Freeview HD UK Trial - A technical success!

Encouraging findings from the UK's first ever trial of high definition (HD) television over the digital television platform (DTT) were issued today by the joint trial broadcasters BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Five.

The trial, which set out to prove that HD broadcasts over DTT (digital terrestrial transmission) were feasible and investigate their appeal to viewers, was a technical success. Quantitative research amongst the panel homes indicated that HD ready viewers expect high definition broadcasts on Freeview in the future.

The four broadcasters have been running the trial since June 2006 to a small closed sample group of 450 selected households in the London area, under a non-operational licence from Ofcom.

In a report published today, the broadcasters have outlined feedback from the sample group, all of whom were issued with a prototype HD set top box that could also receive Freeview broadcasts. Nearly all (98%) triallists stated that it was important to have HD services on Freeview (the UK DTT platform) in future, with 86% of those surveyed expecting to see these services within three years.

And nine out of ten (90%) believed that the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Five (together the public service broadcasters – PSBs) should be at the forefront of HD developments.When asked about which programme genres would benefit most from being broadcast in HD, wildlife and sport lead the way with scores of 9.4 and 8.9 out of 10 respectively.

Triallists also, on average, felt that there should be at least six or seven channels of HD content available on Freeview, with an ideal of 10.

Overall, the experience of DTT HD exceeded most triallists' expectations, with all but 5% reporting that it looked as good as or better than they had hoped.

Charles Constable, Director of Strategy, Five, said: "All of us are exploring the possibilities for HD programming, and this trial set out to eliminate technical concerns about HD on Freeview and establish demand for services. Both of these objectives were achieved."

Seetha Kumar, Head of HD TV, BBC, said: "It's clear even from this small trial that audiences increasingly expect us and the other major broadcasters to offer high quality HD programming on Freeview in the future.

"All triallists experienced our HD programmes first hand. Many of them liked what they saw, and wanted more of it.

"We would like to be able to provide that level of quality to Freeview viewers, alongside other platforms, in years to come."

Simon Fell, Director of Technology, ITV Consumer, said: "Technically, the trial has more than fulfilled our expectations. With the help and co-operation of our transmission partners and the consumer electronics industry, we have conclusively demonstrated that HD services can run effectively alongside standard Freeview broadcasts.

"All major technical hurdles are behind us, and collectively we can focus on potentially providing services for the forecasted sales of 10 million flat screen TVs by 2010."

Jonathan Thompson, Director of Strategy & Research, Channel 4, said: "Both the broadcasters and Government need to ensure the ongoing strength of the DTT platform as we approach switchover. The trial has raised important questions about how the platform needs to evolve in order to support the delivery of the HD services required to ensure its future appeal."

Programmes from all four broadcasters featured in the trial, including Planet Earth, Bleak House, Poirot, the 2006 World Cup, Desperate Housewives, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Later with Jools Holland.