Sky has confirmed that they will replace up to 90,000 faulty Sky HD+ boxes – after manufacturer Pace discovered a 'flaw in its manufacturing process.'
In what can only be described as an admirably swift reaction, Sky has offered to replace all of the boxes 'as a precaution' as well as offering three months free subscription as an apology for any inconvenience caused.
The Pace boxes affected are versions 9F3001, 9F3002, 9F3003 and 9F3004, although Sky reiterate that only a 'small minority' will have the fault.
Faulty connection
The flaw is apparently in the internal cabling and the quality of connections.
"This means that the build quality of a box that was part of this batch may not meet Sky's standards," says Sky's help centre page.
"Importantly, Pace has confirmed that the assembly flaw does not pose a safety risk. The box can continue to be used in the normal way, as installed by a Sky engineer, until we come to replace it.
"The assembly flaw is not affecting the performance of these boxes. But, because some of these boxes may develop a problem over the longer term, we are choosing to replace them while they are still under warranty."
Unprecedented
What Satellite and Digital TV Editor Alex Lane reserved praise for Sky's response adding, "It's an unprecedented move for Sky or any other British pay-TV provider to recall boxes when they're expected to fail outside the warranty period.
"Perhaps they're worried there will be 90,000 complaints to Watchdog in a couple of years – or worse – to Noel's HQ.
"But it will be a disappointment to the those of us who have experienced the pain of replacing an out-of-warranty Sky+ or Sky+ HD because of a failed power supply, which is more common than it should be."
If you aren't sure about the exact make of your box, you can find out by pressing services / system set up / system details to find the manufacturer and version number.
