Any card will suffice?

[admin_exported]

Is the decoder, any decoder at all, able to work with any card. When I took out a Sky subscription, they sent me a card; no, not a birthday card but a subscription card that gets slotted in the front of the machine. This tells the decoder I've got a subscription and allows it to unscramble or DECODE the incoming signals. Am I basically right so far? Onwards; would any other fully paid up card of the right physical dimensions etc, etc, connected to a suitable dish etc, etc, work properly. In short are cards and decoders compatible from different companies as long as all other criteria are met

 

[Anonymous]

"This tells the decoder I've got a subscription and allows it to unscramble or DECODE the incoming signals. Am I basically right so far?" - That is correct. The non-free to view channels are scrambled by default and the card says what can be unscrambled.

"Onwards; would any other fully paid up card of the right physical dimensions etc, etc, connected to a suitable dish etc, etc, work properly. In short are cards and decoders compatible from different companies as long as all other criteria are met" - Not in the case of Sky. Sky has encryption that only Sky cards and Sky boxes can decode. You cannot watch (encrypted) Sky TV on any other box than an official Sky one. Other satellites/boxes/cards/channels may be different, but that is getting into a whole different topic that I can't expand on here. In short, to watch Sky-encrypted channels you need a Sky box and Sky viewing card (registered to your address).