Digital switch off and counting
There is now less than a month to go before the last analogue signal is flicked off.
- Published by David Knox
- on
- Filed under News
There is now less than a month to go before the last analogue signal is flicked off, ending an era in Australian television.
Sydney and surrounding areas makes the final switch to Digital in two weeks’ time, on Tuesday December 3 in areas from Gosford to Katoomba and Picton.
Melbourne and surrounding areas make the flick a week later on Tuesday December 10, from Kilmore to Wonthaggi.
The largest area to switch so far will also take place on December 10 in Remote Central and Eastern Australia. This area includes 3 states and the Northern Territory (except Darwin), including nearly all of Queensland and South Australia.
If you haven’t yet made the switch what are you waiting for? Get your hands on a Digital set top box at the bare minimum. Assistance for eligible households is available here.
More info is at digitalready.gov.au
And please no more pre-loved tellys on our nature strips (I took this shot on my own street)!
National Television and Computer Recycling Scheme drop off points.
9 Responses
Mr_AJ the only benefits will be savings on their power bills and maintenance costs of providing a service to a few thousand stragglers.
Shazz the landlord will have to do something about it once there is no analog alternative. Ge the owners’ corp or body corp onto it. Or as a last resort pay for the upgrade as a group, dividing the cost.
Jason you’re right. Why on earth did ACMA use UHF for rural areas and keep VHF mostly for metropolitan areas. Absolutely stupid! But as andrewb says you’d be well entitled to access the VAST satellite service if you’re having those problems.
BTW generally any antenna that’s more than five years old is unlikely to receive ABC in the major capitals on VHF channel 12 properly. Antennas were only designed for metro areas to work on VHF 2 and 7 to 10. Lots of people have probs with ABC digital reception (and to a lesser extent Seven…
Presumable there’ll be some benefit to the networks upon them ceasing transmitting analogue signals. However I’m not sure what this would be.
I thought every one in one of these “dark” spots for digital entitled to the VAST satellite system so they can get digital TV.
@Andrew S – No, not at all. “Better quality pictures”? Pixilated pictures when it rains. No amount of “boosting” helps if there’s no signal to boost. Regional areas pushed onto high end of UHF worst affected. More choices of the same old, same old, over and over, at the expense of programming on the primary channels. Look at afternoons as an example. As the saying goes “100 channels and still nothing to watch”.
This would be great if the infrastructure was in place to handle digital, but it simply isn’t. There are huge swathes of the population that can barely receive digital. So many apartment complexes do not get it because the landlord refuses to upgrade the aerial. I basically haven’t been able to watch any digital tv ever since it came out – not unless I enjoy watching frozen pixelated images……
There are going to be so many fish and chip shops, pizza take away stores and rotisserie chicken shops without TV very soon…
Ah Anakogue finally laid to rest,aren’t we all glad about this?Hip Hip Hooray for more tv choices and better quality pictures,all agree folks?
I made the switch with my first STB back in 2005, and never looked back. I understand some don’t have the money but with all the programs and now HD ones costing less than $50 there is no real excuse not to have one.
You’d be surprised at just how many people still put their old tellys out on the annual cleanup day.