UK gets go ahead for Freesat service

Similarly to the terrestrial aerial based Freeview service, Freesat will also allow viewers to receive free-to-air channels but through a satellite dish and set top box.

Currently Freeview is not available to about 25% of television viewers within the UK, and Freesat is intended as another option to Sky and cable services, to those who cannot receive decent Freeview reception.

The switch from analogue to digital television is due to take place, region-by-region, starting next year and concluding in 2012 - Freesat is seen as an ideal fix for the 25% who cannot receive Freeview signals.

Freesat will, like Freeview, require a one-off payment for reception equipment, with no on-going subscription payment.

As well as offering free-to-air digital channels, it's been widely expected that Freesat will be able to offer a range of high-definition services, considering the considerable bandwidth available over a satellite-based connection.

A number of conditions were imposed on the move, including that partners were in no way subsidised by the licence fee and sufficient control was retained by the BBC to guarantee public service objectives are retained.

BSkyB already offers a free satellite service here, but take up has been minimal, with very little in the way of advertisement from Sky or its partners. By purchasing one of these systems you're normally obligated to receive multiple weekly mailings and multiple phone calls from Sky customer services asking if you wish to upgrade to the subscription packages.

The BBC and ITV backed Freesat was originally announced in September 2005, and has taken considerable time to be ratified and progress to this stage. It will be interesting to see quite whats on offer, once the product nears its final stages of production - no time scales have been discussed yet. µ

L'INQ
BBC announcement