Digital TV Blog

Digital satellite for the masses

Freesat, the UK's latest package of free-to-air digital satellite TV channels, has now gone live, allowing viewers access to standard-definition and HD broadcasts for a single, one-off payment.

Freesat, whose logo (left) looks like a handful of colourful guitar plectrums, is the long-awaited result of the collaboration between terrestrial providers ITV and the BBC, which can offer free-to-air channels to regions of the country, such as Cornwall, which currently cannot receive Freeview.

It is rumoured that the BBC iPlayer, along with Project Kangaroo, will become available on Freesat within a year.

Punters fork out for a dish and a set-top box, of which there will be two versions available, SD-only and an HD compatible version. The SD-only kit is mooted to be around £49, with HD receivers reportedly costing around £120-£150. A series of integrated Freesat-compatible iDTV sets are also set to be released, presumably in both SD and HD incarnations.

There is also said to be a one-off installation fee of around £80, although this is said to be variable due to the physical constraints of the property in question, and where in the country the dish is being fitted.

Then there's installation, which Freesat today said will in the region of £80, though the exact figure will depend on the nature of the property to which the dish will be connected and where in the country it's located.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 7th, 2008 at 9:33 am and is filed under BBC, Digital TV, Freesat, Freeview, iPlayer. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

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