From midnight on the night of Monday March 7 through until Tuesday March 8, the analogue TV transmitters on the Eiffel Tower in Paris will be switched off and forever remain silent as the French capital goes all digital.
Analogue switchover in Ile de France, the most populated area of the country, will affect 12 million people, but according to research carried out on behalf of the French media authority CSA only about 210,000 homes are still dependent on analogue terrestrial reception.
Following this move, only two French regions will remain analogue. Digital terrestrial television in France started almost six years ago, on March 31, 2005. The Languedoc Roussillon region will be the last to switch off analogue, on November 29, 2011.
In Paris, the DTT offer will consist of: 18 free-to-air national channels – TF1, F2, F3, M6, F5, Arte, BFM TV, Direct 8, Direct Star, F4, FÔ, Gulli, I Télé, LCP / Public Sénat, NRJ12, NT1, TMC and W9; four free to air regional channels – BFM Business, IDF1, NRJ Paris, and a channel shared between Demain IDF, BDM TV, Cinaps TV, and Télé Bocal.
There are also four HD channels available free-to-air – TF1, F2, M6 and Arte; and as premium options, Canal+, Canal+Sport, Canal+ Cinéma,Eurosport, LCI, Paris Première, Planète, TF6 and TPS Star.
