Border TV To Go All Digital

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Sparsely populated Border TV region has emerged as favourite to be the digital television guinea pig for the UK, but large parts of the area, including much of West Cumbria, still cannot receive the digital terrestrial signal.

Thousands of TV sets and videos would be rendered useless without digital Freeview boxes when the analogue signal is turned off.

And research shows only 43 per cent of Cumbrian households have satellite TV, which will continue work after the switchover.

Freeview boxes currently retail at £50 upwards – and one digital box will be needed for each TV set in the home.

Paddy Merrall, managing director at Border TV, has been told his station will be first in line for the switchover, which is being carried out by the Government with industry regulator Ofcom.

“That’s how I understand it,” said Mr Merrall. “We understand 2007 is the start.”

But he said it was not yet clear when the transfer will take place – or how.

“We don’t know if it is going to be a progressive switch-off or if it is going to be like turning out the Christmas tree lights,” said Merrall.

This week it emerged that the regular over-the-air analogue services will be phased out nationwide by 2012.

The Government has always vowed not to switch off the analogue network until the majority of homes have upgraded to digital.

But some believe the Border region will be used to find out what level of uptake is politically acceptable.

Tim Collins, MP for South Lakeland – where digital Freeview reception is virtually non-existent – said: “It looks like we are being used as guinea pigs, with Whitehall taking the view that there are not enough voters in our area to cause them real political grief even if they get it wrong.”

This, says Ofcom, is not the case. The regulator admits that Border TV is on the shortlist for being the first region to be switched over, but could not give the reasons why it was deemed suitable.

A spokesman said: “Every region will have to have at least two years’ notice. There will be a very full and comprehensive programme of public information.

The Government’s Department of Culture, Media and Sport, which is handling the switchover, says choosing the order was not their decision.

A spokeswoman said it will be defined by the broadcasters and network owners according to “technical criteria”, not political reasons.