The most important element is a cloud-free sky.

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Magness, a sly Texan in the Ross Perot mold, had started out with 700 customers in Memphis, Tex. in 1956, back when operators pulled TV signals free from the sky and pumped them into markets too puny for broadcasters or bureaucrats to bother with.

FORBES: Taking Liberty

The strong uptake isn't just because of Sky's recent broadband package, which was granted for free to anyone who already had Sky Digital TV and lives in an area already covered by broadband.

FORBES: BSkyB Jumps On More Subscribers

The free apres-ski kids club at Big Sky gets thumbs up from parents too, enabling them to get a guilt-free break.

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It was a little too much for analysts, who had expected a less generous offering of free broadband to only the top tier of Sky's customers, and for the company to begin recouping its investment in 2009.

FORBES: Murdochs' Free Broadband Costs Them In The City

All the changes affect Mediaset as well as Sky, but hit Sky harder because Mediaset remains chiefly a free-to-air business.

ECONOMIST: Pay-television in Italy

But a Ministry of Justice spokeswoman said Sky Sports News was cancelled when it stopped being a free-to-air channel.

BBC: TV in prison: What men and women watch in their cells

The 8 free games for Mac gamers include retro-cool point-and-click adventure game Beneath a Steel Sky, action-packed top-down shooter Tyrian 2000, legendary RPG Ultima IV, and multiplayer FPS Warsow, among others.

ENGADGET: Good Old Games now supports Mac, kicks off with approximately 50 games

With three minutes left, Carroll rose into the London sky with big-bodied opponent Marouane Fellaini all over him, met Craig Bellamy's free kick and headed it past Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard.

WSJ: Extreme Makeover: Liverpool Edition?