Colum Kenny: We're not all equipped to cope with brave new world of TV
RTE's Saorview is on stream, but a third of us may not be able to afford the switch, says Colum Kenny
Most viewers whose TV screens will go blank do not know it yet. Most people are not aware that by the end of 2012 it will no longer be possible to receive RTE1, RTE2, TV3, TG4 or the main UK stations through a standard roof-top aerial, or a set-top aerial (rabbits ears). That is what researchers for Minister for Communications Pat Rabbitte found out.
But he is spinning the development as a chance to improve your "television experience", and to do so by paying to install an otherwise "free" new system called Saorview. Last week RTE launched Saorview, a new system that will deliver existing Irish channels as well as 3e and some extra RTE services.
But the minister's consultants have found that "with roughly a third of all TV householders (regardless of reception type) admitting that they are struggling from a financial perspective, it is clear from all of the survey data that many TV homes would find it difficult to invest any significant amount of money in new TV equipment as part of the analogue switch-off process." So what exactly happens now?
When TV screens go black in up to one in three Irish homes next year (and that is what "analogue switch-off" means in simple English), it will involve for those affected either a financial sting or doing without a TV set. Munster will be hit hardest.
And do not be misled by talk about "free-to-air" substitutes. The most "free" will cost at least €100, and will not restore access to BBC or Ulster Television. It could cost more. That depends.
Instead of a special box on its own, you could buy a new TV set with a built-in box, provided that the model specifically suits the new Irish system. But times are hard, and the minister's consultants have found that most people have no intention of buying a new TV set anytime soon.
The return on your investment includes not just extra services but also high definition picture quality when you have a HD TV. And Mary Curtis, RTE's director of digital switchover, points out that, "After the initial purchase of a set-top box or a new integrated digital television (iDTV) there is no subscription and no ongoing cost."
The homes most directly affected are those that currently receive TV free without any cable, MMDS or satellite connection.
Almost one in every six Irish homes still receives TV this way, and many of those are the poorest and most remote homes in Ireland.
But many more homes nationally still have outdoor aerials or rabbits ears, and have a second TV set that relies on such aerials for free analogue reception.
All of these sets will go dead next year. You can turn them on but you will see nothing. It is an EU decision, with no possibility that Ireland can opt out at this stage.
What is behind this analogue switch-off (or ASO as it is dubbed)?
The Government hopes to sell off the old airspace to multinationals for hundreds of millions for mobile phone and broadband use.
But many Irish TV viewers may feel that the switch-off is more pain than gain for them. Pay up or turn off. Or opt for UPC or Sky television instead. RTE will be hoping that people get the message that, unlike cable and satellite, there are no long-term costs involved in Saorview. Just the one-off cost of installing it.
The Government may yet provide some financial help for those whose sets are going black and who wish to change to Saorview.
Already, a remarkable one in three homes pays no TV licence fee because they are currently in the social welfare benefit scheme.
These homes have their TV licences paid for them by the State and RTE.
The impact on rural Ireland in particular will have political implications for coalition deputies, even if this is a problem brewing from long before they got into office.
The minister's consultants also found that most people needed someone to help set up new TV equipment of any kind. So there may be further costs involved in paying a local technician to check out your set up. You also need to buy a separate Freesat dish to get UK services. The new system will come via DTT (Digital Terrestrial Television). It had been hoped that Irish DTT would be an exciting package of new publicly and privately owned Irish TV stations. But successive Irish governments dragged their heels and fell behind other EU countries, and the recession now severely limits its viability.
The actual Irish DTT service that is being launched will have 3e and some basic extra RTE services, offering extra news, children's programmes and the chance to catch up with RTE1 one hour after it is first broadcast.
Competitors complain that once again the dominant position of RTE in the Irish market will be reinforced.
There is no sign of a promised Irish film channel. And the ability of RTE to offer much that is new has been constrained by the station being forced to increase its subsidy to TG4 and to subsidise the free TV licence scheme for social welfare recipients.
And few politicians fully understand the true cost of TV productions that actually win audiences.
Sky will be pleased. For those who can afford it, one option is to subscribe to a Sky dish instead of the cheaper but more limited Saorview. But there is no guarantee that either UPC or Sky will relay RTE's new services via cable and satellite, or place them on their systems next to existing Irish channels.
Already enjoying a dominance in the digital delivery market in Ireland, Sky's overseas platform is now set to add extra Irish homes to the 650,000 that already subscribe to it. It is yet another way in which Ireland's sovereignty has been compromised by weak government.
Originally published in
