Freeview is just around the corner. Reading the assorted press releases and news about its imminent launch, you might wonder what all the fuss is about. But having lived somewhere that Freeview was omnipresent – the UK – and visited countries where bucketloads of free content is taken for granted – like Germany – I think it’s high time Australia got excited about digital TV.
Freeview will allow anyone with a digital set-top box (or an integrated digital TV receiver) to receive the digital offerings from our major stations – ABC, SBS, 9, 10 and 7. Very soon, this will mean at least two channels per station. At it’s base level, this will mean Freeview box owners will receive more content, and an Electronic Program Guide (EPG).
But it’s when you start ‘upsizing’ the Freeview offer a little that it starts to come into its own. Adding a PVR will allow you to save all that great content that’s on too late at night, or you simply forget to watch. Adding a HD-capable box will increase quality markedly. Remember, of course, that this won’t cost you a cent after your initial investment.
There were a couple of things I noticed about Freeview in the UK that are worth getting excited about, because they’ll no doubt be reflected here. Firstly, once the ball starts rolling, the channel offerings expand rapidly and so does the content. Film4 – a 24 hour film channel – was changed from a subscription channel on Sky to a free channel – no doubt when they realised they could make more money from ads on the channel than from subscriptions. And the movies were very good! Freeview UK now boasts 85 channels.
Secondly, Freeview essentially drags everyone into this millenium by offering a simple and easy to use digital service – and then switching off the analogue. We may be lagging a long way behind Europe when it comes to free TV, but we’re about to join them very quickly.
Have you read the Eureka Street article found here: http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=10549 ?
Freeview is starting to sound like a marketing scam to lock people into the 20th century to me. Going digital should open up the opportunities not restrict them.