Dempsey to stall the slow DTT rollout in 2007

Sponge Bob

after spending a more than generous €6m on the DTT pilot program in Dublin and Louth during 2006 Dempsey will spend a whopping €2m on DTT rollout next year.

http://www.finance.gov.ie/documents/estimates2007/Estimates12007.pdf

page 93 of 108.

DMC

Two year trial, Sponge Bob. Roll-out to other transmitters was never the plan for 2007. They have chosen the content managers within the €6m budget of this year.

Were your expectations any higher?

watty

There never was a rollout. There hasn't been a rollout, there won't be a rollout.

There is no plan (other than wishfull thinking that private enterprise will pickup the tab.) The current trial is not really a trial and not a pilot.

Mine were no higher.

Sponge Bob

What will this generous two million allocation get us then ??

watty

Not much.

All that is happening is:

1) 1000 folk are offically get a receiver. the 2M may be to pay for this,

2) There will be some additional channels on the two TX sites (one of which is in the most cabled area in Europe). The content managers I think pay for that out of their own pocket hence nothing extra from TV3 as the 4 Irish terrestrials get on it anyway.

I think most of the rest see it as cheap brand marketing. It means nothing in relation to any eventual roll out. For eventual roll out the "network provider" will charge the FTA FreeToCarry companies for carriage (RTE, TG4, TV3, C6), pay the small royalites to ITV, BBC, C4 & Five (in relation to say Sky X, and this is why these can easily be offered Free To Air. BBC World TV might be Free To Carry, as might CNN, Aljazeera Int, TV5, DW TV etc), and pay the large charges for any pay TV (Sky1, Sky Sports, Sky Movies, Nat Geo, Discovery, Disney).

The network operator won't charge for carriage for Free To carry channels it wants to carry that the operators would not pay for.

byrnefm

Has anyone heard of the lucky test folk chosen for the project? It would be very interesting to find out what kind of receiver they get. Even if the boxes cost as much as €250 each, 1000 would still work out at only €250k, leaving €1.75m for spending. Could RTÉ have really spent €6m this year on the initial DTT setup?

Foggy43

I thought RTE were only carrying out tests as they have to transmit digitally by 2012. I didn't think they would set anything up as it will probably some third party that will get the license. Looking at the situation from abroad it doesn't look a very attractive service to provide.

I suppose at the end of the day it is down to the goverment. Any word on Dail Eireann selling RTE transmitter mast sites yet?

watty

They are Dempsey's tests, not RTE. RTE just providing content and the two masts.

I'm informed that last year the idea of selling RTENL was dropped and selling a National DTT Network licence dropped. No Doubt because after 5 years on the market no-one bought it.

Comreg still has the "old" plan on their site, of someone purchasing DTT. I wonder when a new plan will be published?

At the moment it is all down to Goverment. What they spending next year on it is small change.

DMC

Indeed, as watty pointed out, its very easy to make the mistake that these are RTÉ tests. They are not.

These DTT tests are being (in the Monty Python sense) conceived, written and performed by the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, under Minister Noel Dempsey. RTÉ's transmission stations at Three Rock and Clermont Carn are being used, with the help of RTÉ and BT, and retransmitting the main TV and radio networks.

www.dcmnr.gov.ie for some background press releases.

RTÉ only did DAB (digital radio) tests off their own bat.

Sponge Bob

Ah well!, by the time Dempsey decides that the teshts are over and that the oul DTT schtuff works so it does...we will all have HDTV from Satellite so Noel will have to tesht that DTT-HD schtuff as well only to find out that it works too and then the holographic DTT-HD-3DRev2 will come along and be deployed and Noel will do another tesht sure why not.

About 2015 when analogue tuners are as rare as hens teeth he will have to do something serious I suppose

Foggy43

Watty, DMC, thank you for the info.

Just curious....is Dempsey's Den still on RTE

watty

byrnefm wrote:

Has anyone heard of the lucky test folk chosen for the project? It would be very interesting to find out what kind of receiver they get. Even if the boxes cost as much as €250 each, 1000 would still work out at only €250k, leaving €1.75m for spending. Could RTÉ have really spent €6m this year on the initial DTT setup?

Install new aerial, MPEG4 widget for CI slot, personel to install...

OK, still leaves over 1m for Adminstration


Which might be true. c.F. G.B.S.

DMC

Sponge Bob wrote:

Ah well!, by the time Dempsey decides that the teshts are over and that the oul DTT schtuff works so it does...we will all have HDTV from Satellite so Noel will have to tesht that DTT-HD schtuff as well only to find out that it works too and then the holographic DTT-HD-3DRev2 will come along and be deployed and Noel will do another tesht sure why not.

About 2015 when analogue tuners are as rare as hens teeth he will have to do something serious I suppose

There is the issue with DAB, (which is discussed at the back end of the DAB thread here on this forum) about which technology to adopt; the current UK codec MP2, which has cheap radios on the market or wait for the newly approved AAC+ codec, with no radios built but might be pricey from the off if the UK doesn't adopt the codec, to which Ofcom says no, at present.

We will have to do something pretty soon, as we are so close to the UK market and they have announced the end of analogue is nigh, TV's are simply not going to be made with analogue tuners.
You cant get a large CRT in a electrical superstore anymore.

As watty pointed out, this might be as much a white elephant as Group Broadband Scheme, but I have more faith in this that the former.

In reality, the only decision with DTT here is to go with MPEG2, MPEG4, or maybe both. France have set-top boxes with MPEG4, so its not as if we are doing a solo run.

byrnefm wrote:

Has anyone heard of the lucky test folk chosen for the project? It would be very interesting to find out what kind of receiver they get.

Not a peep. Indeed. We like to know if one was on a car ferry to France, other than drink or fags, would they pick up a few hundred DTT receivers!

watty

The French use an MPEG2 box with the pay TV company suppling an MPEG4 adaptor with phone SIM sized viewing card fitting into standard CI slot.

Neotion module. But it is ONLY for SD MPEG4 as the main CI slot couldn't handle HD data rates.


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bk

You know it is funny, people complain a lot about RTE, but years ago they were ready to rollout their own national DTT service, but were blocked by the DCMNR who claimed it had to be out out to tender. I think the DCMNR had wild fantasies that they would make millions selling licenses.

Now years later we still have no DTT and just like the DCMNR's handling of Broadband we are years behind the rest of Europe.

channelsurfer

a rarely known fact is that its high up civil servants who decide the policy based on the leanings of the minister of the day.. they dont risk much as their thoughts are very much set in train. a lot of people think its the Minister that makes policy but unless you work in the civil service it would open your mind..

byte

bk wrote:

You know it is funny, people complain a lot about RTE, but years ago they were ready to rollout their own national DTT service, but were blocked by the DCMNR who claimed it had to be out out to tender. I think the DCMNR had wild fantasies that they would make millions selling licenses.

Now years later we still have no DTT and just like the DCMNR's handling of Broadband we are years behind the rest of Europe.

Yes, didn't RTÉ carry out DTT tests many years ago?

As to why more tests are needed, I don't know. Maybe some think global warming or soemthing will have an effect on signal.. :rolleyes:

watty

1999

byte

watty wrote:

1999

Jeez, a whole 7 years ago :eek:

watty

What they are doing now does not include Runcom's DVB-RCT which is more advanced. In 1999 the FINISHED successfull trials of this
http://www.broadcastpapers.com/whitepapers/DVBReturnChannel.pdf?CFID=954908&CFTOKEN=581ade45953ba181-028B7278-E160-4B53-EAE7F0571B790EFC

Also 2002: http://www.runcom.com/news_full.asp?info_id=188

THe last trials in Ireland of RCT may have been in 2001

atellyer

In ElectricNews on Friday:

The Labour Party's Communications Spokesman, Tommy Broughan TD, has called on the Minister for Communications, Marine & Natural Resources, Noel Dempsey, to clarify whether 2012 is now the deadline for switching off the Irish analogue television signal. "Minister Dempsey and his government had previously refused to agree to the 2012 target, even though it has been a key part of the EU's e-Europe action plan, and the digital switchover is well advanced in most of our EU partner states where comprehensive plans for the digital changeover are in place," said Broughan. "There is clearly a danger that we will have a repeat of the disastrously slow rollout of broadband in this country," he added in a statement. Broughan also claimed it was "inexplicable" that legislation necessary for the roll-out of digital terrestrial TV (DTT) was not included in the recently published heads of the new Broadcasting Bill introduced by Minister Dempsey.

http://www.enn.ie/news.html?code=9850265

Sponge Bob

Dempsey flew to Vietnam (yes Vietnam) to make a big speech today

Speaking today Minister Dempsey said "In recent years ICT has played an increasingly important role in the development of social and economic cooperation between Asia and Europe. The different levels of ICT development in ASEM member countries presents an opportunity for joint meetings such as this to help bridge the digital divide. Given Ireland's track record in the area of ICT development we have a lot to offer other countries in terms of expertise and best practice. Ireland can also learn from the experiences of other ASEM members who have rolled out effective ICT strategies in recent years."

They believed him, they SO DID!!!!!!!!!