House of Commons - Culture, Media and Sport

Select Committee on Culture, Media and Sport Second Report

2 Developments in television

10. For over half a century, television in the UK has been broadcast using radio waves to carry an analogue, or continuously varying, signal.[15] This period has seen improvements in picture resolution, the development of colour television and the introduction of more national channels, ending with Channel 5 (now known as Five). The one major transition that has so far been completed is that between 405-line transmissions in the VHF (very high frequency) region of the radio spectrum to 625-line UHF (ultra high frequency) transmissions. The introduction of the latter was prompted by the advent of a third channel (BBC Two) in 1964 and, later, by colour television. However, BBC One and ITV services continued to be available in 405-line format until 1985, when the last VHF transmitter was turned off. At this point only 15,000 homes were still dependent upon 405 lines.[16]

11. Five was launched in 1997 as the fifth public service terrestrial channel though, even to this day, only 78% of homes are able to receive its analogue service.[17] This arises from the necessity to separate different broadcast channels both in terms of radio frequency and geography if interference is to be avoided. Similar considerations led to some video recorders having to be retuned: ten million homes were visited over a nine month period, at a cost of £165 million. However, it turned out that only 2% of video recorders were ever affected by Channel Five's signals.[18]

12. Until 1998, all television services in the UK were transmitted and received in analogue, whether by cable, satellite or terrestrial broadcasts. By then, the cable and satellite platforms, with their greater bandwidth (information carrying capacity), were introducing viewers to multi-channel television. Now, most cable and all satellite television is transmitted in digital rather than analogue form. Digital terrestrial television was launched in November 1998, involving the installation of new transmitters at 80 sites. The development of digital broadcasting allows more efficient use of radio frequencies, thus enabling more or better services to be made available: more channels, more interactivity, and soon High Definition TV.[19]

13. At present, 80 transmitter sites are able to deliver the whole digital terrestrial package to 73% of the population and the public service digital channels to 83%.[20] These differences arise from restrictions placed on some of the transmitters in some directions to avoid interference, resulting in some homes only being able to receive a subset of the six possible multiplexes (corresponding to frequency channels). Coverage cannot be increased significantly without switching off the analogue transmissions that compete for radio spectrum. Details of the television services available on each of the six licensed multiplexes have been provided by a written submission from Digital UK.[21] In addition to the free-to-air service, marketed as Freeview, the digital terrestrial television (DTT) platform provides television services available on subscription as Top-Up TV. Recently, ITV became, with Channel 4, a shareholder of Freeview; they join the original participants BBC, BSkyB and Crown Castle (now National Grid Wireless). According to Ofcom, around seven million homes currently receive DTT broadcasts.[22]

14. BSkyB's satellite platform has been entirely digital since 2001, and now serves around eight million households.[23] In addition to its pay-TV service BSkyB offers a "Freesat from Sky" service comprising 120 digital TV channels and 80 radio stations free-to-air. In principle, 98% of UK households can receive satellite television. BSkyB is a "strong supporter" of digital television, recognising that it offers "significant benefits to those consumers who wish to receive them". BSkyB's written evidence went on: "We are not convinced, however, that these and other claimed benefits are so great that everyone should be compelled to have them, at significant public and private cost, whether they want them or not."[24]

15. NTL is the UK's largest cable operator, passing some eight million homes and offering a "triple play" service of multi-channel TV, high speed broadband and telephony services. Following its recent merger with Telewest, it has become the largest provider of residential broadband services in the country, the second largest pay-TV provider (about 3.3 million subscribers)[25] and also the second largest fixed telephony provider.[26] The merger paves the way for new product offerings such as High Definition Television, video-on-demand and VoIP[27] (internet telephony). NTL's written evidence acknowledged that a gradual migration to digital broadcasting is a sensible policy objective, given that spectrum is a valuable asset.[28]

16. A fourth system for delivering digital television deploys digital subscriber line (DSL) technology, using existing copper-wire telephony networks. There are two service providers in the UK: Kingston Interactive Television and Homechoice. The latter is provided to nearly 40,000 subscribers, at present in London, by Video Networks Limited. Homechoice bundles together a package of broadband, multi-channel TV, video on demand and (where desired) telephony in an interactive environment that allows for a substantial amount of personalisation - users can set up their own play list of music videos for example. Homechoice's written evidence[29] referred to its expansion plans and the greater functionality of its system, in contrast to the limitations of Freeview and its "legacy decoder technology" (MPEG-2).[30]

17. Both NTL and Video Networks point to the role they could play in building "digital Britain". Video Networks believes that the focus purely on digital broadcast TV is a mistake: "The issue of analogue switch-off should be tightly linked to the Government's drive towards all households having broadband access by 2008."[31] NTL believes that "the greatest risk to the switchover initiative is a lack of ambition."[32] Both platforms rightly claim to offer a more interactive environment than either DTT or satellite. Across all platforms, 66% of UK households were receiving digital TV services as at 30 September 2005.[33]

18. The relevance of satellite, cable and DSL platforms to the digital switchover programme lies partly in their ability to mitigate the adverse consequences of switching off analogue TV. Clearly the more people who have access to digital TV supplied by other platforms, then the smaller the number who will stand to lose television when conventional analogue broadcasts cease.

19. As noted earlier, the Government has confirmed plans to complete UK switchover to digital terrestrial television by 2012. The process is set to take place in stages, with areas based on individual ITV regions turning off their analogue broadcasts, beginning with the Border region in 2008 and ending with Tyne Tees and Ulster in 2012. Ofcom's written evidence summarises the full timetable for every ITV region in tabular form.[34] A conversion date has still to be confirmed for the Channel Islands, though 2013 seems likely.[35]

20. The Voice of the Listener and Viewer (VLV) began its written submission by quoting from a speech given in September 1999 by the then Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Chris Smith: "The digital revolution has the potential to bring immense benefits, but I am determined that the interests of the consumer and viewer must take priority in determining the timetable for the switch over from analogue to digital." By setting a completion date of 2012 for switchover the Government, VLV argued, has changed its digitalisation policy from one which was viewer-led to one which compels viewers to pre-determined dates.[36]

21. Written evidence from Channel 4 took the view that the industry is substantially embarked on implementation of the Government's switchover policy and that the focus should be on achieving this.[37] For ITV, Clive Jones commented: "Digital is inevitable … digital switchover is now going to happen."[38] And Danny Churchill of the electrical retail group DSG International told us: "Virtually every consumer product has gone digital and the analogue has almost disappeared. We are still going through it with photography, perhaps, but audio we have gone through twice: we have changed everybody from vinyl to CD and now we are changing them to MP3. As we go through it, the old technology goes, it is as simple as that, and we are now looking at television. Under its own steam, without any switchover pressures, we are selling digital equipment into the marketplace quite effectively…"[39]

22. The case for switching off the analogue signal grows stronger as more and more convert to digital. No-one would dispute that it would be wasteful to go on indefinitely using large amounts of valuable spectrum for analogue television when the number of viewers is steadily shrinking. However, the case for forcing the pace by starting the switch-off process when a sizeable number are still choosing to stay with analogue is more controversial and potentially risky. The Government should therefore be commended for a bold decision to proceed with complete analogue switch-off by 2012. All attention must now focus on ensuring that switchover takes place with the minimum cost and disruption. We must also ensure that the opportunities that it will present for a whole new range of digital services are exploited to the full.

Digital switchover overseas

23. Written evidence from Digital UK explained the importance of understanding switchover plans in other countries.[40] Although the EU has no powers to compel switchover in Member States, there are European Commission communications on the subject.[41] In particular, the Commission recommended in May 2005 that Member States phase out analogue terrestrial broadcasting by 2012. This ties in with a vision of an information society based on converging media services, networks and devices.[42] International comparisons can provide lessons to guide policy development, practical implementation methods and communications strategies, all in the light of consumer feedback.

24. Germany provided the first example of analogue switch-off anywhere in the world, when Berlin-Brandenburg completed the process in August 2003. Now, 50% of the German population has had all terrestrial analogue signals switched off and the rest of the country seems set to be converted to digital by 2010. In fact, the public broadcasters only intend to achieve 90% population coverage for DTT, which is considered acceptable in view of the fact that much of the population already uses either cable or satellite television. Furthermore, frequencies for terrestrial broadcasting in Germany are relatively scarce, making it impractical to have a lengthy period during which analogue and digital are broadcast simultaneously (simulcast). The process then involves introducing digital terrestrial services in individual regions only shortly before analogue switch-off. In Berlin, the analogue terrestrial channels were switched off in two stages: commercial channels first, followed by the public broadcasters six months later. This transition period was reduced to three months for the staggered channel switch-off in subsequent regions.

25. Another important feature in Berlin-Brandenburg was the subsidies provided to aid switchover. The commercial broadcasters were given a multiplex and MABB[43] agreed to pay about 30% of the digital transmission costs over a period of five years. This subsidy was subsequently adjudged by the European Commission to constitute illegal state aid because of its distorting effect on competition.[44] The Commission has been content, however, to allow another subsidy: set-top boxes were distributed to some 6,000 low-income households (with falling prices for set-top boxes, subsequent Länder have not provided analogous subsidies).

26. According to Digital UK, the German experience provides a number of key positive lessons. First, a regional approach to switchover helps to minimise potential logistical problems with regard either to managing demand for consumer equipment or for securing adequate resources for converting terrestrial transmission masts. Second, a staggered switch-off of television stations within a given region allows viewers to acquire and test their digital receiving equipment before losing all analogue broadcasts. An essential element of Berlin's preparations was a cooperative approach to the switchover project among broadcasters, transmission companies, manufacturers, retailers, consumer groups and government agencies. Finally, raising public awareness in the run-up to switchover and providing advice and practical assistance with new equipment are all seen as important.

27. The importance of terrestrial television in Italy and Spain indicates their utility as sources of comparative information. So far, there are relatively few digital terrestrial households in Spain, though the state broadcaster, RTVE, hopes to be able to cover 98% of the population by the time of the proposed analogue switch-off in 2010. Italy, with 13% of households already receiving digital terrestrial television, is aiming for a final coverage figure of approximately 90%, with the possible use of satellite elsewhere.[45] Italian policy is also marked by the availability of a direct subsidy to consumers to purchase set-top boxes which have an internet function and are thus supportive of e-government development.[46]

28. Italy has set a particularly ambitious target, likely to be missed, for digital switchover: 2006. This is all the more ambitious a date when one considers that the Italian analogue terrestrial transmission network has approximately 12,000 transmitters to convert, about the same as France but many more than the UK. Detailed information on European switchover plans has been provided in written evidence by Digital UK.[47] France has yet to confirm a switchover date though 2010 is anticipated - depending on the take-up of receiving equipment. The Oxford University Programme in Comparative Media Law and Policy noted that the UK in comparison leads the world in digital take-up (across all platforms) and commented: "It is in a far more advanced position than the other major countries where terrestrial has a major role - Japan, Spain, Italy and France - and has been prudent in choosing a later completion date."[48]

15 Ev 334 Back

16 Q 1 Back

17 Ev 112 Back

18 Ev 12 Back

19 Ev 304 Back

20 Ev 152 Back

21 Ev 150 Back

22 Digital Television Update Q3 2005, Ofcom, 9 December 2005 Back

23 Ev 201 Back

24 ibid. Back

25 Digital Television Update Q3 2005, Ofcom, 9 December 2005 Back

26 "Creation of a cable giant", broadcastnow.co.uk, 6 October 2005 Back