Television in the United Kingdom

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British television broadcasting started in 1936, and now has a collection of free and subscription services over a variety of distribution media, through which there are up to 600 channels for consumers as well as on-demand content. There are six main channel owners who are responsible for most viewing. There are 27,000 hours of domestic content produced a year at a cost of £2.6bn. Analogue terrestrial transmissions are currently being switched off and this is due to complete in 2012.

1 Television providers
2 Channel owners
3 Channels
4 Programming
5 Awards
6 Regulation
7 Licensing
8 Recent technical developments
9 Production
- 9.1 In-house production
- 9.2 Independent production
10 History
11 See also
12 References
13 External links

[edit] Television providers

Free and subscription providers are available, with differences in the number of channels, capabilities such as the programme guide (EPG), video on demand (VOD), high-definition (HD), interactive television via the red button, and coverage across the UK. Set-top boxes are generally used to receive these services; however Integrated Digital Televisions (IDTVs) can also be used to receive Freeview. Top Up TV and BT Vision utilise hybrid boxes which receive Freeview as well as additional subscription services. Households viewing TV from the internet (YouTube, Joost, downloads etc) are not tracked by Ofcom. The UK's five most watched channels, BBC One, BBC Two, ITV, Channel 4 and Five, are available from all providers (although in some localities Five is not receivable on analogue terrestrial television).

Provider	Subscription or free	No. broadcast channels	VOD	HD	Red button	Households^[1]	Transmission
(Unbranded analogue terrestrial)	Free	Up to 6	No	No	No	3,543,681	Analogue terrestrial
Freesat from Sky	Free	Around 200 (TV and radio)	No	No	Yes	1,005,000	Digital satellite
Freeview	Free	Up to 42 (TV), 26 (radio)	No	No	Yes	9,332,000	Digital terrestrial
The Internet	Free or subscription	?	Yes	Yes	No	?	Internet television
BT Vision	Subscription	As Freeview	Yes	No	No	70,000^[2]	IPTV and digital terrestrial
Sky	Subscription	Around 600 (TV and radio)^[3]	Push	Yes	Yes	8,152,000	Digital satellite
Smallworld	Subscription	99^[4]	No	No	No	^*	Digital cable
Tiscali TV	Subscription	73	Yes	No	No	36,000	IPTV
Top Up TV	Subscription	As Freeview	Push	No	No	?	Digital terrestrial
Virgin [analogue]	Subscription	35^[5]	No	No	No	251,154	Analogue cable
Virgin [digital]	Subscription	Around 150 (TV)^[6]	Yes	Yes	Yes	3,125,300	Digital cable
WightCable	Subscription	120^[7]	No	No	No	^*	Digital cable

* Smallworld and Wightcable have 8,425 households combined according to Ofcom figures (total number of cable households minus Virgin Media Total TV Homes connected)

Image:Digital TV (UK) Figures All sets.png

2007, Q3, UK's 60 million TV sets (not homes, Ofcom figures^[1])

[edit] Analogue terrestrial television

Main article: Analogue terrestrial television in the United Kingdom

This was the traditional way of receiving television in the UK, however it has now largely been supplanted by digital providers. There are 5 channels with regional variations, plus a limited number of local channels. Analogue terrestrial transmissions are currently being switched off in phases as part of the Digital Switchover. The last region is due to be switched off in the second half of 2012. See Digital switchover dates in the United Kingdom for more information.

As of January 2008, BBC One, BBC Two, ITV and Channel 4 broadcast from a network of 1,148 transmitters. Five broadcasts from 53 transmitters, and the Restricted Service Licence stations broadcast from 14 transmitters.^[8] See Category:UK transmitter sites for information on some of these.

[edit] Digital terrestrial television

Main article: Digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom

Digital terrestrial television launched in 1998 primarily as a subscription-based called ONdigital. Since October 2002, the primary broadcaster is Freeview, with Top Up TV and Setanta Sports providing additional subscription services.

As of January 2008, DTT is broadcast from a network of 86 transmitters.^[9]

[edit] Cable television

Main article: Cable television

After a long series of mergers and rebrands, Virgin Media, WightCable and Smallworld Media are the UK's three providers of cable TV. Historically, the cable companies offered the 'triple-play' of telephone, subscription TV and broadband, although this has now been matched by non-cable competitors such as Sky and BT Vision. Video on demand is available on this platform, however only Virgin offer it at present. With Sky, Virgin is one of the UK's two providers of high-definition programmes; Virgin offer 1 HD broadcast channel and a collection of on demand programmes in high-definition.

[edit] Satellite television

Main article: Satellite television

Sky is the dominant satellite broadcaster with the largest number of channels compared to other providers. Unlike cable and IPTV, Sky cannot offer video on demand with their existing broadcast infrastructure.

Freesat from Sky, a satellite-based free-to-air service similar to Freeview, is available from BSkyB for an initial installation charge of £150, and includes receiver, dish, viewing card, with access to all free-to-air and free-to-view channels in the UK. Alternatively, existing Sky customers can end their ongoing subscriptions, and opt for the Free-To-View viewing card, which is inserted into the Sky Viewing Card slot; effectively giving them the Freesat from Sky service.

Freesat from Sky and Sky transmit from SES Astra satellites located at 28.2°E (Astra 2A/2B/2C/2D) and Eutelsat's Eurobird 1 satellite at 28.5°E.

[edit] IPTV television

BT Vision and Tiscali TV are the UK's two providers of IPTV services. Both offer a range of broadcast channels as well as additional on demand content. In contrast to Internet TV, the current trend is to restrict the term IPTV to those services operated and controlled by the same company that operates and controls the "Final Mile" to the consumers' premises.

[edit] Internet television

Main article: Internet television

Television received via the Internet may be free, subscription or pay-per-view, multicast, unicast, or peer-to-peer, streamed or downloaded, and use a variety of distribution technologies. Playback is normally via a computer and broadband Internet connection, although digital media receivers or media center computers can be used for playback on televisions, such as the Netgear Digital Entertainer or a computer equipped with Windows Media Center.

Since 2006, UK channel owners and content producers have been creating Internet services to access their programmes.

Sky has offered Sky Anytime since January 2006, software for Windows which allows customers who subscribe to the Sky Movies and Sky Sports channels to download video onto their PC through a broadband internet connection. The content inclues sport highlights, feature-length movies, sports news and entertainment shows.

Channel 4 has offered 4 on Demand since November 2006. The Internet version allows users to view programming recently shown on Channel 4, E4 or More4, or from their archives. The 'catch-up' service offers content free of charge for thirty days after its broadcast. Some content is available free of charge, whilst most other programmes and films, including archive programming, is charged for on a per-download basis.

ITV offers itv.com, a web site focussed on on-demand video, with genres being added since June 2007. It allows viewers gain access to simulcasts, previews and catch-ups of broadcast content within a 30-day window. Aside from major sporting events and other premium content, this programming is free.

The BBC has offered BBC iPlayer since July 2007, software for Windows for download and playback of selected programmes aired in the last 7 days. The BBC also simulcasts BBC News 24 via bbc.co.uk, and offers news reports and other video items through its website and a channel on YouTube.

[edit] Forthcoming providers

Provider	Launch date	Subscription or free	No. broadcast channels	VOD	HD	Red button	Transmission	Status
Freesat	Spring 2008^[10]	Free	80^[11]	?	Yes^[12]	Yes^[13]	Digital satellite	Awaiting launch
O₂	2008	?	?	?	?	?	IPTV	Awaiting launch date
Orange	?	?	?	?	?	?	IPTV	Awaiting launch date
'Project Kangaroo'	2008	?	?	Yes	?	?	Internet television	Awaiting launch date
Sky Picnic	?	Subscription	5	?	No	?	Digital terrestrial	Awaiting regulatory approval
Virgin [IPTV]	2009	Subscription	?	?	?	?	IPTV and digital terrestrial	Awaiting launch date

Freesat is a joint initiative between the BBC and ITV due to launch Spring 2008. It will be the UK's first provider of free high-definition TV.

In December 2007, Telefónica O2 (branded O₂) announced the roll out of IPTV services in 2008.^[14]

Orange announced the desire for IPTV services to be launched in 2007. Orange has revealed one content partner, Disney, and some cartoon mascots for the service. As of November 2007, there are no other details.^[15]

In November 2007, the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 announced a joint on-demand Internet service to be launched in 2008.^[16] The working title is Project Kangaroo.^[17]

A proposed terrestrial service named Sky Picnic was confirmed October 2007 by BSkyB.^[18] To launch, BSkyB will withdraw three channels from Freeview (Sky Three, Sky News and Sky Sports News) to provide bandwidth for a collection of subscription channels. The proposed channels are Sky Sports 1, Sky Movies SD1, Sky One, and two further pay TV channels from 3rd parties.^[19] Ofcom has executed a public consultation which concluded 14th December 2007. A statement is due early 2008.^[20]^[21]

In February 2007, Virgin Media announced a hybrid IPTV and digital terrestrial service to target the half of the country unable to receive their cable TV services. In November, they stated it will be at least 2009 before launch.^[22]^[23]

[edit] Channel owners

[edit] BBC

Main article: BBC

The BBC is the world's oldest and biggest broadcaster, and is the country's first and largest public service broadcaster. The BBC is funded by a television licence fee that all households with a television must pay. Its analogue channels are BBC One and BBC Two. The BBC first began a television service, initially serving London only, in 1936. BBC Television was closed during World War II but reopened in 1946. The second station, BBC Two, was launched in 1964. As well as these two analogue services, the British Broadcasting Corporation now also offers digital services BBC Three, BBC Four, BBC News 24, BBC Parliament, CBBC Channel, CBeebies, BBCi and has trialled BBC HD.

[edit] ITV

Main article: ITV

ITV (Independent Television)is the network of fifteen regional and three national commercial television franchises, originally founded in 1955 to provide competition to the BBC. ITV was the country's first commercial television provider funded by advertisements, and has been the most popular commercial channel through most of its existence. Through a series of mergers, takeovers and relaxation of regulation, eleven of these companies are now owned by ITV plc, two by SMG plc while UTV and Channel Television remain independent. ITV plc, the operator of all English, Welsh and Southern Scotland franchises, has branded the channel as ITV1 since 2001, with regional names being used prior to regional programmes only. SMG plc, which operates the two other Scottish franchises, has now unified the regions under the single name of STV. UTV, the Northern Ireland franchisee operated by UTV plc, uses its own name on air at all times, while the independent Channel Television uses the generic ITV1 stream and its own name prior to regional programmes. ITV is has been officially known as Channel 3 since 1990. ITV plc also operates digital channels ITV2, ITV3, ITV4, Men & Motors and the CITV Channel. ITN currently holds the national news franchise, GMTV operates the breakfast franchise and Teletext Ltd operates the national teletext franchise.

[edit] Channel 4

Main article: Channel 4

Launched in 1982, Channel 4 is a state-owned national broadcaster which is funded by its commercial activities (including advertising). Channel 4 has expanded greatly after gaining greater independence from the IBA, especially in the multi-channel digital world launching E4, Film4, More 4 and various timeshift services. Since 2005, it has been a member of the Freeview consortium, and operates one of the six digital terrestrial multiplexes with ITV as Digital 3&4. Since the advent of digital television, Channel 4 is now also broadcast in Wales across all digital platforms. Channel 4 was the first British channel not to carry regional variations for programming, however it does have set advertising regions.

[edit] Five

Main article: Five (channel)

Five (previously known as Channel 5) was the final analogue broadcaster to be launched, in March 1997. Its analogue terrestrial coverage is less than that of the other analogue broadcasters, and broadcast in re-assigned frequencies, often at a lower power from major transmitters only. Many ex-VHF transmitters which were used for black and white transmissions prior to the switchover to UHF transmissions in the 1970s–80s are now used to broadcast Five, mainly due to capacity restraints on the masts. It was also the first terrestrial broadcaster to broadcast on satellite and carry a permanent digital on-screen graphic (DOG). The channel was re-named "five" in 2002, which saw an overhaul of the channel's identity and removal of the infamous DOG. RTL Group, Europe's largest television broadcaster, took full control of the channel in August 2005. Five launched two new channels, Five US and Five Life in October 2006. All of these channels are also carried on satellite television, cable television and digital terrestrial television services. Five also owns 20% of the digital terrestrial pay-TV provider, Top Up TV. Like Channel 4, Five does not have programming regional variations, however it does so for advertising.

[edit] BSkyB

Main article: British Sky Broadcasting

BSkyB (British Sky Broadcasting) operates a satellite television service and numerous television channels e.g. Sky One, Sky Two, Sky Three, Sky Movies, Sky Sports. It is owned by News Corporation.

[edit] Virgin Media Television

Main article: Virgin Media Television

Owned by the cable provider Virgin Media and operates several channels, including Living, Bravo, Trouble, Challenge, Virgin 1 and Virgin Central. It also owns 50% of broadcaster UKTV with BBC Worldwide, which owns and operates 11 channels including UKTV Gold, UKTV Drama, UKTV History, UKTV Food and Dave (and their +1 channels). Virgin Media also owns the commercial shopping-TV provider Sit-Up Ltd, which operates three channels price-drop tv, bid tv and speed auction tv.

[edit] Other channel owners

The most watched digital channels are owned by the six broadcasters above. Other broadcasters who have secured a notable place on British television include Viacom, EMAP, Discovery Networks and Disney.

[edit] Channels

Main article: List of British television channels

The Broadcasters' Audience Research Board (BARB) measures television ratings in the UK. In multi-channel homes, the channels with a viewing share of >= 1.0% according to BARB's measurements in November 2007 are:^[24]

Position	Channel	Share of total viewing (%)	Avg weekly viewing per person (Hours:mins)	Licence fee funded	Subscription	Carries adverts
1	BBC One	20.6	5:31	Yes	No	No
2	ITV (branded ITV1, STV or UTV)	18.9	5:04	No	No	Yes
3	BBC Two	7.6	2:02	Yes	No	No
4	Channel 4 / S4C	6.7	1:48	S4C - in part; C4 - no	No	Yes
5	Five	4.4	1:11	No	No	Yes
6	ITV2	1.9	0:30	No	No	Yes
7	Cbeebies	1.3	0:21	Yes	No	No
=	ITV3	1.3	0:21	No	No	Yes
=	Sky Sports 1	1.3	0:21	No	Yes	Yes
10	Dave	1.2	0:19	No	No	Yes
11	Sky One	1.1	0:17	No	Yes	Yes
12	BBC Three	1.0	0:16	Yes	No	No
=	E4	1.0	0:16	No	No	Yes

[edit] Programming

British television differs from other countries, such as the United States, in as much that programmes produced in Britain do not generally have a long 'season' run of around 20 weeks. Instead, they are produced in a series, a set of episodes varying in length, usually aired over a period of a few months. See List of British television series.

[edit] 100 Greatest British Television Programmes

Main article: 100 Greatest British Television Programmes

100 Greatest British Television Programmes was a list compiled in 2000 by the British Film Institute (BFI), chosen by a poll of industry professionals, to determine what were the greatest British television programmes of any genre ever to have been screened. Although not including any programmes made in 2000 or later, the list is useful as an indication of what were generally regarded as the most successful British programmes of the 20th century. The top 10 programmes are:

Fawlty Towers BBC2 1975-1979
Cathy Come Home (The Wednesday Play) BBC1 1966
Doctor Who BBC1 1963-1989, 1996, 2005-
The Naked Civil Servant ITV 1975
Monty Python's Flying Circus BBC2 1969-1974
Blue Peter BBC1 1958-
Boys from the Blackstuff BBC2 1982
Parkinson BBC1/ITV 1971-1982, 1998-2007
Yes Minister / Yes, Prime Minister BBC2 1980-1988
Brideshead Revisited ITV 1981

[edit] List of most-watched television broadcasts

Main article: List of most-watched television broadcasts

In 2005, the British Film Institute compiled a list of programmes with the biggest audience since 1955. The top 10 are:

Rank	Show	Episode	Number of Viewers	Date	Network
1	1966 World Cup Final		32.30 million	30 July 1966	BBC/ITV
2	Funeral of Princess Diana		32.10 million	6 September 1997	BBC1/ITV
3	British Royal Family documentary		30.69 million	1969	BBC1/ITV
4	EastEnders	Den divorces Angie	30.15 million	25 December 1986	BBC1
5	Apollo 13 splashdown		28.60 million	17 April 1970	BBC1/ITV
6	FA Cup replay: Chelsea vs. Leeds		28.49 million	29 April 1970	BBC1/ITV
7	Royal Wedding of Charles & Diana		28.40 million	29 July 1981	BBC1/ITV
8	Wedding of Princess Anne and Mark Phillips		27.60 million	14 November 1973	BBC1
9	Coronation Street	Alan Bradley killed by tram	26.93 million	8 December 1989	ITV
10	Coronation Street	Hilda Ogden leaves	26.00+ million^[25]	25 December 1987	ITV

[edit] Genre lists

[edit] 100 Greatest Kids' TV shows

Main article: 100 Greatest Kids' TV shows

The 100 Greatest Kids' TV shows was a poll conducted by the British television channel Channel 4 in 2001. The top 5 UK-produced programmes are:

The Muppet Show 1976-1981
DangerMouse 1981-1992
Bagpuss 1974
Grange Hill 1978-
Mr Benn 1971-1972

[edit] Britain's Best Sitcom

Main article: Britain's Best Sitcom

Britain's Best Sitcom was a poll conducted in 2004 by the BBC to identify the United Kingdom's best situation comedy. Top top 5 programmes are:

Only Fools and Horses 1981-2003 — 342,426 votes
Blackadder 1983-1989, 2000 — 282,106 votes
The Vicar of Dibley 1994-2007 — 212,927 votes
Dad's Army 1968-1977 — 174,138 votes
Fawlty Towers 1975, 1979 — 172,066 votes

[edit] British Academy Television Award for Best Drama Series

Main article: British Academy Television Award for Best Drama Series

The British Academy Television Award for Best Drama Series is one of the major categories of the British Academy Television Awards. The last 5 winners are:

2007: The Street - Granada Productions / BBC One
2006: Doctor Who - BBC Wales / BBC One
2005: Shameless - Company Pictures / Channel 4
2004: Buried - World Productions / Channel 4
2003: Spooks - Kudos Film & Television / BBC One

[edit] Soap operas

Main article: The British Soap Awards

Award totals for soap operas as awarded by the British Soap Awards:

[edit] Analogue terrestrial programming

[edit] Weekday

Weekday programming on terrestrial channels begins with breakfast national news programmes (along with regional news updates) on BBC One and GMTV, with children's programming on BBC Two and Five. Channel 4 and S4C predominately broadcasts teen-orientated programmes in its morning slot, T4, including soaps, music and comedy programming. The weekday breakfast news programme ends at 9:15 am on BBC One and 9:25 am on GMTV.

Following this on BBC One, lifestyle programming is generally shown, including property, auction and home/garden makeover. BBC One continues this genre until after the lunchtime news, whereby afternoon soaps such as Neighbours and Doctors have occupied the schedule. ITV on the other hand takes over from GMTV at 9:25 am, and generally broadcasts more human-interest chat-style shows, including The Jeremy Kyle Show and Loose Women, in the morning to mid-afternoon slots, with the ITV Lunchtime News (including a regional bulletin) at 1:30 pm. Channel 4 continues its T4 slot, often with home-project and archeology lifestyle programming in the early afternoon after the News at Noon. Five broadcasts chatshow programmes in the morning including The Wright Stuff and Trisha Goddard with regular news bulletins. In the afternoon it shows a variety of films, daytime imported soaps and dramas.

At around 3:25 pm, BBC One switches to its CBBC children's output, before a repeat of Neighbours at 5:35 pm (This will soon cease as the BBC have lost the rights to Five). BBC Two often carries lifestyle programming such as Animal Park and often many sporting events. ITV on the other hand now shows repeats of classic ITV shows, such as Heartbeat, Poirot and Midsomer Murders in mid-afternoon, before a chatshow or gameshow-style programmes at 5:00 pm, which have included That Antony Cotton Show, Golden Balls and The Price Is Right.

News bulletins are broadcast between 6pm and 7pm on both BBC One and ITV, with BBC One beginning with the national 6 O'Clock news and ITV with the flagship regional news programme. At around 6.30, BBC One broadcasts the regional news programmes whilst ITV broadcasts the national news. Both Channel 4 and Five have news programmes at around 7pm.

Primetime programming is usually dominated by further soaps—including Britain's favourite soap Eastenders on BBC One, Coronation Street and Emmerdale on ITV, and Hollyoaks on Channel4. These soap operas or 'continuing dramas' as they are now called can vary throughout the year, however weekly dramas, such as Holby City, are also fixed to scheduling. Because of this, the UK can often rely more heavily on TV guides, be it with the newspaper, online on as available on information services on the television: Ceefax/Teletext/BBCi as well as built in Electronic Programme Guides.

[edit] Weekend

Weekend programming traditionally contains further children's, lifestyle programming, as well as sporting events and the occasional afternoon film. There are further battles for viewers in the weekend primetime slot, often featuring reality or talent game shows in the evening. Morning and late evening news programmes still continue on BBC One and ITV, yet even these can be shifted about due to delays in sporting events.

After midnight, when late evening films are shown, many channels cease broadcasting "normal" programming or simulcast with another channel. Before 2000, the channels simply closed down, displaying news in the form of Ceefax or a test card. However, recently programming has been shown continuously. BBC channels will join BBC News 24 in a multichannel simulcast. Since 2005, ITV has broadcast the ITV Play strand of phone-in participation TV programmes. Depending on the time of year, Channel 4 may show live feeds of Big Brother (in the summer) and its spin-off, Celebrity Big Brother (in January). On weeknights, Five generally shows various sports from around the world, including boxing and football from European leagues, with phone-in participation-TV Quiz Call on weekends.

[edit] Awards

Main articles: British Academy Television Awards and National Television Awards

The British Academy Television Awards (BAFTAs) are the most prestigious awards given in the British television industry, analogous to the Emmy Awards in the United States. They have been awarded annually since 1954, and are only open to British programmes. After all the entries have been received, they are voted for online by all eligible members of the Academy. The winner is chosen from the four nominees by a special jury of nine academy members for each award, the members of each jury selected by the Academy's Television Committee.

The National Television Awards is a British television awards ceremony, sponsored by ITV and initiated in 1995. Although not widely held to be as prestigious as the BAFTAs, the National Television Awards are probably the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted on by the general public. Unlike the BAFTAs, the National Television Awards allow foreign programmes to be nominated, providing they have been screened on a British channel during the eligible time period.

[edit] Regulation

Main article: Ofcom

Ofcom is the independent regulator and competition authority for the communication industries in the United Kingdom, including television. As the regulatory body for media broadcasts, part of Ofcom's duties are to examine specific complaints by viewers/listeners about programmes. Ofcom is also responsible for the management, regulation, assignment and licensing of the electromagnetic spectrum in the UK, and licenses portions of it for use in TV broadcasts.

[edit] Licensing

Main article: Television licensing in the United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom and the Crown dependencies, a television licence is required to receive any publicly broadcast television service, from any source. This includes the commercial channels, cable and satellite transmissions. The money from the licence fee is used to provide radio, television and Internet content for the British Broadcasting Corporation, and Welsh-language television programmes for S4C. The BBC^[26] gives the following figures for expenditure of licence fee income:

50% - BBC One and BBC Two
15% - local TV and radio
12% - network radio
10% - digital (BBC Three, BBC Four, BBC News 24, BBC Parliament, CBBC, CBeebies)
10% - transmission costs and licence fee collection
3% - BBC Online, Ceefax, and Interactive Content (including bbc.co.uk and BBCi)

[edit] Recent technical developments

[edit] Digital television

Digital television has been available in the UK since 1998 via satellite, cable or terrestrial, and since 2000 via IPTV. It introduced interactive television, 16:9 widescreen, and electronic programme guides.

Ofcom is tracking digital television penetration as part of the digital switchover, and releases quarterly reports. The report for Q3 2007 states:^[1]

85.1% of households now receive digital television on their primary set (of 25.5 million households)
56.3% of TV sets now receive multichannel TV (of 60 million televisions). This includes analogue cable

Ofcom does not consider households which use Internet television as their primary source, whether connected to a TV set or not.

[edit] Video on demand

Video on demand (VOD) offers the viewer a choice of programmes in an on-screen programme guide. When the viewer selects a programme to watch, it starts playing immediately. The programmes may be free, pay-per-view or subscription.

BT Vision, Tiscali and Virgin Media are the UK's three providers of video on demand via IPTV. They offer a combination of catch-up and archive content from programme makers and channel owners. Virgin is the UK's largest provider of on-demand content, with over 3,000,000 subscribers. Video on demand in the UK is also seeing overseas programme makers such as HBO launching VOD services.^[27] Virgin also offers high-definition VOD.

Sky and Top Up TV market Sky Anytime and Top Up Anytime. Sky's is available to subscribers of Sky+ or Sky HD with a particular model of set-top-box. Both are 'push VOD' services which offer access to pre-selected programmes which are played back from the set-top-boxes hard disk drive.

Internet television also provides access to VOD, e.g. YouTube and other streamed video websites.

[edit] High-definition television

Close-up view
Image:HDTV example - Fish 40x46 squares.svg	Image:Raster graphic fish 20x23squares sdtv-example.png
HDTV resolution	SDTV resolution

Main article: High-definition television in the United Kingdom

High-definition television (HDTV) uses a resolution of 1280 x 720p (720 progressively scanned lines), or 1920 x 1080i (1080 interlaced lines), at a 16:9 aspect ratio (widescreen). In contrast, standard-definition television (SDTV) uses a resolution of 720 x 576i (576 interlaced lines), at an aspect ratio of either 4:3 or 16:9 (widescreen). HDTV has four to five times as much picture information compared to SDTV, which results in sharper pictures.

Sky and Virgin Media are the UK's two providers of high-definition television. Sky offers Sky HD as a premium subscription. It includes one free channel (BBC HD), and around 10 subscription or pay-per-view channels. Virgin's V+ box offers one channel, and on-demand high-definition content.

There is no subscription-free provider of high-definition television in the UK, although BBC HD can be received directly from satellite with the necessary satellite decoder.

It was estimated in 2006 that sales of HD televisions were to reach 2.6 million by Christmas.^[28] Sky reported they had signed up 358,000 customers to their HD service by the end of September 2007.^[29]

[edit] Production

As of 2002, 27,000 hours of original programming are produced year in the UK television industry, excluding news, at a cost of £2.6bn. Ofcom has determined that 56% (£1.5bn) of production is in-house by the channel owners, and the remainder by independent production companies. Ofcom is enforcing a 25% independent production quota for the channel operators, as stipulated in the Broadcasting Act 1990.^[30]

[edit] In-house production

ITV plc, the company which owns 11 of the 15 regional ITV franchises, has set its production arm ITV Productions a target of producing 75% of the ITV1 schedule,^[31] the maximum allowed by Ofcom. This would be a rise from 54% at present, as part of a strategy to make ITV1 content-led chiefly in order to double production revenues to £1.2bn by 2012.^[32] ITV Productions currently produces programmes such as Coronation Street, Emmerdale and Heartbeat.^[33]

In contrast, the BBC has implemented a Window of Creative Competition (WOCC), a 25% proportion over and above the 25% Ofcom quota in which the BBC's in-house production and independent producers can compete.^[34] The BBC produces shows such as All Creatures Great and Small and F*** off I'm a Hairy Woman.^[35]

Channel 4 commissions all programmes from independent producers.

[edit] Independent production

As a consequence of the launch of Channel 4 in 1982, and the 25% independent quota from the Broadcasting Act 1990, an independent production sector has grown in the UK. Notable companies include talkbackTHAMES, Endemol UK, Hat Trick Productions, and Tiger Aspect Productions. A full list can be seen here: Category:Television production companies of the United Kingdom

[edit] History

[edit] Timeline

For programme-related items, see List of years in television.

1936	Analogue terrestrial	Following mechanical television test transmissions starting in 1926, and the first official broadcast in 1929,^[36] the BBC launches electronic television broadcasts, the BBC Television Service, from Alexandra Palace. The picture format is black and white, 405 line, and the transmission analogue terrestrial VHF
1938	Analogue cable	Community Antenna TV launches in Bristol and Kingston upon Hull, the UK's first cable services, distributing the 405 line service
1955	Regulation	The Independent Television Authority is appointed to oversee the creation of ITV by the Television Act 1954
1955	Analogue terrestrial	ITV, the UK's second channel, begins when Associated-Rediffusion, the first ITV franchise, launches
1964	Analogue terrestrial	BBC Two launches, in a higher definition 625-line format (576i). As it is broadcast in UHF frequencies and a different format, owners of 405 line TVs are unable to receive it
1960s	Analogue cable	Rediffusion Vision start a 625-line cable service
1967	Analogue terrestrial	Colour transmissions begin on BBC Two using the PAL format
1969	Analogue terrestrial	Colour transmissions begin on BBC One and ITV
1972	Regulation	The Sound Broadcasting Act 1972 reconstitutes the ITA as the Independent Broadcasting Authority
1976	Analogue terrestrial	Ceefax and ORACLE, the UK's first teletext services, launch
1982	Analogue terrestrial	Launch of Channel 4 and S4C, the UK's second and third independent channels. S4C broadcast to Wales, and Channel 4 the remainder of the country
1985	Analogue terrestrial	The two-station analogue terrestrial VHF transmissions cease
1986	Analogue terrestrial	The BBC starts stereo sound transmissions using NICAM
Late 1980s	Analogue cable	Issue of franchises to local cable operators, which will eventually merge to become Virgin Media, Smallworld and WightCable
1989	Analogue satellite	Sky launches, a subscription satellite service, with pay-per-view movies and events
1990	Regulation	The Broadcasting Act 1990 abolishes the Independent Broadcasting Authority and Cable Authority and replaces them with the Independent Television Commission. The Act makes mergers between ITV franchises possible - they will ultimately condense to ITV1, STV and UTV
1990	Analogue satellite	BSB launches, a subscription 5-channel satellite service
1992	Analogue satellite	After merging with Sky, BSkyB ceases transmissions on BSB's old satellite
1997	Analogue terrestrial	Five launches; it is the UK's first terrestrial broadcaster to also launch on Sky
1998	Digital satellite	Sky launches SkyDigital, the UK's first digital satellite service. Unlike the analogue service, it includes an Electronic Programme Guide, interactive TV and text services, widescreen picture format from certain channels (16:9) and near video-on-demand pay-per-view movie channels. This also sees the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and S4C to broadcast via satellite for the first time; as such, Channel 4 becomes available in Wales, and a new Welsh-only version of S4C broadcasts nationally. It launches with around 200 TV or radio channels
1998	Digital terrestrial	Launch of OnDigital, a subscription digital terrestrial service
1998	Digital cable	NTL, Telewest and Cable and Wireless begin digital cable services with similar characteristics to Sky. Unlike Sky, cable remains a regional service
2000	IPTV	Kingston Interactive Television (KIT), the UK's first IPTV service, launches in Hull. It is the UK's first video on demand service
2001	Analogue satellite	Sky ceases its analogue satellite service
2002	Digital terrestrial	Closure of ITV Digital (né OnDigital)
2002	Digital terrestrial	Launch of Freeview, a free digital terrestrial service to replace ITV Digital
2003	Regulation	The Communications Act 2003 abolishes the Independent Television Commission and replaces it with Ofcom
2004	Digital terrestrial	Launch of Top Up TV, a subscription service on digital terrestrial
2006	Cable	Merger of NTL and Telewest; they will later merge with Virgin Mobile and relaunch as Virgin Media
2006	Cable	The UK's first public high-definition broadcasts, as BBC and ITV show the 2006 FIFA World Cup in high-definition via NTL:Telewest
2006	IPTV	Kingston Communications cease KIT
2006	IPTV	Launch of BT Vision, a subscription video on demand service combined with a Freeview receiver
2006	Internet television	Sky launches Sky Anytime, a program to download television shows to PCs via the Internet, for subscribers to SkyDigital
2006	Internet television	Channel 4 launches 4 on Demand, allowing free and paid-for downloads via the Internet of television shows
2007	Internet television	ITV relaunch itv.com as an on-demand portal
2007	Analogue terrestrial	The digital switchover begins as a consequence of switching off analogue terrestrial UHF transmissions
2007	Internet television	The BBC launches BBC iPlayer, an tool for watching BBC programmes online
2012	Analogue terrestrial	Analogue terrestrial UHF transmissions cease in all regions.

[edit] Closed television providers

Provider	Years	Subscription of free	No. of channels	Colour	Digital	VOD	Transmission
(Unbranded VHF collection)	1936-1985	Free	2	No	No	No	Analogue terrestrial
405 line cable service	1938-?	(Unknown)	2	No	No	No	Analogue cable
Sky [analogue]	1989-2001	Subscription	(Unknown)	Yes	No	No	Analogue satellite
BSB	1990-1992	Subscription	5	Yes	No	No	Analogue satellite
OnDigital / ITV Digital	1998-2002	Subscription	(Unknown)	Yes	Yes	No	Digital terrestrial
KIT	2000-2006	Subscription	(Unknown)	Yes	Yes	Yes	IPTV

[edit] Defunct channels

There are around 60 defunct British channels. For a list, see Category:Defunct British television channels.

[edit] Commentary

Television caught on in Britain in 1947, but only 9 percent of British homes owned a TV during the first four years of its existence. These statistics were extremely familiar to the United States. In fact most of Britain’s TV statistics were identical to the U.S., but two years behind (Smith, 1995, p. 49). Although, Britain was the first country that had a regular daily television schedule direct to homes and they were the first to have technical professions to work on TVs. (A. Smith, Television: An International Hero 1995)

The British Broadcasting Company (BBC) was established in 1927 to work with radio and inevitably became involved in TV in 1947. The BBC has very close ties with the government because of their financial support to the broadcasts. Even though the government is involved with the BBC financially, the station has the independence to decide what to do with money. (J. Gabriel, Thinking About Television 1973

The British government also appointed people to particular positions on the Board of Governors, (the people who run the station). Instead of appointing someone that would help the government take over the station, the BBC and British government worked together to fill the needs of both organisations and hire someone that would fit the system that is in place. (A. Smith, 1995)

When commercial television was first introduced in Britain, advertising during the broadcasts operated similarly to the way the United States operated. They both received money from advertisers, although how they received their money was very different. English advertisers had nothing to do with the programme they were advertising with. The station controlled where the advertisement would go and the product’s company had no say on this. In America, the advertiser would directly pay for their ad to be played during a particular programme. (J. Gabriel, 1973)

[edit] The lack of homegrown Programmes

Recently it has come apparent that now only about a third of the programmes shown in the UK are made in British soil, while the vast majority being made in the USA. This has become a big problem for children as it means that some are learning to much about the American way of life and not enough about the British way of life. For example. they end up spelling words the American way (eg. "color" instead of colour) or thinking that they have to pay for healthcare.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] See also

[edit] References

[edit] External links

v • d • e Television in Europe
Sovereign states	Albania · Andorra · Armenia¹ · Austria · Azerbaijan² · Belarus · Belgium · Bosnia and Herzegovina · Bulgaria · Croatia · Cyprus¹ · Czech Republic · Denmark · Estonia · Finland · France · Georgia² · Germany · Greece · Hungary · Iceland · Ireland · Italy · Kazakhstan² · Latvia · Liechtenstein · Lithuania · Luxembourg · Republic of Macedonia · Malta · Moldova · Monaco · Montenegro · Netherlands · Norway · Poland · Portugal · Romania · Russia³ · San Marino · Serbia · Slovakia · Slovenia · Spain · Sweden · Switzerland · Turkey³ · Ukraine · United Kingdom (England · Scotland · Northern Ireland · Wales)
Dependencies, autonomies, and other territories	Abkhazia² · Adjara¹ · Akrotiri and Dhekelia · Åland · Azores · Crimea · Faroe Islands · Gagauzia · Gibraltar · Guernsey · Jan Mayen · Jersey · Kosovo · Isle of Man · Madeira⁴ · Nagorno-Karabakh¹ · Nakhchivan¹ · South Ossetia² · Svalbard · Transnistria · Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus^1, 5
¹ Entirely in Southwest Asia; included here because of cultural, political and historical association with Europe. ² Partially or entirely in Asia, depending on the definition of the border between Europe and Asia. ³ Mostly in Asia. ⁴ Entirely in the African Plate, included here because of cultural, political and historical association with Europe. ⁵ Only recognised by Turkey.

sv:Television i Storbritannien

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Categories: All articles with unsourced statements | Articles with unsourced statements since January 2008 | British television | Cultural history of the United Kingdom