Elderly and disabled viewers who rely on Freeview face seeing channels and programmes axed even if plans for online-only TV by 2034 are delayed, industry leaders warned.
Ministers have said there is a “compelling” case for switching off terrestrial TV delivered over household aerials (DTT) in 2034, or Freeview, as more viewers switch to TV via streaming.
But Andy Burnham made a surprise intervention on Tuesday when he told MPs he was “concerned” about plans and would take a “proper look” at delaying them. The Prime Minister said “some of my constituents in Makerfield rely on Freeview”.
‘HD channels could go’ as service declines
Campaigners backing the delay say elderly, disabled and those on low incomes who currently rely on Freeview, which offers around 70 channels including all the BBC’s services, would have to pay up to £300 a year in high-speed broadband contracts.
However, delaying the switch-off will still leave a dwindling group of Freeview users with a reduced TV offering as broadcasters withdraw from a service that is no longer economically viable, backers of the change warned.
Natalie Ceeney, chair of The Connection Project, a broadcasting industry body which supports a 2034 switch-off, told The i Paper: “The prices for channel slots will fall in response to the weakening demand, but will have to maintain a floor in order to maintain the infrastructure.
“At the point further price reductions are not possible, HD services could go. Channel choice will decline. Meanwhile the Public Service Broadcasters are by law obliged to remain, serving fewer and fewer people while shouldering more of the costs as the last major channels standing.”
Jonathan Thompson, chief executive of Everyone TV, the body which runs Freeview and Freely, the streaming TV service set to replace Freeview, said: “Digital Terrestrial Television costs the same to run for 20 million viewers or 20. The distribution model of one to many at predictable cost for broadcasters weakens as audiences migrate online.
“Channels depart. DTT’s appeal shrinks. The risk grows of a two-tier TV system of ‘streaming haves’ and ‘terrestrial have-nots’.”
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy will make a decision on a digital terrestrial television switch-off later this year (Photo: Wiktor Szymanowicz/Getty)Licence fee may rise to cover Freeview costs
A report published last week by media analysts Oliver & Ohlbaum found that Britain’s public service broadcasters spend around £156m a year to transmit Freeview through home aerials, at the same time as paying to deliver those same channels over the internet.
Switching off Freeview would therefore allow the BBC, ITV and others to spend more money on programmes.
In its submission to the Government’s current review of its Charter, the BBC said that the cost of maintaining terrestrial TV “as audiences move away from broadcast services” would “increasingly fall on the licence fee payer”.
This suggests either more programmes would be cut or the £180-a-year charge increased to cover the extra transmission cost.
The BBC is already cutting programmes, from Ski Sunday to Blankety Blank, as it seeks £500m in savings by 2028, following a faster-than-expected decline in licence fee income.
Makerfield ‘no’ to switch-off
The Prime Minister’s intervention followed a poll taken before the Makerfield by-election, which found that four in five people in his new constituency supported keeping terrestrial television on air until 2044. The same number said they would be angry if the Government switched off terrestrial TV in 2034.
Labour MPs are increasingly concerned the switch-off could become a vote-loser in marginal seats at the next general election.
Around five million households could still be using Freeview in 2034, some estimates suggest.
Steve Reed, a cabinet minister in Sir Keir Starmer’s administration, joined a cross-party group of 50 MPs who signed a letter to Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy urging her to take the 2034 date off the table.
The Streatham and Croydon North MP said: “Free-to-air terrestrial television is a lifeline for elderly Londoners, not to mention families on tight budgets or those without reliable or affordable broadband.”
“We should not allow a premature switch-off to place an effective paywall around a service that has reached every home for generations.”
Viewers switch to broadband TV faster than expected
But the case for a 2034 switch-over was boosted after independent analysis forecast that the number of homes without broadband will fall to just 220,000 by 2034, which equates to 0.8 per cent of TV households.
Meanwhile, viewers are switching from Freeview to the expanding online platform Freely, which is expected to be in 10.5 million UK households by 2034.
Burnham’s remarks have not changed the Government’s official position on switch-off. A spokesperson said “there is a strong case for a transition to IPTV (TV over the internet), but no decisions have been made”.
“We are committed to ensuring that no one is left behind as TV viewing increasingly moves online. Any future transition would only proceed once we are confident the right safeguards, infrastructure and support are in place so that everyone can continue to access television affordably and with confidence.”
Ministers are also “committed to achieving nationwide gigabit-capable broadband coverage by 2032,” a source added.
Project Gigabit, the Government scheme which aims to bring faster and more reliable internet to hard-to-reach rural areas, is connecting 750 homes and businesses a day. Currently, 92 per cent of premises are covered.
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