Digital TV is the future in TV sector. Around 66% of British households now receive digital TV. But some areas still can not receive digital signal at all.
As a result, UK has planed to implement a digital switchover program from 2008. Analogue signals will be gradually switched off and your house will (hopefully) receive a digital signal instead.
Digital UK plans to switch households over to digital TV according to their ITV region. The process will take place over the following time scale:
2008 –Border；2009 – West Country, HTV Wales, Granada；2010 – HTV West, Grampian, Scottish Television；2011 – Yorkshire, Anglia, Central；2012 –Meridian, Carlton/LWT (London), Tyne Tees.
In which way you can get Digital TV services?
You can receive digital TV through an aerial (via a digital set-top box or TV), a satellite dish, a cable or a phone line.
Who are the main providers in UK Digital TV market?
Currently, Satellite Digital TV and Cable Digital TV are most popular and mature TV services. This market is occupied mainly by SKY and Virgin Media and BT.
a. SKY is the biggest provider of satellite digital TV, who has 400 channels in total. SKY has unmatchable position in the market. From SKY, customers can subscribe TV alone, or enjoy special offers subscribing with SKY broadband or phone packages.
b. ntl and Telewest (current Virgin Media)are cable digital TV providers. They have merged to one company. They all have three different Digital TV packages. Their TV programs are supplied with their broadband service and/or telephone service.
c. The technology of delivering digital TV programs from phone line is just in its early stage. BT and Tiscali has started to promote its offer of bundled three services of TV, broadband and phone services.
d. For most households, they can spend about £40 to buy a DTV box, then just plug the box (which is about the size of a small DVD player) into the back of your TV set, and connect it to their aerial lead. They should be able to pick up a digital signal via the FREEVIEW TV service. They can also buy new TVs with a built-in digital box, so there is no need for extra wires or equipment.
What is High definition TV?
High definition is being seen as the next big revolution in home entertainment. It makes your TV picture quality around four times better than it would be with a normal digital signal. But many TV sets that are being advertised as ‘HDTV’ are not ready to receive a high definition signal, and there is concern that people are not getting the right information.
There has been a lot of confusion surrounding high definition television, as many consumers rushed out to buy an ‘HD’ TV so as to watch the high quality of World Cup and finally they felt very disappointed.
A lot of TV sets being sold as HD are of very good quality, and will be able to handle an HD signal, but they do not contain the right adaptors. To receive an HDTV signal, you’ll often need to buy one of these separately – it will come in the form of a set-top-box with a receiver. Some HDTVs come with a receiver built in, but you must make sure you check with the manufacturer that the TV you’re buying is HD ready. If it is not, you’ll have to pay extra for the receiver.
www.ukbroadband-advisor.co.uk
Click 
Broadband Packages
