The Italian Ministry of Economic Development (MISE) has published the guidelines for the subsidies for the purchase of TV/decoders compatible with the DVB-T2, MPEG-4 and HEVC/H.265 standards.
The 2019 Budget Law provides for a total budget of €151 million, which could be disbursed starting on 15 November. Confirmation will be given once the 30-day period for public consultation has expired, in order to allow comments from interested parties.
The contribution for Italian residents belonging to the first and second ISEE bands has been set at 50€, and is intended for the purchase of a single device for a single user of the household by 31/12/2022 or until the allocated amount is exhausted. The discount will be applied directly by the retailer on the price including VAT of the TV or decoder, with no possibility of obtaining a refund in cash if the device costs less than €50. Retailers, both physical and online, must register with the Inland Revenue’s telematic service in the manner that will also be indicated on the ministerial website.
The equipment must be equipped with a DVB-T2 HEVC tuner, according to ITU-T recommendation H.265. The manufacturers of the equipment in question must declare, under their own responsibility, which products meet the specific requirements. The requirements include the presence of a SCART socket in the case of decoders. Once the conformity has been verified, the MISE will publish on its website the list of compatible models.
In the coming weeks, the roadmap for the transition to DVB-T2 is expected to be published. The roadmap approved last autumn has in fact been cancelled, including the abandonment of the MPEG 2 codec from 1 January 2020, postponed to the autumn of 2021.
