Germany plans for DVB-T2
Reports that terrestrial television in Germany was dead now seem premature after public broadcasters ARD and ZDF confirm that they expect to commence transition to DVB-T2 in 2017 with completion planned for 2020.
ARD states that the transition to DVB-T2 will enable more channels, including HDTV, and lead to considerably reduced transmission costs for broadcasters. It also points out that the new terrestrial distribution will allow all users to receive public channels both at home and on-the-go without additional costs.
ZDF is planning to convert the terrestrial broadcasting of its entire bouquet of programs to DVB-T2 from 2017. ZDF director, Dr. Thomas Bellut commented: “We believe in digital terrestrial television. This transmission offers a consumer-friendly and free alternative for TV content and on mobile and portable devices. The system change will also bring significant quality improvements. ”
