms until someone found this guy and got my answer (public servants always drinking tea, having chat with others, etc.)

Regards,
Michael
______________________________________________________
Einstein: "The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it."

I have helped some foreigners to install the sattlelite TV. There is a company in Shenzhen which runs the business. My boss,he has used it for several years and it's pretty good. The price is not expensive and you can see any international program.

I want to go all over the world!!

jenny could yo get me the number for that company please

Yes, I would like more information as well. Thanks.

Information about sattlelite company in Shenzhen

Shenzhen Guangxun Technology Co. Ltd.

Mr. Zhang Bin/ Tel: 0755-81307119/ Mobile: 13922879481

By the way, this is a chinese company and the technicians don't speak English. But they provide good service including installation and technical support.

I want to go all over the world!!

Thank you Jenny_zh

I think someone should sell Sat Dishes, diguised as cleaning ladies , then if you keep it secret, no one is the wiser !! just bring her in at night when you finish watching tv !

So strange ! that when you look in the Apartments to rent on this site, most have sat TV !!!

I have a friend in Australia who uses a metal rubbish bin lid as his dish and it works quite fine. Not sure how he went about it though.

probably covered in foil and chewing gum !

I have used in 1990 one traditional chinese cooking pot as a parabolic reflector to watch RTPi via Asiasat2 analog transmission. It was great.

coathanger and steel wool tied together with wire and add 2 beer cans brings in puerto rico abc on a sunday night .

The Asiasat2 is card-free satellite. It means you only need the dish and the simplest box is ok. life-time free. no need to pay for the card.