soundproof:

I may be totally missing the point here, but I really don't get this "they should have built in Freeview/DVB" and whatever.

As Daniel points out above, in most markets people are getting their tv-signals from a variety of providers, with an increasing portion of the same offering decoders/tuners for you to be able to access their signals.
I have a Pioneer Kuro with DVB built in, which I can't use because the Freeview standard here is MPEG4, not MPEG2. But I get every single available channel through an STB that's nicely placed out of view, through my remote.

In my market the Freeview is considered the last resort of those who can't get the richer and better signals (and number of channels) provided by cable and/or satellite. So I just don't get the fuss on this particular one - I'll criticize B&O for a lot of other stuff, but this one's a no-show on my list of complaints. 

I think the point is that, as you say, most folk may have Sky or whatever for their main TV but for other TV's in the house this is much less likely and in the UK Freeview is almost a given, must have feature on any new TV (from 15" monitor type up to 60" main room TV's).

I'm prepared to let the argument rage about whether TV's such as the BV8 are worth anything near their asking price but I'm with Flappo here (and we have been known to disagree from time to time) - It is nothing short of amazingly lazy or narrow minded of B&O that they continue to sell umpty thousand pound TV's in the UK where, in some parts of the country, they are already unable to operate with the only free-to-air signal available (although the switchover to digital won't be complete until 2012 it has already happened in some parts of the country).

 Sorry but just not good enough IMO.

Puncher:

I think the point is that, as you say, most folk..

Most = majority. How many people have Sky? Less than 4 million homes? I know more people who *don't* have Sky or cable than do. Mainly as most apartments are rented.

Most folk still watch either analogue or digital/Freeview in the UK. Ratio must be something like 80:20.

moxxey:

Puncher:

I think the point is that, as you say, most folk..

Most = majority. How many people have Sky? Less than 4 million homes? I know more people who *don't* have Sky or cable than do. Mainly as most apartments are rented.

Most folk still watch either analogue or digital/Freeview in the UK. Ratio must be something like 80:20.

I'm with you - what I was trying to highlight was that even for those that do have Sky or cable it tends to be a main viewing room only solution - all other TV's in the house either need already or will need shortly a Freeview Tuner.