The Impetus for Digital Television

Abstract

While digital television was invented by Research and Development (R&D) experts, it was adopted for a combination of industrial policy and broadcaster interest reasons in the United States and Europe. An underlying aim was to prevent Japan from achieving a global technical standard for analogue HDTV. Governments perceived the possibility of securing benefits from spectrum release if ever analogue terrestrial television could be closed down but no one initially knew whether this would be possible. It could only become feasible if digital TV reception, on any or all platforms, reached ‘take-off’ point, but, neither for spectrum release motives nor as part of a wider ‘Information Society’ policy, were governments prepared to subsidise the costs of the start-up stage. TV set manufacturers were also cautious. Swift take-up was, however, achieved by private sector operators, mainly in the digital satellite sphere, shouldering the risk of subsidising set-top boxes in order to build a pay-TV business. This stage of digital TV development could deliver take-up in the market but a compulsory switch-off of analogue terrestrial could not be based on a foundation of voluntary consumer subscription.