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- Volume 1, Issue 2, 2010
International Journal of Digital Television - Volume 1, Issue 2, 2010
Volume 1, Issue 2, 2010
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Canada's transition to digital television: from policy to reality
More LessThe implementation of digital technology in Canada has been an inevitable reality for over ten years. Although the industry recognizes the need for the transition, not all broadcasters have yet digested the attached price tag. Instead of investing money on infrastructure early on to prepare, many focused on mergers and acquisitions. This, along with the current economic crisis, has exacerbated the implementation of the new technology. Government has also held back by not providing a relevant policy framework in which the industry and society as a whole can work to move the project along. This lack of leadership has left the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to fend for itself. This article summarizes the debates at hand and details the technological and financial challenges facing the industry by providing results of a thorough analysis of interview data and documentation from the press and government.
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Digital television policy and regulatory neutrality in small western states: Ireland, Greece, Finland, Austria and New Zealand
More LessThis article evaluates the particular difficulties presented by market-led platforms and the regulatory-neutral policy approach to the switch to digital television in small western media states. The key argument is that market realities have presented difficulties for the concept of regulatory neutrality and a competitive platform approach in the digital switchover. In larger states this policy approach has led to the emergence of differentiated platform competition (i.e. platforms competing on the basis of different technological and revenue models). However, in smaller media states, because of the small market size, the potential of the market to support differentiated platforms is limited and regulatory neutrality will not necessarily produce the same results as in the larger states. In public policy terms this presents potential difficulties for the achievement of digital switchover and poses a challenge to the overall appropriateness of technological and regulatory neutrality in smaller media states. The article will employ a case study of digital television development in Ireland and a comparative analysis of adaptation strategies in four other small media states: Finland, Austria, Greece and New Zealand. It will propose that the policy of platform/regulatory neutrality in small media states needs to be reassessed, as it is potentially detrimental to digital switchover policies.
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Digital switchover in Hungary: achievements and challenges
Authors: Krisztina Rozgonyi and Mrk LengyelIn Hungary, the run-up to digital switchover started in March 2007 with the adoption of a government strategy. Since then, the tendering process for the rights to use the frequencies needed for digital terrestrial broadcast distribution has been completed and DTT services have been launched. Digitization also gained ground in other platforms and by now, more than half of Hungarian households have gone digital.
The article starts with an overview of the status of the Hungarian media market as at the beginning of the switchover. Then comes an analysis of the measures taken by legislation and the regulator to accelerate the switchover process, followed by a presentation of the main regulatory issues still to be addressed by Hungary in order to be able to complete the analogue switch-off smoothly and without any major social or market failures.
Due to constitutional reasons, Hungarian regulators could use the tools related to media policy and media law only to a limited extent for the support of the switchover. Consequently, the main regulatory burden fell on the telecommunications regulation. The article concludes that telecoms regulation cannot be a full substitute for media regulation in this regard, with national regulations having to find a balance between the two approaches in order to secure the optimal outcome of digital switchover.
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Liberal turn in media policy: the case of Finland's digital television
More LessAccording to the influential typology by Daniel Hallin and Paolo Mancini, Finland's media system follows the democratic corporatist model, rather than the polarized plural or the liberal model. The article analyses digitalization of television in Finland and, in particular, its licensing policy as an example of convergence of national media systems towards the liberal model. Using original media policy documents and recent research on programme structures, the analysis reveals that, with multiplied channel capacity, increasing consumer choice became an end in itself in the Finnish media policy since the mid-1990s. As this is associated with licensing an ever-growing number of commercially targeted and formatted channels competing for popularity among mainstream market segments, the shift from the earlier public service protectionism to an increased market role indicates a change in Finland's media policy paradigm. Instead of providing more alternatives in terms of content, digitalization in Finland only gave viewers greater quantity and, in effect, accelerated a dramatic marketization of broadcasting.
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Securing freedom of expression through the digital transition?
More LessTwo recent reports by organizations committed to safeguarding and strengthening freedom of expression and pluralism during the digital transition are reviewed. They point to opportunities but warn of risks in countries where democratic traditions are weak. Both offer guidance and recommendations to governments, legislators, regulators, broadcasters and citizens. Another current initiative is a study to assess the impact of the digital transition on pluralism, freedom of expression and public interest services across the globe.
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Challenges and opportunities of iDTV for audience measurement systems: a set-top box-based approach
Authors: Katrien Berte, Philip Leroux, Dimitri Schuurman, Lieven De Marez, Els De Bens and Filip De TurckAdvanced innovations such as digital transmission technologies and personal video-recorders (PVRs) have changed TV viewing behaviour. In order to maintain their position as the world's largest advertising channel, television broadcasters are increasingly dependent on accurate and in-depth audience data. Unfortunately, the traditional measurement techniques fail to keep up with innovations of interactive digital TV (iDTV) such as video-on-demand (VOD), time shifted viewing, an electronic programme guide (EPG), ad avoidance using the PVR, etc. This article reflects on the current state of audience measurement in Europe and describes our search to tackle some of the challenges. Contrary to traditional systems that use dedicated and expensive hardware, this article presents a set-top box-only approach.
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TV competition livens up Down Under
By Jock GivenAustralia's TV audiences finally got digital multi-channels from terrestrial broadcasters in 2009. In 2010, parts of the country will switch off analogue TV, while other parts will start to receive services from a high-speed, government-funded, fibre-to-the-premises broadband network.
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The Russian approach to the line-up of digital TV channels
More LessThe review examines most recent developments in the regulation of licensing and of the line-up of digital television. It points to legal loopholes used by the authorities to make changes at their will.
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Keeping the balance: digital television in Denmark
More LessDenmark started DTT (digital terrestrial television) with public service stations in 2006. After a thorough information campaign, analogue TV was switched off on 1 November 2009. The policy goals for DTT are to keep a balance between public and private channels; therefore new public channels were started along with a new DTT pay service, which is hoped to stimulate competition with smaller packages against the dominant cable and satellite distributors.
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Reviews
Authors: Petros Iosifidis, Chang Yong Son and Elizabeth FilippouliTelevision Goes Digital, Darcy Gerbarg (Ed.) (2009) New York: Springer, 246 pp., ISBN 9780387799773, hardback, 67.99
Digital Korea: Convergence of Broadband Internet, 3G Cell Phones, Multiplayer Gaming, Digital TV, Virtual Reality, Electronic Cash, Telematics, Robotics, E-Government and the Intelligent Home, Tomi Ahonen and Jim O'Reilly (2007) London: Futuretext, 320pp., ISBN 13 9780955606908, hardback, 24.95
The Price of Plurality: Choice, Diversity and Broadcasting Institutions in the Digital Age, Tim Gardam and David A.L. Levy (Eds) (2008) Oxford: Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, 223 pp., ISBN 9780955888908, paperback, produced in association with Ofcom
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