Campaign aims to inform viewers of digital TV switch

COMMUNITY groups have launched an awareness programme to ensure thousands of TV viewers don’t lose access to their favourite programmes as a result of the scheduled switchover to digital TV in October.

Irish Rural Link and The Wheel have come together for the initiative, which follows on from a recent survey indicating that almost 250,000 people were still unaware that analogue TV signals will be switched off on October 24.

From that date, anyone who currently obtains their TV reception from analogue signals will face blank screens unless they switch over to digital TV.

Séamus Boland of Irish Rural Link said that many of the target group, including those living in isolated areas and older people, may not have familiarised themselves with the information necessary to ensure they can access digital TV when the switchover takes place.

The community outreach digital switchover programme — which will involve organisations that include the St Vincent de Paul, Age Action Ireland, the GAA Social Initiative, the Irish Farmers’ Association and the Disability Federation of Ireland — will be provided with funding by the Department of Communications.

Deirdre Garvey, chief executive of The Wheel, said the initiative would see community and voluntary groups in every part of the country reaching out to people who otherwise would not make the switch to digital TV.

TV viewers who currently receive their TV signal from a rooftop aerial will need to either subscribe to a pay-TV service such as UPC or Sky, or the new free digital service Saorview, which provides access to all the main Irish channels including RTÉ, TV3 and TG4.

However, anyone wishing to access Saorview will need a Saorview-approved digital TV or a set-top box which costs about €50. Any TV with a scart or HDMI socket should be capable of picking up Saorview.