2008 launch for BBC, ITV and Channel 4 HD channels

The BBC, ITV and Channel 4 have now all revealed plans to launch free high definition channels early in 2008.

Pay TV platform BSkyB, is currently leading the way with HD in the UK, with 292,000 HD subscribers as of June.

The BBC’s HD channel will comprise nine-hours of native HD programmes, an extension of the current trial feed.

The corporation recently secured the go-ahead from Ofcom’s Market Impact Assessment, which concluded that the service would deliver significant consumer benefit at reasonable cost and was unlikely to create any major competitive disruption on the market.

However BBC HD will not be transmitted on IPTV, because it takes up too much bandwith. Ofcom has recommended that the BBC talks to IPTV operators to find a way round the problem.

Channel 4 HD will be launched as part of the BSkyB platform in December. It will be a full-time simulcast of the core Channel 4 schedule. Some of the programmes will be produced and transmitted in the HD format while the remainder will be converted to HD.

ITV has confirmed plans to launch ITV1 HD on the Freesat platform in spring 2008. Transmissions will begin with a two-hour slot during primetime, rising to three hours.