Sky Italia launches Sky Q service for those without a dish

Sky Italia has officially launched its Sky Q service over fibre broadband for homes that can't have satellite dish access. Instead of requiring a dish, the channels will be streamed through the company’s Sky Q set-top-box over the viewer’s existing broadband connection. In a statement, Sky said the new ‘Sky Q Fibra’ service has been launched with a view to “offering the best content and the maximum viewing experience coupled with the freedom to choose the technology that best suits one's needs.”

Sky Q Fibra can be activated by anyone with a Telecom Italia (TIM), Vodafone, Wind, 3 Italia, Fastweb or Tiscali FTTH or FTTC connection with a minimum bandwidth of at least 15 Mbps to view HD content. The company specified that 4K is not yet available via Sky Q Fibra even though the STB supports the technology, nor is some Sky satellite content such as the new Dazn1 channel. 

Unlike the satellite installation, specialised technicians won’t be required as subscribers simply need to connect the STB to their TV and terrestrial digital antenna with the appropriate cables, insert their smart card and connect the device to their fibre service via Ethernet or Wi-Fi. They’ll also be able to use the remote control’s voice search capabilities to control the Sky Q box and ask for recommended films and shows with voice commands such as “find me a film for the whole family”. 

Sky will be promoting the service via an advertising campaign that will be be on air from 01 October with the slogan “Easy to get. Easy to connect. Easy to love.”