BT customers will finally get the HD treatment

BT Vision has confirmed that their next generation of set-top boxes will be able to receive Freeview HD channels. The Freeview HD service is set to roll out next year, and will deliver the BBC HD channel as well as ITV, Channel 4 and S4C in HD.

Speaking to TechRadar, Michael Barry, BT’s Head of Programming, said that the project is a work in progress and that there is no firm date for its launch yet.

To receive Freeview HD, viewers will need special HD ready set-top boxes with DVB-T2 tuners. Some Freeview HD broadcasts will start as early as next month, but it is unlikely that any of these boxes will be out before then.

Until now, BT Vision delivered all of its content via viewers' broadband connections which meant that it deprived owners of bandwidth-heavy HD TV. However, as well as adding Freeview HD, BT is also currently working on a fibre-optic network to deliver HD content for the future generations of the BT Vision box.

The imminent next generation of Freeview boxes could follow the BT trend, and come with broadband connectivity enabling access to catch-up services such as BBC's iPlayer.


Source:T3