Digital switchover will be fundamental to the landscape of how and what people watch on television in the next few years, according to Ford Ennals, chief executive of Digital UK, who was discussing the forthcoming move at MediaTel Group’s ‘Future Of TV’ seminar yesterday.
Clare Salmon, director of marketing and commercial strategy at ITV, agreed that switchover would revolutionise British television. “Switchover is the thing that’s going to usher in a completely different environment for us,” she said. “I don’t think we’ve seen anything in terms of change compared to the environment that it’s going to create for us in the future.”
However, panellist and media journalist Ray Snoddy, disagreed, saying he believes switchover will not greatly alter audience behaviour. “Where is the revolution in viewing behaviour as a result of all the old age pensioners being bullied into getting digital television?” he questioned. “I don’t know the answer. Maybe analogue switch off is not such a big deal and will not actually tear up the roots of British broadcasting after all.”
Snoddy also felt that it was HDTV that was under-valued but that the content was not yet available. He also discussed his views on mobile television, saying he didn’t think there was much demand for it or interactive ‘red button’ facilities.
Ennals said that switchover would cause a boost in PVR ownership, and that the manufacturers “got it wrong. [They] waited and are now trying to catch up with the impact of switchover and future technologies and they are accelerating, but they’re being slow.”
Rahul Chakkara, controller BBCi, said: “In terms of the numbers, I think the current broadcasters – the BBC, ITV etc – will continue to dominate for the short-term, even after digital switchover. Hopefully we will carry on with our share because we will understand what digital is all about and exploit it, but we don’t have a divine right to exist.”
Speaking of the emerging broadcast technologies, Chakkara said: “It’s a once in a generation opportunity and people like us have to take risks, understand, experiment, and fail, but at the same time carry on. [Consumers] will partake in this technology feast.”
Another supporter of switchover and its impact was Jim Marshall, chairman of Starcom UK, who said that as technology changes, people’s behaviour changes. “We will go through change and there will be quite significant change in behaviour in how people use their televisions and use their screens,” he said. “That’s what has happened throughout the growth of television.”
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