Xtraview was a British

pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program guid ...

television channel A television channel is a terrestrial frequency or virtual number over which a television station or television network is distributed. For example, in North America, "channel 2" refers to the terrestrial or cable band of 54 to 60 MHz, with ...

run by

Top Up TV Top Up TV was a pay TV service in the United Kingdom which launched in March 2004, operating on the digital terrestrial television platform. The aim of the service was to "top up" Freeview customers by providing additional content and services ...

. It replaced Top Up TV Sampler, a promotional channel showing Top Up TV's latest offers presented by

Alice Beer Alice Beer (born 17 May 1965) is an English television presenter and consumer journalist. She is best known for appearing on the British consumer investigative journalism programme ''Watchdog'' on BBC One between 1993 and 1999, and as the consumer ...

. Xtraview showed a selection of programs from the Top Up TV package, at a cost of one pound per day. It ceased broadcasting on 31 August 2005 at 11.00pm due to lack of space on the DTT platform after Top Up TV's short-term lease with

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

multiplex Multiplex may refer to: * Multiplex (automobile), a former American car make * Multiplex (comics), a DC comic book supervillain * Multiplex (company), a global contracting and development company * Multiplex (assay), a biological assay which measu ...

2 expired in September 2005, and has since been replaced with

More 4 More4 is a British free-to-air television channel, owned by Channel Four Television Corporation. The channel launched on 10 October 2005. Its programming mainly focuses on lifestyle and documentaries, as well as foreign dramas. Content When ...

. The official reason stated on the channel is that it is being "modified", however no developments were made and this screen was shown from its demise to March 2006. The channel used the

Xtraview Encryption System Xtraview Video Encryption System refers to the now-defunct patented "encryption" system used on Xtraview and a number of other Top Up TV services, including Setanta Sports, Television X, Babestation and Red Hot TV. Unlike the other encrypt ...

, making the channel vulnerable to hacking. Another downfall was that if the digital terrestrial receiver was switched off, the box lost access to the channel. For a short time Top Up TV Pay As You G

offered a replacement for Xtraview. However, Top Up TV Pay as You Go also closed on 31 May 2006.

Xtraview daily schedule

Monday to Friday 06:00-09:00 Boomerang (UK & Ireland), Boomerang
09:00-12:00

Discovery Real Time Discovery Real Time was a British television channel owned by Discovery Networks UK focused on educational and learning content. History It was originally launched on 9 March 1992 as The Learning Channel, United Kingdom's version of the Ameri ...

12:00-14:00

Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...

14:00-16:00

UKTV Food Good Food was a cookery channel broadcasting in the United Kingdom and Ireland, latterly as part of the Discovery, Inc. network of channels. The channel originally launched on 5 November 2001 and relaunched in its final format on 22 June 2009. ...

16:00-18:00

18:00-19:00

UKTV Style HGTV (formerly Home) is a British free-to-air television channel interior home and garden-orientated lifestyle television channel broadcasting in the United Kingdom and Ireland, currently owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The channel originally ...

19:00-21:00

UKTV Gold Gold is a British pay television channel from the UKTV network that was launched in late 1992 as UK Gold before it was rebranded UKTV Gold in 2004. In 2008, it was split into current flagship channel Gold and miscellaneous channel, W, with clas ...

21:00-23:00

Discovery Channel Discovery Channel (known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery) is an American cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav. , Discovery Channe ...

Saturday-Sunday 06:00-09:00 Boomerang (UK & Ireland), Boomerang
09:00-12:00

12:00-18:00

18:00-19:00

19:00-21:00

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...

21:00-23:00

Video "encryption" system

{{main, Xtraview Encryption System The video encryption system used on Xtraview was not true encryption. Rather, Xtraview hid an additional video feed within the stream from the provider. The set top box was directed to display the hidden feed when the owner paid for the content. This led to problems with some users hacking the boxes to display the hidden feed.

References

External links

Top Up TV Homepage
Defunct British television channels Television channels and stations established in 2005 Television channels and stations disestablished in 2005