With the cessation of terrestrial broadcasting due to start from 2030, now is a good time to consider your viewing future…
What are the current TV viewing options?
Freeview – For free* live TV using a conventional rooftop or loft antenna, viewers can use any TV currently on the market, or made after 2005. These have a conventional antenna socket and will tune into services broadcast from tall ground-based transmitters all around the UK. Visit https://www.freeview.co.uk for further information.
*Deemed free, but subject to the BBC License fee
Freesat – For free* live TV using a satellite dish, viewers need either a ‘Freesat integrated’ TV or a Freesat set top box. Check your TV or any that you are looking to buy soon. Most LG and some Samsung sets have ‘Integrated Freesat’. These TV’s have both a conventional TV socket and a threaded socket, to accept a dish feed, for signals broadcast from satellite positioned above the earth. Visit https://www.freesat.co.uk for further information
*Free once you have purchased the relevant Freesat TV/set top box
Sky – The main subscription service available in the UK, using satellite dishes to feed TV to customers since the late 80s. Currently offering live TV services complemented by ‘On Demand’ web only services, Sky are planning to phase out dishes altogether, in favour of web only services. This could happen as early as 2026.
On Demand Web TV – Access to various providers via a SMART TV or SMART Box (such as Amazon Firestick), this type of viewing is becoming much more popular. It’s quite new to a lot of us and many will dip in and out of the most common providers such as Netflix or iPlayer etc. with the younger generations watching less and less live TV.
There is a mix of live* and On Demand services via Web TV, but not all providers offer their live broadcasts yet on all makes and models of TV. This is a bit of a ‘can of worms’ as different TV manufacturers have different contracts and licence agreements with broadcasters which we, as customers, have zero control of…so consider this when choosing your next shiny new media product.
BBC however, do offer all of their UK channels live via the iPlayer platform.
Itv-x, CH-4 and My5 carry the rest of the UK broadcaster’s public service content, with a mix of some live and more On Demand.
*A TV license is required if you watch or record TV on any channel on any TV service
What TV service should you choose for the future?
This is very subjective as changes in government can bring changes in radio spectrum use, so dates for the end of freeview broadcasting MAY be pushed back from the intended 2030. However, we still have at least seven years of freeview to enjoy, so don’t panic!
We still recommend the use of freeview and conventional antennas, but it’s definitely time to make sure you know what’s in the broadcasting pipeline. Plus, remember that your property location may dictate whether you have line of sight for receiving terrestrial or satellite signal.
Moving forward, we are now suggesting viewers consider switching to freesat when you next need a new TV or antenna.
Also, as you decorate, build and renovate your homes, we are strongly recommending viewers have data cabling in place for On Demand TV, in favour of relying on WiFi.
We will talk about this in more detail in another post. In short, if a device is staying in one place (such as a TV set), then plug it in rather than connect to WiFi. It’s a far more rugged and reliable solution.
If you’d like further information on how to future proof your TV viewing, drop us a line.