No Freeview in Cornwall ’til 2009
Monday, January 14th, 2008Angon furwe yn Kernow marpleg!
Here’s a definition of irony – many residents of the county of Cornwall, which is home to BT’s massive Satellite Earth Station at Goonhilly, are unable to receive Freeview
in their homes.
For Kernow, the digital switchover can’t come soon enough – residents in St. Austell, Par, Falmouth other towns have for years been unable to receive good signal, with many residents only able to watch telly via Sky. The undulating terrain and the heavily indented coastline have often been cited as geographical reasons for signal trouble in Cornwall, where in places, picture quality varies dramatically within distances as little as half a mile.
The transmitter at Redruth is at the moment undergoing extensive upgrades which, upon completion in time for the switchover in July 2009, will see the signal become approximately 8 times stronger, ironing out signal issues for good.
Bill Taylor, South West regional manager for Digital UK, said that “This is a mammoth task and we are working with a variety of media, agencies and community groups to let everyone know about the changes… The change is going to happen and people need to start looking at their options in Cornwall now so they are ready for the switch in 2009.”
