Things are finally starting to move on the digital terrestrial front in one of Central and Eastern Europe’s largest markets.
Although DTT trials got under way as far back as 2001, there has until now been little progress in terms of a platform launch in Poland. Both the public broadcaster TVP and POT, a consortium made up of the national commercial stations Polsat and TVN, have been undertaking tests independently of each other in several parts of the country, but these have largely been overshadowed by developments elsewhere, especially in the DTH sector.
Now, however, there is a real debate under way between, on the one hand, TVP and the POT consortium, and the Office of Electronic Communications (UKE) on the other as to how a future DTT service, which could make its debut as soon as next year, will look.
The POT consortium, for instance, has just suggested to the UKE, which looks set to become the leading regulator at the expense of the National Broadcasting Council (KKRiT), that it would be willing to subsidise set-top boxes for 200,000 of the most disadvantaged members of the community in order to speed up the transition to digital broadcasting.
POT has also proposed that the two multiplexes, carrying 14 channels, that Poland initially plans to launch should be allocated entirely to existing FTA Polish channels by the KRRiT. However, the UKE is understood to be in favour of allocating only one multiplex to existing services, with the second being put out to tender.
The latter scenario, which could see the second multiplex fall into the hands of a foreign media group, is one that worries POT as it feels local stations would be put at a disadvantage.
POT’s proposals, which were put to the UKE at a meeting also attended by TVP and TV Puls, a regional station backed by News Corp., envisage the launch of a platform next year, with ASO following on in 2012. They are likely to be seriously considered by all the parties concerned and should hopefully kick-start a process that should by now be well under way.
