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Digital terrestrial television in the Un- ited Kingdom Digital terrestrial television in the Un- ited Kingdom is made up of over forty primarily free-to-air television channels (in- cluding all the national analogue stations) and over twenty radio channels. It includes the Freeview service. In addition, Pay-TV services are available from Top Up TV and Setanta Sports. Receiving digital ter- restrial television in the UK To receive digital terrestrial television in the UK, a viewer needs a set-top box (prices start at around £15, and go up to about £100), an integrated digital television (IDTV), a suitable digital TV recorder (aka PVR) or DVD Re- corder, or PC TV Card/USB receiver. Freeview services are available through the aerial at no extra cost to everyone with the ability to receive them (though not all services may be available to those with poor reception). The free channels are generally collectively referred to as Freeview, even though not all of them are technically part of the service. While no subscription or recur- ring costs are involved in the Freeview ser- vice itself, households with equipment cap- able of receiving TV are still required to pay an annual licence fee regardless of how they receive their channels (i.e. whether by ter- restrial or cable/satellite or even on the internet). Features Digital terrestrial television provides many more channels than analogue television. For many viewers it offers a higher-quality pic- ture (with many channels broadcasting in 16:9 anamorphic widescreen). A number of interactive services, including a newer ver- sion of Teletext, are also offered. An eight-day Freeview electronic pro- gramme guide (EPG) allows viewers to see the names, descriptions and broadcast times for programmes. As this was not an original feature of digital terrestrial television when introduced in 2004, some receivers feature an EPG with details of the current and next programme only. A fourteen-day Top Up TV EPG is an al- ternative which is transmitted by Five, usu- ally on Multiplex A. but on a different Multi- plex in some areas. The service is available to TUTV’s current proprietary model the Thom- son DTI-6300 and older boxes such as the Di- gifusion series and an early Inverto DTR which supported the format formerly owned by 4TV. It is provided free-to-air and does not require a card or subscription. History Development and launch Digital terrestrial television launched in the UK on 15 November 1998 (just after digital satellite television on 1 October 1998). The technology required that the UK government licence the broadcast of channels in six groups, or multiplexes (abbreviated to ’mux’) labelled 1, 2, A, B, C, and D.[1] The Independent Television Commission (ITC) allocated each existing analogue ter- restrial channel half the capacity of a multi- plex each. This meant the BBC got a multi- plex to themselves (Multiplex 1), ITV and Channel 4 shared Multiplex 2 (though 3%[2] of the capacity was given to Teletext Ltd.) and Five and S4C shared Multiplex A. The re- maining spectrum (Muliplexes B, C and D) was then auctioned off. A consortium made up of Granada and Carlton (members of the ITV network, which have now merged to form ITV plc) and BSkyB successfully bid for these licences, and set-up the subscription ONdigit- al service, though BSkyB left the consortium prior to launch. The BBC made some use of its multiplex for three of its then four new television ser- vices; BBC Choice (which had started on 23 September 1998 with four national From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 1 variations), BBC News 24 and BBC Parlia- ment (albeit in sound only). ITV initially used their space to house ITV2 (from 7 December 1998) in England and Wales, You2 (later UTV2) in Northern Ireland and S2 in Scot- land (now both ITV2), as well as GMTV2 dur- ing the early mornings. Channel 4 used their space for subscription channels FilmFour and E4 which, although not part of ONdigital, would be paid for and were only available through an ONdigital subscription. Channel 4’s nationwide coverage on ’mux’ 2 enabled it to be received terrestrially throughout much of Wales for the first time in its history, where previously only S4C had been avail- able. Consequently, S4C’s digital service, ’S4C Digidol’ carries only Welsh-language programming, in contrast to S4C analogue which also carries English-language pro- grammes commissioned and transmitted by Channel 4 in other parts of the UK. Five sold its half of Multiplex A to the owners of the other half of the multiplex, S4C, who set up a subsidiary called S4C Di- gital Networks (SDN) to manage the multi- plex and rented most of it out to ONdigital as well as some space to the BBC who launched BBC Knowledge on 1 June 1999, at a time when technical capabilities limited the num- ber of stations it could carry on its own multi- plex. S4C chose not to carry S4C Digidol and its newly launched digital Welsh Assembly station, S4C2 outside of Wales, preferring to sell the space instead. Consequently some ONdigital services were not available on Welsh transmitters. While the BBC was seemingly concerned with delivering a service of good technical quality, other broadcasters chose to deliver a larger number of channels rather than optim- ise service reliability and picture quality.[3] ITV Digital ONdigital had problems from the start, and renaming the service ITV Digital on 11 July 2001 only confused and failed to help the matter. All subscription services except E4 and FilmFour went off-air on 1 May 2002 after the consortium collapsed, explained as being due to paying too much for the televi- sion rights for The Football League. However, the choice of 64QAM broadcast mode, the fact that at least 40% of homes would need new aerials to receive it, a high churn rate, poor point-of-sale marketing, no technical support for customers, a recently cracked hackable encryption system, the cost of having to provide free set-top boxes, and aggressive competition from BSkyB all con- tributed to ITV Digital’s spiraling costs. Freeview As ITV Digital had collapsed, the rights rever- ted to the regulator and the ITC invited bids for the space on Multiplexes B, C and D. The Freeview consortium was formed by the BBC, transmitter company National Grid Wireless (known at the time as Crown Castle UK) and BSkyB. This consortium (legal name DTV Ser- vices Ltd and trading under the "Freeview" brand) won and launched a new service. Dropping the ITV Digital failed business mod- el, Freeview launched on 30 October 2002 with free television channels only, and made digital radio stations available on television receivers for the first time. The BBC con- trolled one Multiplex (B) for its own services, and Crown Castle/National Grid the other two (C & D) for commercial services, though the Community Channel also operates on Multiplex B. The BBC’s second multiplex has allowed it to televise BBC Parliament where it had previously only been available in sound, allowed BBC Knowledge and its suc- cessor, BBC4, to stop renting space from SDN for coverage, and allowed for special video screens in its interactive service BBCi, for use during sporting events such as Wimbledon and carrying loops of news head- lines and weather, (services already provided on digital satellite) On 11 October 2005, ITV plc and Channel 4 joined the Freeview consortium and in the same year ITV plc also bought SDN and as such they gained control of Multiplex A. Top Up TV The space ITV Digital had rented on other multiplexes initially became empty again, but some was rented out to allow new channels to launch. In May 2004 Top Up TV was launched to provide subscription content in hitherto unused space on multiplex 2 rented by Top Up TV from Channel 4 and on multi- plex A, rented from Five.[4] TCM purchased its own slot throughout England, Scotland and Northern Ireland from the multiplex owner, SDN, but rents from Sit-up Ltd in Wales, timesharing with bid tv. Multiplex A is ultimately owned by ITV Plc via its SDN From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 2 acquisition, but ITV only has involvement with Top Up TV channels via Five.[4] In September of the same year, Top Up TV began operating solely on Multiplex A, as Channel 4 reclaimed the bandwidth on Multi- plex 2 for its own services More 4, E4, and most recently Film4. In October 2006, Five launched two new free-to-air digital channels, Five Life and Five US, using capacity leased out to Top Up TV.[5] This left Top Up TV with a reduced number of video streams. In November 2006, the company launched Top Up TV Anytime, a service which broadcasts overnight "downloads" which are recorded by a propri- etary Top Up TV Anytime personal video re- corder (PVR). At the same time, they started reducing the linear service. On 19 April 2006, Ofcom ruled that, on re- quest of each multiplex operator, the ’free-to- air channels only’ requirement put in place at the launch of Freeview in 2002 may be lifted on Multiplex B, C and D. The effect of this ruling is that if a Mux operator requests the restriction to be lifted, their multiplex may carry pay TV services. Ofcom says that the di- gital television market has changed signific- antly since 2002. Consequently, it believes that this restriction is no longer required. Al- though Multiplex 2 and A have always been allowed to carry pay services, Ofcom believes that the free-to-air only restriction and the current state of DTT artificially damages the growth of pay tv on the platform. During the consultation, 9 of the 12 re- sponses from broadcasters were in favour of removing the restriction. These included the BBC. The BBC agreed that the digital televi- sion market had changed substantially since 2002, and that Top Up TV probably couldn’t afford the current cost of DTT slots anyway. The BBC suggested that the deregulation should be conditional on a number of further changes to regulation. These included that Ofcom changes the transmission mode of broadcast on all multiplexes from 16QAM to 64QAM so more services could be squeezed onto the digital terrestrial platform. However, Ofcom rejected these suggestions, saying they were outside the scope of the consultation. Out of the three that opposed, one was Channel 4, which has been putting in place a portfolio of free-to-air channels, among them Film4 which was made free-to-air across all platforms on 23 July 2006. Channel 4 argued that the number of free channels available has been the major driving force behind the massive success of the platform – there are now more than 10 million Freeview boxes in use. A number of broadcasters requested that their replies were kept confidential. These in- clude ITV and BSkyB. However, it is believed that ITV opposed the plan and BSkyB suppor- ted it.[6] In addition to replies from broad- casters, there were 21 replies from individu- als. Of these, 20 opposed the change. The channels on Multiplexes B, C and D are those owned by the Freeview consortium and include the three Sky channels on the platform and the UKTV channels. However, Ofcom believes that in the short to medium term, it is unlikely existing free-to-air chan- nels will convert to pay TV. This is because, firstly, Multiplex B is run by the BBC, which is not expected to request the removal of the free-to-air requirement. Secondly, due to the nature of the contracts the channel broad- casters hold with multiplex operators and content providers, it is unlikely a channel will be able to change to pay TV. It was announced on 8 February 2007 that BSkyB intended to withdraw Sky Three, Sky News and Sky Sports News from the plat- form in the summer of 2007. BSkyB had said that it intended to replace them with 4 of its subscription channels. It also said that it would use an alternative (MPEG4) codec, which would require new equipment for those who choose to receive the new service, and imply that the service will be unavailable to those with existing digital terrestrial equipment.[7] On 6 October 2007 Ofcom said that the plans for a new subscription service raised competition concerns and may have to be scrapped.[8] 2008 Update causing failures During 2008, a rolling programme of trans- mitter updates caused approximately 250,000 set-top boxes to stop working alto- gether. Freeview had warned consumers in advance of the update, which was phased over a three-month period.[9] The problem af- fected a specific range of older units, and was caused by an increased Network Inform- ation Table (channel list) exceeding the memory available in some set-top boxes. This had been part of the specification that was available and implemented in the very early From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 3 OnDigital boxes, but not in those using the SetPal chip set.[10] Affected consumers were advised to buy new set-top boxes. Affected models are: • Digital recorders: • Bush IDVCR01 • Daewoo DS608P • Digital boxes: • Daewoo SV900 • Labgear DTT100 • Portland DP100 • Triax DVB2000T Some other models and televisions also re- quire an over-air download for correct operation. Digital switchover Summary The UK Government’s intention is that digital terrestrial television will completely replace analogue terrestrial television in the United Kingdom (and the Crown dependency of the Isle of Man) by 2012, and the Channel Is- lands by 2010. This process is known as "Di- gital Switchover", or DSO. The Digital TV Group the industry association for digital television in the UK, is responsible for co-or- dination between Freeview and other digital services. DTG licenses suitable equipment to bear the Digital Tick and Freeview Playback Logos[11] to identify PVRs and digital TV ser- vices designed to work through switchover, and to raise awareness of DTT product qual- ity and standards. Digital terrestrial televi- sion is broadcast using the DVB-T interna- tional standard. The Digital Switchover process is already underway in parts of the UK, and it involves discontinuing analogue terrestrial TV broad- casts. In some areas this will allow greater signal strength and/or better coverage of di- gital multiplexes. In areas where analogue signals have been terminated, older receiving equipment is likely to require replacement or upgrade. This process is being subsidised by the UK Government for those on low incomes. Cur- rent contracts for this operation have been awarded to BSkyB in the Borders region. Up- grading of analogue receiving equipment re- quires a Freeview set-top box (or other digit- al receiver). Where an analogue TV recording device is in use ideally this will be provided with a separate Freeview set-top box, to replicate existing functionality of recording and watching different programme sources. History The progress towards digital switchover in the UK has been long. The then-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Chris Smith, announced in 1999 that the Govern- ment’s intention was to achieve switchover "between 2006 and 2010". Work started in earnest with the setting up of the Digital Ac- tion Plan, a body working across industry, government and consumer groups to advise on the best way to meet the switchover tar- get date. By 2003, however, it was becoming clear that switchover could not start by 2006. In particular, the decision taken by the Interna- tional Telecommunication Union to call a Re- gional Radiocommunication Conference to establish a frequency plan for digital broad- casting meant that in practice, substantive steps towards switchover would need to wait until after the conference’s second session, due to be held in May & June 2006. On 15 September 2005, addressing the Royal Television Society in Cambridge, Smith’s successor at the DCMS, Tessa Jowell, announced the go-ahead for switchover in the UK, coupled with support measures to ensure the disadvantaged are not left behind.[12] In essence, the UK will switchover on a re- gional basis, starting in Whitehaven on the 17 October 2007, then the rest of the Border Television region in the second half of 2008, and then finishing in London in 2012. Local television broadcasters, including the BBC and ITV, are actively encouraging viewers to upgrade to digital television. UK broad- casters are also under additional pressure to complete migration since London will be hosting the Olympic Games in 2012. On the day after Jowell’s speech, an independent. not-for-profit company, Digital UK, was established to coordinate the switchover process. Set up by the broad- casters and the commercial multiplex operat- ors, Digital UK is required to co-ordinate the project and ensure that the public are kept informed about progress. Digital rollout The British Government has given Ofcom and Digital UK jointly the task of discontinuing analogue television broadcasting. The switch- From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 4 off will occur on an ITV sub-region basis.[13] A technical trial in Ferryside, Wales, resulted in viewers voting to lose three out of the four available analogue channels in favour of go- ing digital, so the unwanted analogue signals were switched off at the end of March 2005. In October 2007, following a 15-month publi- city and information campaign, and an early digital launch in August by Five[14], the Whitehaven, Eskdale Green and Gosforth transmitters switched off analogue signals on the BBC Two frequency, and began broad- casting a temporary digital service for the main channels. On 14 November, all ana- logue signals were switched off, and the permanent three-multiplex digital service began (albeit with Five only on the White- haven transmitter, until 2009). Unfortu- nately, as had been feared, a small number of homes among the hills, which had received "fuzzy" analogue signals, particularly in Esk- dale, were unable to receive a decodable Freeview signal.[15] The only other serious problem resulted from the "rescan" command in some models of set-top box defaulting to frequencies used by the nearest main trans- mitter, instead of the strongest digital sig- nals; this could be overcome by using the "add channel" option to select channels one- by-one, and in the long term by corrections to the boxes’ software.[16] In November 2008 the full rolling pro- gramme started with the Border Television Selkirk[17] region, then Caldbeck (which is being rebuilt, and will broadcast both Eng- land and Scotland multiplexes to improve service to viewers north of the border; the nearby Sandale transmitter will cease to broadcast TV), ITV Westcountry[18] Beacon Hill, Stockland Hill, Huntshaw Cross, Redruth, Caradon Hill, Wales[19] Preseli, Carmel, ITV Granada[20] whole region, Wales Llanddona, Moel-Y-Parc, Blaenplwyf, Long Mountain, Wenvoe then the rest of the UK: ITV West, STV North (Grampian Television) and Channel Television in 2010; STV Central (Scottish Television) from 2010-11; ITV Cent- ral, ITV Yorkshire and ITV Anglia in 2011; and finally ITV Meridian, ITV London, ITV Tyne Tees & UTV in 2012.[13] Many decisions must be made, including what to do about people who may find the new technology confusing, or who have no desire to receive more than the four or five channels they presently have, and who may be reluctant to buy a digital box in order to view the free channels. The government has arranged for the BBC to administer a Digital Switchover Help Scheme to ensure that groups such as the over-75s and recipients of disability benefits will not lose their televi- sion services when analogue transmissions are switched off. Another issue is that the "98.5 per cent of the population" availability target can only be achieved "via rooftop aerials",[21] while Sec- tion 134 of the Communications Act 2003 sets out the principle "that no person should unreasonably be denied access to an elec- tronic communications network or to elec- tronic communications services".[22] This is taken to mean that everyone has the right to mount a television aerial on their roof.[23] Of- com will allocate frequencies for groups of households to provide "self-help" relay trans- mitters at their own expense (for analogue broadcasts there are some 200 of these, serving around 13,000 households), but sug- gests that in such cases, terrestrial TV may no longer be the most cost-effective solu- tion.[24] Landlords of communal housing are likely to have to upgrade old master aerial TV dis- tribution systems. A new alternative, the in- tegrated reception system is being promoted as a way to offer the full range of terrestrial and satellite broadcasts from a single aerial cluster; however, residents are likely to be asked to pay substantially higher annual charges when such a system is installed. The switchover process After several months of press publicity, leaf- let drops, public meetings etc., captions will start appearing on analogue broadcasts from the affected transmitters, warning viewers that the analogue service will shortly be switched off and that they need to take action (for Whitehaven, the first large area to switch over, the captions started appearing some 5 months before the BBC Two analogue service was switched off[25]). At about the same time, details of the Switchover Help Scheme will be distributed. Although viewers who live outside existing Freeview reception areas will be unable to test any digital receiving equipment they buy at this early stage, test- screens on Ceefax (BBC One & Two) and Te- letext (ITV & C4/S4C) page 284 make it pos- sible to determine whether they are likely to From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 5 Old multiplex name New multiplex name Owning company 1 BBC A BBC 2 D3&4 Digital 3&4 A SDN ’S4C Digital Networks’ (ITV plc) B BBC B BBC C Arqiva A Arqiva D Arqiva B Arqiva need a new aerial or a signal amplifier to re- ceive digital transmissions. Next, detailed information booklets will be delivered to all households in the area (in- cluding many on the fringe who may be re- ceiving their TV from other transmitters- hence the importance of the on-screen warn- ing captions). Two or three months later, the analogue BBC Two signal will be replaced with Multiplex 1.[26] At the same time, cap- tions will appear on the remaining analogue channels reminding viewers of the impending switchover. Finally, four weeks later, the re- maining analogue transmissions will be switched off, with the analogue ITV signal be- ing replaced with Multiplex 2, and the ana- logue BBC One signal with Multiplex B. At some locations, during the four-week switchover period, BBC One, ITV or Channel 4 will move to the analogue BBC Two fre- quency where that channel’s frequency is re- quired for the digital transmission of Multi- plex 1. Three multiplexes (current multiplexes 1, 2 and B) will be for public service broadcast- ing and contain around 25 TV channels, in- cluding all the television channels from the BBC, ITV (except ITV2+1), Channel 4 (except Film4 and E4+1), S4C and Five (except Five Life and Five US), half a dozen radio stations and half a dozen text/interactive services. The other three multiplexes (A, C and D) will continue to be operated by their respective commercial licence-holders. To reflect the slightly changed roles, the multiplex names will change:[27] Post-switchover The adoption of the 8k format will be intro- duced at the final digital switchover date of 2012, unless it can be shown to Ofcom’s sat- isfaction that the impact of an earlier adop- tion would have minimal impact on viewers with 2k equipment. In those areas where single frequency operation will be required (covering the Meridian and Anglia regions) will adopt the 8k format when they are con- verted to all digital operation.[28] Alternative post-switchover multiplex des- ignations have been used on internal docu- mentation by the BBC switchover contractor Arqiva,[29] however changing the designa- tions of the multiplexes requires changes to legislation[1] and to the multiplex licences is- sued by Ofcom and is not in the current draft.[30] When digital switchover is complete, two new sub-bands of the UHF spectrum will be clear (frequencies corresponding to channel ranges 31-40 and 62 to 69), leaving only channels 21-30 and 41-62 for digital televi- sion multiplexes. This "digital dividend"[31] will require millions of homes to upgrade their aerials to the wideband type to receive some or all of the Freeview multiplexes.[32] This spectrum is useful because of its trade- off between bandwidth and range. The real- located frequencies might be used for: • Mobile Television services • Wireless broadband services • Wider coverage for advanced services in remote and rural areas • More multiplexes carrying more channels • High definition services Reuse of this spectrum for other services will require legislation changes and international agreement. This is unlikely to be a significant problem as demand for spectrum is high throughout most of Europe. Ofcom currently plan to publish final proposals for this spec- trum in mid-2007.[31] Digit Al Digit Al is a robot character created for Di- gital UK in 2005 by Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO and voiced by the English comedy act- or Matt Lucas, used in material publicising the digital switchover. It will appear in the public information programme run by Digital UK until 2012. The character was first From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 6 transmitted simultaneously on about 100 television channels and on regional BBC tele- vision on 5 May 2006.[33] Future of Digital Ter- restrial Broadcasting In March 2006, the development of a new second generation Digital Terrestrial broad- casting standard, DVB-T2, was agreed by the DVB Group. It is expected that it will be final- ised during 2008, ready for deployment in 2009. The BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Five have agreed with the regulator Ofcom to convert one UK multiplex (B, or PSB3) to DVB-T2 to increase capacity for HDTV (High Definition Television) via DTT[34]. They expect the first TV region to use the new standard will be Granada in November 2009 (with existing switched over regions being changed at the same time). It is expected that over time there will be enough DVB-T2 receivers sold to switch all DTT transmissions to DVB-T2, and MPEG-4 Part 10. Ofcom recently published its final decision for HDTV using DVB-T2 and MPEG-4 [35]: BBC HD will have one HD slot after switch over and ITV, C4 and Five will compete for the two remaining HD slots from 2009 until 2012. List of digital terrestrial channels Unless noted otherwise, channels may broadcast twenty-four hours a day (though not all use all of this available time). Television channels EPG No. Channel Notes Owner/parent company Broadcast hours Format Multiplex 1 BBC One Some region- al variations in programming BBC 24 hours 16:9 SDTV 1 2 BBC Two Some region- al variations in program- ming; vari- ations from analogue in Wales BBC 24 hours 16:9 SDTV 1 3 ITV Uses various brands in- cluding ’ITV1’, ’STV’, and ’UTV’, de- pending on regional station. ITV Network Limited (consisting of ITV plc, STV Group plc, UTV Media, Channel Television Ltd, GMTV Ltd.) 4 Channel 4 Except Wales Channel 4 Televi- sion Corporation 4 S4C Digidol Wales only Welsh Fourth Channel Authority 5 Five RTL Group 6 ITV2 ITV plc 7 BBC Three Timeshares with CBBC Channel BBC 8 Channel 4 Wales only Channel 4 Televi- sion Corporation 8 TeleG Scotland only; timeshares with CITV Channel, Gems TV, CNN, Top Up TV Anytime 2 9 BBC Four Timeshares with CBeebies BBC 10 ITV3 ITV plc 11 Sky Three BSkyB 12 YeSTERDAY Timeshares with Virgin1+1 UKTV (BBC Worldwide/Virgin Media Television) 13 Channel 4 +1 Channel 4 Televi- sion Corporation 14 More4 Channel 4 Televi- sion Corporation 15 Film4 Timeshares with National Lottery Xtra. Channel 4 Televi- sion Corporation From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 7 16 QVC UK Timeshares with S4C2 in Wales QVC 24 hours (England, Scotland, NI) 24 hours (Wales) (Friday- Monday) 17:00 - 09:00 (Wales) (Tuesday- Thursday) 16:9 SDTV A 17 G.O.L.D. Top Up TV; timeshares with Teach- ers’ TV, Top Up TV Anytime 3, Home UKTV (BBC Worldwide/Virgin Media Television) 18:00 - 23:30 16:9 SDTV A 18 4Music Box Television (Bauer Group/Channel 4) 24 hours 16:9 SDTV D 19 Dave Timeshares with SmileTV UKTV (BBC Worldwide/Virgin Media Television) 07:00 - 03:00 16:9 SDTV C 20 Virgin 1 Virgin Media Television 24 Hours 16:9 SDTV A 21 TMF MTV Networks Europe 24 hours 4:3 SDTV D 22 Ideal World Timeshares with SmileTV2 Ideal Shopping Direct plc 05:00 - 00:00 4:3 SDTV D 23 bid tv sit-up Ltd 24 hours 16:9 SDTV A 24 ITV4 ITV plc 24 hours 16:9 SDTV 2 25 Dave ja vu Timeshares with Russia Today TV UKTV (BBC Worldwide/Virgin Media Television) 08:00 - 04:00 16:9 SDTV D 26 Home Top Up TV; timeshares with Teach- ers’ TV, Top Up TV Anytime 3, G.O.L.D. UKTV (BBC Worldwide/Virgin Media Television) 14:00 - 16:00 16:9 SDTV A 27 ITV2 +1 ITV plc 28 E4 Channel 4 Televi- sion Corporation 29 E4 +1 Channel 4 Televi- sion Corporation 30 Fiver Timeshares with Televi- sion X RTL Group 31 Five USA Timeshares with Partyland RTL Group 32 SmileTV Timeshares with Dave Cellcast Group 33 SmileTV2 Timeshares with Ideal World Cellcast Group 34 Setanta Sports 1 Subscription service; time- shares with Top Up TV Anytime 1 Setanta Sports 35 Virgin1+1 Timeshares with Yesterday Virgin Media Television 38 Top Up TV Anytime 1 Top Up TV; timeshares with Setanta Sports 1 Top Up TV 39 Top Up TV Anytime 2 Top Up TV; timeshares with bid tv (Wales), CITV Channel (Eng- land, Scotland, NI), CNN, TeleG (Scotland) Top Up TV 40 Top Up TV Anytime 3 Top Up TV; timeshares with Teach- ers’ TV, G.O.L.D., Home Top Up TV 41 Top Up TV Anytime 4 Timeshares with Film4 and National Lottery Xtra Top Up TV 45 National Lottery Xtra Timeshares with Film4 National Lottery From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 8 48 Super Casino Timeshares with Net Play TV Netplay TV Broadcasting Limited 21:00 - 06:00 SDTV A 49 Net Play TV Timeshares with Super Casino Netplay TV Broadcasting Limited 06:00 - 21:00 SDTV A 50 Partyland Timeshares with Five USA RTL Group 01:00 - 06:00 16:9 SDTV A 70 CBBC Channel Timeshares with BBC Three BBC 07:00 - 19:00 16:9 SDTV 1 71 CBeebies Timeshares with BBC Four BBC 06:00 - 19:00 16:9 SDTV B 72 CITV Channel Not available in Wales; timeshares with Gems TV, CNN, TeleG (Scotland), Top Up TV Anytime 2 ITV plc 06:00 - 18:00 16:9 SDTV A 80 BBC News BBC 24 hours 16:9 SDTV 1 81 BBC Parliament BBC 24 hours 16:9 SDTV B 82 Sky News BSkyB 24 hours 16:9 SDTV C 83 Sky Sports News BSkyB 24 hours 4:3 SDTV C 84 CNN Timeshares with bid tv (Wales), CITV Channel (Eng- land, Scotland, NI),, TeleG (Scotland) Top Up TV Anytime 2 Turner Broad- casting System 21:00 - 01:00 4:3 SDTV A 85 Russia Today TV Timeshares with Dave ja vu RIA Novosti 06:00 - 08:00 16:9 SDTV D 86 S4C2 Wales only; timeshares with QVC UK S4C 09:00 - 17:00 (Tuesday- Thursday) 16:9 SDTV A2 87 Community Channel Timeshares with 302 Media Trust 06:00 - 09:00 4:3 SDTV B 88 Teachers’ TV Timeshares with Top Up TV Anytime 3, G.O.L.D., Home Education Digital Ltd/Education Digital Manage- ment Ltd 97 Television X Adult Northern and Shell (Red Hot) ^1 ITV1 is the brand name for 12 of the 15 regional ITV Network franchises for England, Wales, southern Scotland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. Each of these 12 franchises has a separate brand name used prior to local programming, see ITV1. STV is the brand name for the franchises for central and northern Scotland. UTV operates the franchise for Northern Ireland. All 15 fran- chises broadcast 0925-0600; GMTV operates the franchise for national breakfast television and broadcasts 0600-0925. ^2 Five, S4C and S4C2 will move to a public service multiplex at the start of digital switchover, using the bandwidth created by switching from 16QAM to 64QAM mode, so will be transmitted from all 1,154[36] UK transmitters. None of the commercial multi- plex operators have asked Ofcom to extend their multiplex to any of the 1,074 relay transmitters so these multiplexes will broad- cast only from the existing 80 main transmit- ters that carry all the multiplexes after switchover.[37] Broadcast power for these multiplexes will, however, be increased, and they will use 64QAM mode, enlarging the na- tional coverage from the current 73%[36] of the population to an estimated 90% by 2012. Text and interactive services EPG No. Channel Notes Owner/ parent company Broadc hours 100 Teletext NHS Direct pages also available from split screen Teletext Ltd. 101 Teletext Holidays Teletext Ltd. 102 Rabbit Teletext Ltd. 103 Teletext Casino Teletext Ltd. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 9 104 Teletext on 4 Teletext Ltd. Text service 2 105 BBC Red Button BBC Text service 1 108 Sky Text BSkyB Text service C 300 4TVInteractive EPG ser- vice; compatible set-top-box required for full func- tionality (appears as blank screen) 03:00 - 04:00 Data service D 301 301 BBCi Video Stream; press the red button for full functionality BBC 24 hours 16:9 SDTV B 302 302 BBCi Video Stream; press the red button for full functionality BBC 09:00 - 06:00 16:9 SDTV B 303 303 Carries data for BBC News, BBC Parliament and CBee- bies (ap- pears as blank screen and flagged as hidden) BBC Data service B 305 305 Carries data for BBC News (ap- pears as a blank screen and flagged as hidden) BBC Data service B Radio stations EPG No. Channel Notes Owner/ parent company Multiplex 700 BBC Radio 1 BBC B 701 BBC Radio 1Xtra BBC B 702 BBC Radio 2 BBC B 703 BBC Radio 3 BBC B 704 BBC Radio 4 FM version BBC B 705 BBC Radio 5 Live BBC B 706 BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra BBC B 707 BBC Radio 6 Music BBC B 708 BBC Radio 7 BBC B 709 BBC Asian Network BBC B 710 BBC World Service English language, European version BBC D 711 The Hits Radio Bauer Radio D 712 Smash Hits Not avail- able in Wales Bauer Radio A 713 Kiss 100 Bauer Radio D 714 Heat Bauer Radio D 715 Magic 105.4 Bauer Radio D 716 Q Bauer Radio D 718 102.2 Smooth Radio Guardian Media Group D From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 10 719 BBC Radio Wales Wales only BBC 1 719 BBC Radio Scotland Scotland only BBC 1 719 BBC Radio Ulster Northern Ireland only BBC 1 720 BBC Radio Cymru Wales only BBC 1 720 BBC Radio nan Gàidheal Scotland only BBC 1 720 BBC Radio Foyle Northern Ireland only BBC 1 722 Kerrang! Bauer Radio D 723 talkSPORT UTV Radio C 725 Premier Christian Radio Premier Christian Media Trust C 726 U105 Northern Ireland only UTV Radio 2 727 Absolute Radio (formerly Virgin Radio) Times of India C 728 Heart 106.2 Northern England, Southern England, Wales, Southern Scotland and the Isle of Man only Global Radio 2 728 100.7 Heart FM West Midlands only Global Radio 2 728 Heart 106 East Mid- lands only Global Radio 2 Future channels Because of advances in compression techno- logy, New channels may soon be available on digital terrestrial television. Arqiva, who op- erates Multiplexes C and D, also began ad- vertising for a new 24hr channel on Mux C, along with two other slots, with one between 4 and 6 am[38] and the other allowing only 144kbit/s of bandwidth, which could be used either for radio, with either a single 128kbit/s stereo or two 64kbit/s mono radio stations, or for a data service, such as teletext.[39] The multiplexes • Operated by the BBC; broadcasts nationwide in 16QAM mode at 18 megabits/second • Operated by Digital 3&4 (an ITV/Channel 4 consortium); broadcasts nationwide in 64QAM mode at 24 megabits/second • Operated by SDN (owned by ITV plc); broadcasts nationwide in 64QAM mode at 24 megabits/second • Operated by the BBC; broadcasts nationwide in 16QAM mode at 18 megabits/second • Operated by Arqiva; broadcasts nationwide in 16QAM mode at 18 megabits/second • Operated by Arqiva; broadcasts nationwide in 16QAM mode at 18 megabits/second * Pay TV service Use of multiplexing technology Each multiplex is an error-protected bit- stream of 18 or 24 megabits per second, which can be used for almost any combina- tion of digitally-encoded video, audio and data. The DVB-T standard provides a multi- plex service that can make trade-offs between the number of services and the pic- ture and audio quality. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 11 • a number of services use the same bandwidth at different times. For example CBeebies and BBC Four use the same space in Multiplex B, with CBeebies broadcasting from 6am until 7pm and BBC Four from 7pm; similarly for CBBC and BBC Three. • some multiplexes allocate more bandwidth to services, providing a smaller number of higher-quality services. For example BBC One on Multiplex 1 is carried as a 4.4 Megabit stream, while Sky Sports News typically uses 2 Megabits per second. • The modulation of the multiplexes can be varied to squeeze higher digital bitrates out of the same portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, but require a stronger signal for good reception. The modulation schemes used in the UK are, in order of bandwidth efficiency, each with a progressively higher bitrate, at the cost of progressively higher likelihood of signal degradation: • QPSK (only used for tests in the Oxford and London areas) • 16 QAM • 64 QAM As of late 2007 multiplexes 2 and A use 64 QAM and are consequently more prone to poor reception, while the other multiplexes use 16 QAM. At switchover the transmission mode will change from 16QAM to 64QAM on Multiplexes 1 (PSB1) and B (PSB3)[27]. This will increase the effective bandwidth of each multiplex, and will allow Five, S4C and S4C2 to move to Multiplex B (PSB3). The switch to 64QAM mode will provide extra bandwidth on Multiplexes C (COM5) and D (COM6). • multiplexes can make use of statistical multiplexing at the MPEG video coder whereby the bitrate allocated to a channel within the multiplex can vary dynamically depending on how difficult it is to code the picture content at that precise time, and how much demand there is for bandwidth from other channels. In this way, complex pictures with much detail may demand a higher bitrate at one instant and this can result in the bitrate allocated to another channel in the same multiplex being reduced if the second channel is currently transmitting pictures which are easier to encode, with less fine detail. The only DTT channel which does not use statistical multiplexing, i.e. which uses a constant bit rate, is BBC One. This is so the English Regions and Nations can perform a simple transmultiplex, or T-Mux, operation and insert their local versions of BBC One over the London feed straight into the existing BBC Multiplex 1 without having to re-code the entire multiplex at each regional centre, requiring specialist (and costly) equipment at several locations. New compression technology Improved compression technology has al- lowed two additional television stations on the National Grid Wireless multiplex using the same bandwidth, with the possibility of more to follow on this and some other multiplexes. This technique is only suitable for multi- plexes that are identical nationwide. On Mul- tiplex 1 where BBC One is one of 15 regional versions, BBC Two with four national vari- ants (England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and BBC 2W in Wales)[40], and Multiplex 2 with 19 ITV1 regions and six Channel 4 vari- ations (used for advertising rather than pro- gramming) it is harder to increase the num- ber of channels carried. The additional capacity has been achieved by developments in statistical multiplexing that allow the broadcaster to fit more chan- nels into the same bandwidth. The two slots were auctioned earlier this year and, due to the limited capacity of the UK DTT, broad- casters bid high prices to gain bandwidth. ITV won the bidding for the first slot (on which it launched Men & Motors on 2 May 2005, replaced by ITV Play and later ITV2+1), and Channel 4 the second. Channel 4 launched E4 +1 (not its new channel More4) on the multiplex when the slot be- came available on 1 June (E4 launched on Freeview on 27 May 2005). National Grid Wireless have made a new slot available on Multiplex D using the new compression tech- niques. The 18 hour channel, running from 6am to midnight, became available on 1 December 2005. Companies interested had until 1 November to submit their bids, with bids said to have reached £10 million, from an entry level of £5.5 million, with 12 separ- ate bidders covering all sectors of broadcast- ing. This slot was won by Channel 4; it was occupied by More4+1 until live coverage of From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 12 Big Brother replaced it on 18 May 2006. Film4 took over the slot 23 July 2006. More recent compression technology, as now available in codecs like MPEG4, H.264 or Microsoft’s WMV could enable a substan- tial increase in either quality or capacity due to their increased efficiency. For example, most existing programmes could be conver- ted to high-definition with little or no in- crease in bandwidth. BSkyB have been the first to suggest such a move to increase the number of channels available within their own share of space using MPEG4 on a sub- scription service.[41] Any such change would obsolete all existing receivers, as new decoder set-top boxes or integrated digital televisions would be required (unless existing equipment could be reprogrammed, which is unlikely). BSkyB’s proposals are pending ap- proval by Ofcom, where these issues are likely to be a consideration. The BBC, who would like to broadcast high-definition television on at least some Freeview channels, is considering an altern- ative method utilising spare capacity at night to allow the download of high definition pro- grammes for later replay. The use of different codecs than those supported at present would not be a problem, as new equipment would be required anyway. In addition the BBC’s Research and Devel- opment team have invented a transmission method that doubles the effective bandwidth that can currently be delivered by each multi- plex using “spatial multiplexing”: 2 signals are sent on the same frequency in slightly dif- ferent directions and at slightly different times. This will require new transmitters, aerials, and receiving equipment. See also • Top Up TV • BT Vision • Freesat • High-definition television in the United Kingdom • List of British television channels References [1] ^ "Broadcasting Act 1996". Office of Public Sector Information. http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1996/ 1996055.htm. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [2] "Digital 3 and 4 Ltd Response document (page 4)" (DOC). Ofcom. http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/ itc/uploads/Digital_3_&_4.doc. Retrieved on 2007-04-26. [3] "A comprehensive guide to Digital Broadcasting". Published Papers. BBC Research. http://www.bbc.co.uk/rd/pubs/ papers/index-digitalbroadcasting- comp.shtml. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [4] ^ ITV plc (27 April 2005). ITV plc acquires SDN Limited. Press release. http://web.archive.org/web/ 20070929131640/http://www.itvplc.com/ itv/news/releases/pr2005/2005-04-27/. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [5] five.tv (5 June 2006). five unveils two new channels. Press release. http://www.five.tv/aboutfive/press/ pressreleases/ 20060506_twonewchannels/. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [6] Chris Tryhorn (19 April 2006). "Broadcasters get green light for more pay-TV". Guardian Unlimited. http://media.guardian.co.uk/broadcast/ story/0,,1756802,00.html. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [7] "Sky’s top shows to go terrestrial". BBC News. 8 February 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/ 6343715.stm. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [8] Richard Wray (5 October 2007). "Fresh rebuff for BSkyB over Freeview pay-TV". Guardian Unlimited. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/ story/0,,2184198,00.html. Retrieved on 2007-10-18. [9] Sweney, Mark (2008-08-14). "Freeview upgrade leaves set-top boxes obsolete". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/ aug/14/digitaltvradio.television. Retrieved on 2008-08-25. [10] "Freeview boxes destined for landfill". FrequencyCast. http://www.frequencycast.co.uk/ freeviewlandfill.html. Retrieved on 2008-08-25. [11] [1] [12]UK government press release [13]^ http://web.archive.org/web/ 20080226220658/ http://www.digitaluk.co.uk/en/news- media/pressReleases/019/file/ DigitalUK161006.pdf From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 13 [14]Whitehaven News article on Five digital launch, 6 September 2007 [15]North-West Evening Mail article on Eskdale reception problems, 14 November 2007 [16]Whitehaven area experiences of switchover problems [17]http://web.archive.org/web/ 20080226220641/ http://www.digitaluk.co.uk/en/when/ border/resources/0/file/border.pdf [18]http://www.digitaluk.co.uk/en/when/ west-country/resources/0/file/ west_country.pdf [19]http://www.digitaluk.co.uk/en/when/ wales/resources/0/file/wales_english.pdf [20]http://web.archive.org/web/ 20080226220609/ http://www.digitaluk.co.uk/en/when/ granada/resources/0/file/granada.pdf [21]BBC (18 September 2006). BBC and Arqiva take major step towards Digital Switch Over. Press release. http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/ pressreleases/stories/2006/ 09_september/18/digital.shtml. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [22] "Communications Act 2003". Office of Public Sector Information. http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2003/ 30021--c.htm#134. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [23] "Digital switchover: an audit of viewers’ priorities, §6.31" (PDF). Ofcom. 12 July 2006. http://www.ofcom.org.uk/research/ tv/reports/dsoind/vieweraudit/ consumeraudit.pdf. Retrieved on 2007-10-18. [24]Self help TV relays and digital switchover Ofcom consultation document [25]Digital UK (15 March 2007) (PDF). Countdown to UK’s first switch begins. Press release. http://www.digitaluk.co.uk/en/news- media/pressReleases/0114/file/ 03-14%20whitehaven%20date.pdf. Retrieved on 2007-04-25. [26] "BBC Two first to go fully digital". BBC News. 9 November 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/ tv_and_radio/4420526.stm. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [27]^ "Digital Switchover Transmitter Details: Border Region" (PDF). Ofcom. http://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv/ifi/tech/ dsodetails/border.pdf. Retrieved on 2007-04-06. [28] "Planning Options for Digital Switchover : Statement". Ofcom. http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/ condocs/pods1/main/statement/. Retrieved on 2007-10-18. [29]http://www.arqiva.com/upload/pdf/ PROVISION_OF_NETWORK_ACCESS.pdf [30] "Switchover related Changes to DTT Licences". Ofcom. http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/ condocs/dtt_changes/summary/. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [31]^ "The Ofcom Digital Dividend Review (DDR)". Ofcom. http://www.ofcom.org.uk/radiocomms/ ddr/documents/ddroverview/. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [32] "House of Lords - BBC Charter Review - Second Report". http://www.publications.parliament.uk/ pa/ld200506/ldselect/ldbbc/128/ 12806.htm. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [33] "Little Britain star goes digital". BBC News. 4 May 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/ 4972082.stm. Retrieved on 2006-05-04. [34] "3 Freeview HD channels will start 2009 – ukfree.tv – independent digital television and switchover advice, since 2002". http://www.ukfree.tv/ fullstory.php?storyid=1107051325. Retrieved on 2007-11-25. [35] "Ofcom Statement on DTT future, announced on April 3, 2008". http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/ condocs/dttfuture/statement/. Retrieved on 2008-04-09. [36]^ "Switchover–related Changes to DTT Licences" (PDF). Ofcom. 19 July 2006. http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/ condocs/dtt_changes/dtt_changes.pdf. Retrieved on 2007-10-18. [37]Ofcom (7 December 2006). Ofcom sets Digital Switchover related licence conditions. Press release. http://www.ofcom.org.uk/media/news/ 2006/12/nr_20061207. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [38] "TV capacity on digital terrestrial TV/ Freeview line-up". Arqiva. http://www.arqiva.com/products-and- services/terrestrial-solutions/digital- platforms/tv-capacity-on-digital- From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom 14 terrestrial-tvfreeview-line-up. Retrieved on 2008-12-26. [39] "Radio and/or data capacity on Freeview line-up". Arqiva. http://www.arqiva.com/ products-and-services/terrestrial- solutions/digital-platforms/radio-andor- data-capacity-on-freeview-line-up-1571. Retrieved on 2008-12-26. [40] "Which BBC regions are on satellite? - ukfree.tv - get free UK television". http://www.ukfree.tv/ helpme.php?faqid=10. Retrieved on 2007-04-03. [41] "Freeview to lose Sky channels". Telegraph.co.uk. 9 February 2007. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/ main.jhtml?xml=/money/2007/02/09/ cnfree09.xml. Retrieved on 2007-10-18. External links Official sites • Freeview official site • Top Up TV • DigitalUK • Ofcom’s list of the current licensed digital television services • Digital TV Consumer test reports UK Government-funded website to support Digital Switchover Other sites • Professional Aerial Riggers Against the Sharks • Digital TV Reception Predictor • Details of all UK digital transmitters • Simon Blackham’s DTT Page • Switchover guide and podcast Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_terrestrial_television_in_the_United_King- dom#Digital_switchover" Categories: Television in the United Kingdom, Lists of British television channels, Digital tele- vision by country This page was last modified on 21 May 2009, at 14:13 (UTC). All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details.) Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a U.S. registered 501(c)(3) tax- deductible nonprofit charity. 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