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Cork TV company wins digital broadcasting licence

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  • 15-11-2004 12:52pm
    #1
    dmeehan
    Registered Users Posts: 2,455 ✭✭✭


    Cork TV company wins digital broadcasting licence
    from Unison.ie breaking news

    A community-run television company in Cork has been granted a digital broadcasting licence by the Communications Regulator.

    The new licence will allow South Coast Television to offer 60 digital TV and radio channels to the whole of Munster.

    SCTV, which currently supplies an analogue service, plans to start its digital service in September 2005.


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    #2
    channelsurfer
    Closed Accounts Posts: 742 ✭✭✭channelsurfer


    hmmmmmmmm really bad news for chorus now they will face competition in their home turf of munster. It will be interesting to see pricing comparisions..


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    #3
    eirman
    Registered Users Posts: 994 ✭✭✭eirman


    Also mentioned here: http://www.enn.ie/frontpage/news-9565146.html


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    #4
    Marcopolo85
    Closed Accounts Posts: 330 ✭✭Marcopolo85


    channelsurfer wrote:
    hmmmmmmmm really bad news for chorus now they will face competition in their home turf of munster. It will be interesting to see pricing comparisions..

    :confused: Will they have to give up their UHF transmissions like the Cablecos had to give up analogue MMDS? If so, South Coast will, for the very first time, be competing on an equal footing - they wouldn't have the advantage over MMDS that they enjoyed all along with their free to air broadcasting method.

    Reading their press release today it looks like it. They're talking about UHF being 'obselete technology'. Pretty peculiar comment when many deflector operators originally discounted MMDS as being 'antiquated' and not suitable for Ireland. Some even called it a health hazrd.

    MMDS is 2.5 GHz. SCTV will, in effect, be operating an MMDS system at a higher frequency (12 GHz). As any satellite installer will tell you, 12 GHz is EXTREMELY critical, with even leaves, never mind trees, interfering with the signal.

    Interesting times ahead.


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    #5
    Roxof
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8 ✭Roxof


    Hi Folks

    South Coast TV will, presumably, be sending their digital multiplexes (60 channels implies several!) in the UHF band.

    Surely it won't be up in the GHz frequencies, with all of the hardware implications (as with MMDS) that would bring.

    :cool:


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    #6
    Marcopolo85
    Closed Accounts Posts: 330 ✭✭Marcopolo85


    Roxof wrote:
    Hi Folks

    South Coast TV will, presumably, be sending their digital multiplexes (60 channels implies several!) in the UHF band.

    Surely it won't be up in the GHz frequencies, with all of the hardware implications (as with MMDS) that would bring.

    :cool:
    Nope. The licence is for 12 GHz (practically same as satellite).
    There was uproar over health hazards with MMDS - can you imagine the problems with this? Check www.comreg.ie and www.mds.fr


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    #7
    BrianD
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,221 ✭✭✭BrianD


    Do SCTV have a web site or contact address?


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    #8
    denis1501
    Registered Users Posts: 492 ✭✭denis1501


    http://homepage.eircom.net/~sctv/index.htm


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    #9
    icdg
    Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 11,533 Mod ✭✭✭✭icdg


    Its MMDS alright. They applied for this ages ago.

    Comreg would argue that Sky are not licenced here and thus have no right to have their signal protected. The thousands of homes with an investment in Sky systems will probably disagree...


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    #10
    channelsurfer
    Closed Accounts Posts: 742 ✭✭✭channelsurfer


    looking at the website it looks like sort of a satellite dish and can provide up to 1000 channels with a standard charge of €16 per month when they pitched it to comreg..so takin that for example its looks a far more superior product to chourus and gives lots of room for them to provide interactive services because it will be almost the same system as sky.. anyone with a sky dish in that area might not like it though becuase if I understand it correctly there could be problems with interfrenece ..


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    #11
    Roxof
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8 ✭Roxof


    Hi Channelsurfer

    At those very high frequencies, the focus of a dish or a spiral aerial type gizmo would be very tight indeed and it's very unlikely that they would interfere with each other... not to worry about that!

    :cool:

    P.S: please don't hold me responsible, should a legal case arise from the above ramblings... Nurse! The Pills!!!

    P.P.S: hmn, perhaps everybody should incorporate some such footnote into their signature files, come to think of it :rolleyes:


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    #12
    BrianD
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,221 ✭✭✭BrianD


    Is it the same time of technology that is used by DTV elsewhere such as Freeview in the UK? I assume one difference will be that SCTV will be encrypted so the viewer will have to subscribe to the service.


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    #13
    Antenna
    Registered Users Posts: 2,310 ✭✭✭Antenna


    BrianD wrote:
    Is it the same time of technology that is used by DTV elsewhere such as Freeview in the UK?
    .
    No, those services operate within the existing UHF TV band, whilst the SouthCoast Digital will (if it gets off the ground) operate at microwave frequencies - similar to satellite.


    From Evening Echo Tuesday November 16 2004

    "South Coast TV to challenge Sky

    By BRIAN WINDERS

    SOUTH Coast Television is set to offer a huge range of up to 60 new channels - including Premiership football and the latest movies - on a new digital service that will be seen on screens throughout Munster.
    At the moment, the Carrigaline-based community TV company only offers four stations to subscribers - BBC1, BBC2, ITV and Channel 4 - but that has changed after the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) granted a digital broadcasting licence.

    Eric Curtis, managing director of SCTV, told the Evening Echo it will cost the company between €6 to €8 million to provide the new service which will come on stream next September.
    All South Coast's 25,000 customers will be offered an opportunity to invest in the company to fund the new service, as will venture capital firms and banks.
    The channel will go head-to-head with Sky TV and cable provider Chorus, the main provider of multi-channel TV in the city. While the annual fee for the new digital service has not been finalised, Mr Curtis said It will be 10-12% cheaper than the two main rivals. Currently, subscribers pay €75 a year.
    SCTV's digital service will be available to all homes in Munster. At the moment, it broadcasts to 25,000 homes in Cork county and west Waterford.
    Among towns receiving South Coast are Carrigaline, Cobh, Midleton, Youghal, Fermoy, Bandon, Bantry, Mitchelstown and Macroom.
    Two packages will be offered - a standard and premium package. The premium will include Premiership Sky matches and the latest movies. SCTV will also open up the new service to community groups such as schools who run media courses.
    The initial launch will include Cork city and details of a further roll-out of the service will be announced early next year
    The state-of-the-art technology has been developed by a French company, MDS International.
    Mr Curtis said subscribers will be offered more choice and control over what they watch, and greater picture quality at a significantly lower cost than competitors."


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