Half Of All UK Households Have Converted To Digital

Half of all UK households have now converted all their TVs to digital, according to the Ofcom/Digital UK Tracker survey published today.

The survey also shows a steady increase in public awareness and understanding of switchover, which begins in Whitehaven, Cumbria on October 17 (see Whitehaven Gets Ready For Digital Switchover) before a nationwide roll out that finishes in 2012.

The survey of more than 2,400 households found that 50% of households surveyed reported that all their television sets were digital, 87% of respondents were aware of switchover – the highest level recorded to date – and 66% understood how to prepare for switchover, up 25 percentage points year-on-year

The report follows the publication in June of Ofcom’s latest Digital Progress Report, which showed that more than 80% of households in the UK now receive digital television services on their primary set (see Digital TV Penetration In The UK Exceeds 80%).

For the first time, Ofcom reported that more than half of all TV sets in the UK (51%) are now digital, whilst more than four out of five homes had digital television.

Digital UK, the independent organisation leading digital switchover in the UK, recently announced a number of measures to help retailers improve the quality of advice to customers on switching, after a national retail audit programme found that while 69% of stores were using the ‘digital tick’ symbol, only 32% could accurately explain the logo (see Digital UK To Help Retailers Improve Switchover Advice).

A report published last month by YouGov for uSwitch.com said that an estimated 33 million people in the UK, 73% of the adult population, are still in the dark about when their region will turn off its analogue television signal and switchover to digital (see More Than 70% Of UK Adults Still In The Dark Over Switchover).

Digital UK: www.digitaluk.co.uk Ofcom: 020 7981 3040 www.ofcom.org.uk