The death of analogue TV is nigh, long live digital

givecredit

This proves an interesting read:

http://www.independent.ie/business/media/the-death-of-analogue-tv-is-nigh-long-live-digital-1267905.html

byte

Interesting article alright. Amusing that all indoor aerials are to be thrown in the scrapheap!

Sure may be interesting times ahead. Particularly if RTE get the 4 NI channels onto their FTA mux, as mentioned in the article.

Sponge Bob

There is no space for RTE in NI I would fear although maybe they could find space for RTE1 is there were some extreme co ordination of spectrum above what is currently agreed and envisaged.

RTE2 would find itself with too many imports, sad but there ya are. RTE2 will never go FTA in the north in My opinion anyway.

Ofcom have already pencilled a slot in for TG4 , that will come to pass in the next 3 years or so.

Mossy Monk

If RTÉ are so keen to have The UK terrestrials on DTT, why are they so against BBC radio being on digital radio?

watty

Because it they have now accepted that the BBC/ITV competition already exists with 80%+ of TV viewers already getting it.

But while Cable & Sat does have Radio, it's not used much for that, R4, R6, R7 would be serious competiton for RTE Radio 1 if it was on DAB. Not so many people have R4LW or get good reception.

There is a faction in RTE that wants all the BBC on DAB. The royalty cost is peanuts. But the top guys don't want radio competion.

Irish DAB IMO is pointless without it. FM is actually quite good* and if you have a roof or attic aerial gets about as many or more stations as you can currently get in DAB.

(* It would be better if they reduced the aggressiveness of the processing, and we went back to 1970s FM processing of a simple over level compressor for parts inadvertently too loud. Car Radios / Personal players should have the aggressive compression instead as a built in switchable option if you want to mask background noise. But the agressive processing makes a mockery out of HiFi, FM, Cable, Satellite or DAB. Once it's done by the broadcaster the signal is ruined)

snaps

Have to admit i quite regulary listen to either BBC radio one, two, 5 live as the programming is far better than RTE. No adverts is a bonus as well. When i cancelled my ntl digital (I never watched it enough to make it viable) i kept the boxes connected, which is dead handy as most of the BBC radio channels are still recievable on them even though tv is not!

Antenna

Mossy Monk wrote: »

If RTÉ are so keen to have The UK terrestrials on DTT

I don't believe RTE want the UK channels to be FTA on DTT. Its is probably convienient for them to pretend that they do, knowing full well it will be blocked anyway by TV3, the BCI and others or not possible for other reasons. So it will make other people, not RTE, out to be the spoilsports stopping the UK channels from being free on DTT..

And how would this be paid for anyway - would adverts be inserted in between BBC programmes?
and/or
Would people be happy if the licence fee was increased considerably to pay for UK channel carriage?

rlogue

When I worked at the BBC last year, the issue of rebroadcasting in RoI came up for discussion. Basically they are very much for it and have no problem in being either available on the Irish Sky EPG or indeed Irish DTTV.

However they do want royalty payments as they see the Republic as a potential source of income, so it is very unlikely that the BBC would give away their channels for free. Any cost paid back to the BBC (and we haven't discussed ITV or Channel 4 yet) would have to be paid for by the viewers as I doubt RTE would simply absorb the cost and pay for it all out of licence income.

Blaster99

It has always seemed to me that the BBC does its utmost to ignore Ireland. Their weather reports are hilarious. You'll notice that they never mention Ireland by name, it's "from the west" type of stuff. A bit strange as they make money selling their TV here.

snaps

Well im paying for a tv licence and i watch the Irish channels possibly twice a month (For Sports only usually). Ive never watched Channel 6, Tv3 or TG4. I get all my news off the internet (Rte website and teletext is a joke in regards for being updated) & My girlfriend & Me watch TV mostly via satellite (Uk FTV card in my Skyboxs both upstairs and downstairs)

Perhaps the BBC are entitled to some of my licence fee money I pay the post office here.....LOL!!!!!!

Mossy Monk

You are not paying to watch RTÉ. You are paying a licence to have a television tuner at your premises.

snaps

Mossy Monk wrote: »

You are not paying to watch RTÉ. You are paying a licence to have a television tuner at your premises.

Oh right i didnt realise, i thought the tv licence fee here funded RTE like the licence fee in the Uk funds the BBC?

So actually really it is a TV Tuner Tax?

I am wrong, Sorry.

snaps

rlogue wrote: »

Any cost paid back to the BBC (and we haven't discussed ITV or Channel 4 yet) would have to be paid for by the viewers as I doubt RTE would simply absorb the cost and pay for it all out of licence income.

If RTE are not funded by the TV licence here, why would RTE have to absorb the cost of carrying the BBC?

Now I am confused?

david23

Blaster99 wrote: »

It has always seemed to me that the BBC does its utmost to ignore Ireland. Their weather reports are hilarious. You'll notice that they never mention Ireland by name, it's "from the west" type of stuff. A bit strange as they make money selling their TV here.

They specifically mention Northern Ireland on their TV weather bulletins, but never the Republic. The presenter usually makes a point of standing in front of the Republic on the map, and the flyover deliberately misses out the Republic when it would surely be easier to pan back to show the whole of Ireland.

JohnC.

snaps wrote: »

Oh right i didnt realise, i thought the tv licence fee here funded RTE like the licence fee in the Uk funds the BBC?

So actually really it is a TV Tuner Tax?

I am wrong, Sorry.

It is a licence for a TV tuner both here and the UK. It does partly fund RTÉ and BBC in their respective countries too.

watty

david23 wrote: »

They specifically mention Northern Ireland on their TV weather bulletins, but never the Republic. The presenter usually makes a point of standing in front of the Republic on the map, and the flyover deliberately misses out the Republic when it would surely be easier to pan back to show the whole of Ireland.

The Republic is a Foreign country in the UK. They don't do French weather in Brittany or Calais either.

However you will frequently find Irish news stories with NO N.I. connection on the BBC NI news site.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/default.stm
Today
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/7198664.stm

DMC

david23 wrote: »

They specifically mention Northern Ireland on their TV weather bulletins, but never the Republic. The presenter usually makes a point of standing in front of the Republic on the map, and the flyover deliberately misses out the Republic when it would surely be easier to pan back to show the whole of Ireland.

They used to mention Ireland. Bill Giles and co in the nineties almost always mentioned Ireland, sometimes Donegal, when it was needed.

But it appears to be policy in recent years to not mention "Ireland", yet there is as much detail shown on screen on the main map as for the UK, we're just not "air-checked". BBC NI forecasters do mention Donegal, when they feel like it.

As for standing in front of Ireland on the map, almost all weather presenters and forecasters stand to the left of the screen, so for a UK forecast, that means blotting out most of Ireland. More an accident of geography than anything more sinister.

A German TV weatherman would stand over France, would Sarkozy feel miffed? Sacré bleu!

byte

byte wrote: »

Interesting article alright. Amusing that all indoor aerials are to be thrown in the scrapheap!

Sure may be interesting times ahead. Particularly if RTE get the 4 NI channels onto their FTA mux, as mentioned in the article.

It certainly is amusing considering I'm receiving the DTT trial channels on one with 88% strength and 100% quality!

Solair

As the above poster pointed out, DTT services could actually see a greater use of "rabbits ears" a (albeit UHF/wideband versions) and other 'old-fashioned' aerials!

One of the features of DTT is that it can be received with simple indoor or outdoor TV antenna, just like good old fashioned analogue TV

watty

Only after analogue shut down. Initially you will need a better aerial.

watty

Regard a TV as a Monitor that needs external boxes...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7202014.stm

marclt

watty wrote: »

Regard a TV as a Monitor that needs external boxes...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7202014.stm

I would still prefer to see tuners built into TVs in future... in terms of energy consumption it is more environmentally sensitive to build these in... plus I've too many remote controls as it is without more!

I don't see a quick change to MPEG 4 - it will happen I'm sure but like everything it'll only evolve at the rate of consumer take up... freeview penetration is quite high in the UK now.

Well done to Currys - a typical publicity stunt but at least they push stuff on!

watty

Pay TV is what drives MPEG4
The operators pay for 1/2 the bandwidth and can afford to subsidize boxes. HD Satellite MPEG4 in Europe almost entirely payTV boxes.
French TNT MPEG4
Any non-RTE mux WILL LIKELY BE MPEG4, especially pay TV.

For years my TV had only an aerial. (Watching TV from 1959 to 1982)
Then for years only VHS loop through. (1982 to 1996)
1996 added PhotoCD/Portfolio player.

Now I have up to 7? non TV aerial devices feeding video, not RF. Loads of SCART and HDMI sockets (and odd S-Video, composite and Component would be good) are far more important now that the RF aerial socket.
DVD, 2x Satellite receivers, Portable Media player docking station, Camcorder, PS2, Gamecube, S-VHS, photo CD/portfolio player (Not same as Picture CD)...

maybe 900,000 households are using PayTV (Cable, Satellite, MMDS). A built in terrestrial tuner isn't so important.

Also a decent HDTV is still over €1500 and a basic DTT box £25. There is little power saving on an integrated tuner.

Increasingly important is a HDD based twin tuner PVR (Terrestiral, Sat or cable). A separate is more easily upgraded or failed hard drive replaced.

Think HiFi Separates. The TV is increasingly a multi-standard monitor.

Actually though most EU countries with a DTT rollout should be able to ban Analogue only tuner TVs. Though not no-Tuner TVs.

Home Theater video projectors are still the best HD route for normal size 32" for "regular TV" and zoom to 60" for 2.35:1 Cinematic HD content, now that Blu Ray is won and real HD satellite services this year (BBC, C4 etc, not just Discovery / Sky repeats or sky Sport HD).

ei6il

Folks,
With the death of analog terrestrial transmissions in 2012 does that mean that analog CRT tv's are obsolete ?. I also have a HDD recorder which has an analog tuner, is this unit obsolete aswell ?

Thanks,
Don

maxg

Why obselete? Beside the analogue tuner all other sockets are still working after 2012.

JohnC.

ei6il wrote: »

Folks,
With the death of analog terrestrial transmissions in 2012 does that mean that analog CRT tv's are obsolete ?. I also have a HDD recorder which has an analog tuner, is this unit obsolete aswell ?

Thanks,
Don

No. All you will need is a digital decoder box.