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Television in the Republic of Ireland is available through a variety of platforms. The
digital terrestrial television
Digital terrestrial television (DTTV or DTT, or DTTB with "broadcasting") is a technology for terrestrial television in which land-based (terrestrial) television stations broadcast television content by radio waves to televisions in consumers' ...
service is known as
Saorview
Saorview ( ) is the national digital terrestrial television (DTT) service in Ireland. It is owned by RTÉ and operated by 2RN.
The service began operation on 29 October 2010 on a trial basis with a full launch on 26 May 2011. By legislation i ...
and is the primary source of broadcast television since analogue transmissions ended on 24 October 2012. Digital satellite (from
Sky Ireland
Sky Ireland Limited is a subsidiary of Comcast-owned Sky and supplies television, internet and telephony services in Ireland.
Its corporate headquarters are in Dublin which were opened by Taoiseach Enda Kenny on 18 January 2013.
Sky Ireland ...
,
Saorsat
Saorsat ( ; the Irish word Saor, meaning free, therefore implying an Irish analogue of the UK's Freesat) is a free-to-air satellite service in Ireland. The service launched on 3 May 2012.
Overview
The RTÉ Network Limited (RTÉNL) analogue te ...
and other European satellite service providers are available) and digital cable (from
Virgin Media Ireland
Virgin Media Ireland is Liberty Global's telecommunications operation in Ireland. It is the largest digital cable television provider within the country. As of 31 December 2014, the company offers broadband internet, digital television and ...
) are also widely used.
The Irish satellite fill-in service (
Saorsat
Saorsat ( ; the Irish word Saor, meaning free, therefore implying an Irish analogue of the UK's Freesat) is a free-to-air satellite service in Ireland. The service launched on 3 May 2012.
Overview
The RTÉ Network Limited (RTÉNL) analogue te ...
) is via Ka-Sat using the Irish
KA band spot and has been available since June 2011.
While many people receive their television via
Saorview
Saorview ( ) is the national digital terrestrial television (DTT) service in Ireland. It is owned by RTÉ and operated by 2RN.
The service began operation on 29 October 2010 on a trial basis with a full launch on 26 May 2011. By legislation i ...
, which is broadcast by
2RN, more than half subscribe to multichannel television networks. The biggest single multichannel television network in Ireland is
Sky Ireland
Sky Ireland Limited is a subsidiary of Comcast-owned Sky and supplies television, internet and telephony services in Ireland.
Its corporate headquarters are in Dublin which were opened by Taoiseach Enda Kenny on 18 January 2013.
Sky Ireland ...
, which broadcasts digital satellite television services.
Virgin Media Ireland
Virgin Media Ireland is Liberty Global's telecommunications operation in Ireland. It is the largest digital cable television provider within the country. As of 31 December 2014, the company offers broadband internet, digital television and ...
,
Vodafone TV
Vodafone Group plc () is a British multinational telecommunications company. Its registered office and global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire, England. It predominantly operates services in Asia, Africa, Europe, and Oceania.
, Vodafo ...
and
Eir
In Norse mythology, Eir (Old Norse: , "protection, help, mercy"Orchard (1997:36).) is a goddess or valkyrie associated with medical skill. Eir is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources; th ...
among others, provide similar digital television services to Irish viewers.
History
Television was first received in Ireland in 1949, following the opening of high power BBC transmitters at
Sutton Coldfield
Sutton Coldfield or the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield, known locally as Sutton ( ), is a town and civil parish in the City of Birmingham, West Midlands, England. The town lies around 8 miles northeast of Birmingham city centre, 9 miles south ...
near Birmingham, England and later
Holme Moss
Holme Moss ( a.s.l.) is high moorland on the border between the Holme Valley district of Kirklees in West Yorkshire and the High Peak district of Derbyshire in England. Historically on the boundary between the West Riding of Yorkshire and Che ...
in West Yorkshire, England, giving marginal reception along parts of the East coast. The first transmissions on the
island of Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...
began with the launch of BBC in Northern Ireland (
BBC Northern Ireland
BBC Northern Ireland ( ga, BBC Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster-Scots: ''BBC Norlin Airlan'') is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Northern Ireland. It is widely available across both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ire ...
) when it began broadcasting television programmes in 1953, followed in 1959 by the launch of Ulster Television (now known as
UTV).
Throughout the 1950s the governments of Ireland were worried about the influences of British television and the popularity of the medium. By the end of the 1950s, 60% of the population could receive the UK's BBC1 and ITV from spillover from Northern Ireland, Wales and the west of England. Throughout the 1950s the Irish government discussed the provision of an Irish television service; this was headed up by Leon O'Broin, the secretary of the Department of Post and Telegraphs. The Department of Post and Telegraphs had responsibility for Radio Éireann, Ireland's radio service. In 1950 O'Broin established his own committee on Irish television and bought a television set to receive broadcasts from the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
. The Department of Finance at this time were worried about the cost of setting up a new television service and dismissed the possibility on several occasions during the 1950s. By March 1951 O'Broin would press for the inevitable establishment of an Irish television service in the state. In a memorandum to government, the department set out four possibilities for the ownership and control of a new service:
# Owned by the state directly
# Owned by a public corporation (similar to that of the then Radio Éireann)
# Owned by private enterprise
# Having a combination where transmitters would be owned by the state and content would be provided by private enterprises
The Department of Finance was incensed with this and asked the government to tell O'Broin to resubmit the proposals through the Department of Finance according to the formal procedures of the Civil Service.
John A. Costello, the
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...
, did so and returned the memo to the Department of Post and Telegraphs. The Minister for Finance refused to look at TV, calling it a "luxury service". Through this O'Broin was able to get funding for the research he had asked for.
The public service broadcaster,
TelefÃs Éireann, opened in 1961, followed by an additional channel
RTÉ2
RTÉ2 is an Television in the Republic of Ireland, Irish free-to-air television channel operated by public service broadcaster RTÉ. It was launched in 1978 as the Republic of Ireland's second television channel.
History
In the 1970s, the Iri ...
in November 1978.
TG4
TG4 ( ga, TG Ceathair, ) is an Irish free-to-air public service television network. The channel launched on 31 October 1996 and is available online and through its on demand service TG4 Player in Ireland and beyond.
TG4 was formerly known ...
launched on 31 October 1996 as a
free-to-air
Free-to-air (FTA) services are television (TV) and radio services broadcast in unencrypted form, allowing any person with the FTA Receiver, appropriate receiving equipment to receive the signal and view or listen to the content without requiring ...
public service broadcaster
Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...
that targets Irish language viewers.
The earliest colour broadcasts in Ireland took place in 1968. However, a full-time colour service was only introduced in 1973, with ''
The Late Late Show'' remaining in monochrome until 1976.
On 20 September 1998,
TV3 launched as the first independent
commercial broadcaster
Commercial broadcasting (also called private broadcasting) is the broadcasting of television programs and radio programming by privately owned corporate media, as opposed to state sponsorship. It was the United States′ first model of radio (an ...
in Ireland. In the
2000s television in Ireland expanded with the launch of
Eir Sport 1
Eir Sport 1 (formerly Setanta Ireland) was an Irish pay television sports channel featuring local and international sporting events. The channel is available on some basic cable packages in Ireland, while it is available upon direct subscription t ...
,
Bubble Hits
Bubble Hits was an Irish-owned digital television music channel owned by Creative Sounds. It broadcast two channels, one for Ireland, and a Pan-European feed which covered the United Kingdom, Hungary, Romania, Poland and Germany. On 13 February 2 ...
(now defunct) and
3e (originally C6 on Cable, later added to Sky), which are available through PayTV cable and satellite services. TV3 purchased C6 and rebranded it 3e. Only with the launch of
Saorview
Saorview ( ) is the national digital terrestrial television (DTT) service in Ireland. It is owned by RTÉ and operated by 2RN.
The service began operation on 29 October 2010 on a trial basis with a full launch on 26 May 2011. By legislation i ...
(FTA DTT) was 3e available Free to Air.
Ireland commenced its switch over to its free-to-air
digital terrestrial television
Digital terrestrial television (DTTV or DTT, or DTTB with "broadcasting") is a technology for terrestrial television in which land-based (terrestrial) television stations broadcast television content by radio waves to televisions in consumers' ...
(DTT) in October 2010.
This provided viewers with greater viewing opportunities with an increase in public service channels, i.e. of commercial services with the possibility of more public service channels from existing public service broadcaster and possibly two new channels, the
Houses of the Oireachtas Channel
Houses of the Oireachtas Channel ( ga, Bealach Thithe an Oireachtais) or publicly called Oireachtas TV is a public service broadcaster for the two houses of the Oireachtas (Irish parliament).
The channel was created under the Broadcasting Act 2 ...
and the Irish Film Channel, subject to finance from the government for the last two. The then Minister for Communications
Pat Rabbitte
Pat Rabbitte (born 18 May 1949) is an Irish former Labour Party politician who served as Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources from 2011 to 2014, Leader of the Labour Party from 2002 to 2007 and a Minister of State from 19 ...
aspired to have a complete DTT service rolled out by 31 December 2011.
Regulation
In Ireland, the
Commission for Communications Regulation
The Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) ( ga, An Coimisiún um Rialáil Cumarsáide) is the general communications regulator for Ireland, covering almost all possible types of communications.
Founded on 1 December 2002, ComReg too ...
regulates radio wave spectrum licensing, and since 1 October 2009 the
Broadcasting Authority of Ireland
The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) ( ga, Údarás Craolacháin na hÉireann) was established on 1 October 2009 effectively replacing the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) ( ga, Coimisiún Craolacháin na hÉireann).
The BAI is ...
regulates both public service broadcasters such as RTÉ, TG4 and commercial broadcasters.
Digital terrestrial television
*On 17 March 2011 a public advertising campaign was launched to highlight the integration of digital terrestrial television within Ireland.
Saorview
Saorview ( ) is the national digital terrestrial television (DTT) service in Ireland. It is owned by RTÉ and operated by 2RN.
The service began operation on 29 October 2010 on a trial basis with a full launch on 26 May 2011. By legislation i ...
, Ireland's national free-to-air digital terrestrial television (DTT) service, launched officially to the public in May 2011. The service initially aired services provided only by
RTÉ
(RTÉ) (; Irish language, Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the Public broadcaster, national broadcaster of Republic of Ireland, Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, telev ...
,
TG4
TG4 ( ga, TG Ceathair, ) is an Irish free-to-air public service television network. The channel launched on 31 October 1996 and is available online and through its on demand service TG4 Player in Ireland and beyond.
TG4 was formerly known ...
and
TV3. Additional services such as a commercial DTT service were deferred until a later date. The
BAI have since ended negotiations to find a suitable service provider for such content.
*Previously, service providers for the commercial DTT varied between 2008 and 2010. Negotiations between the three key players which included
Boxer Boxer most commonly refers to:
* Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing
*Boxer (dog), a breed of dog
Boxer or boxers may also refer to:
Animal kingdom
* Boxer crab
* Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans
* Boxer snipe ee ...
,
OneVision (DTT), and
Easy TV
Easy TV was a consortium that were offered a licence by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) to run the pay television services on the DTT platform in the Republic of Ireland. It was last one standing and least preferred in the 2008 conte ...
were deemed unsuccessful. Both Boxer and Onevision failed to sign-off an agreement between BAI and RTÉNL.
Easy TV considered its position on the license offer put to it on 29 April 2010.
The Easy TV consortium informed the BAI on 12 May 2010 that it was declining their offer to pursue negotiations regarding the Commercial DTT Multiplex Licence.
* Public service channels are carried by
2RN (Under the
Saorview
Saorview ( ) is the national digital terrestrial television (DTT) service in Ireland. It is owned by RTÉ and operated by 2RN.
The service began operation on 29 October 2010 on a trial basis with a full launch on 26 May 2011. By legislation i ...
brand), with this service operational to 90% of the country by 31 October 2010
and complete by 31 December 2011 (98%). However, publicly accessible tests of this system were available across large swathes of the country since December 2009
with further expansion since 29 October 2010 with a soft launch in Spring 2011 culminating in a hard launch before 31 December 2011 when the ASO phase began.
*The Irish system, being used by both RTÉNL and any subsequent commercial DTT provider is a
MPEG-4
MPEG-4 is a group of international standards for the compression of digital audio and visual data, multimedia systems, and file storage formats. It was originally introduced in late 1998 as a group of audio and video coding formats and related tec ...
DVB-T
DVB-T, short for Digital Video Broadcasting – Terrestrial, is the DVB European-based consortium standard for the broadcast transmission of digital terrestrial television that was first published in 1997 and first broadcast in Singapore in Febr ...
service with an
MHEG-5
MHEG-5, or ISO/IEC 13522-5, is part of a set of international standards relating to the presentation of multimedia information, standardised by the Multimedia and Hypermedia Experts Group (MHEG). It is most commonly used as a language to describ ...
interactive layer.
*
RTÉ Television
RTÉ Television is a department of Raidió TeilifÃs Éireann (RTÉ), the Republic of Ireland's state controlled national broadcaster. Its first channel was TeilifÃs Éireann, which began broadcasting on 31 December 1961. Since the 1960s, RT ...
were awarded a licence to operate a single multiplex, with a second multiplex which followed once analogue broadcasting ceased on 24 October 2012. Other services to launch on the second multiplex include additional services from TV3 such as TV3HD, TV3+1,
3Kids
Virgin Media Two, also called Virgin Two, is an Irish free-to-air television channel operated by Virgin Media Television (a subsidiary of Virgin Media Ireland).
History 2006–2009
Channel 6 was launched on 30 March 2006, then operated by Kis ...
and 3Classics and additional channels from RTÉ such as an arts channel and music channel.
* The
Broadcasting Act 2009
The Broadcasting Act 2009 (Number 18 of 2009) is an Act of the Oireachtas of Ireland. It was signed into law on 12 July 2009, although the provisions relating to the establishment of the new Broadcasting Authority of Ireland did not come into for ...
provided provision for the launch of two additional public services. These include an
Oireachtas
The Oireachtas (, ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of:
*The President of Ireland
*The bicameralism, two houses of the Oireachtas ...
Channel and an Irish Film Channel. The Oireachtas TV service currently broadcasts on Saorview channel 22. The Irish Film Board will oversee operation for the Irish Film Channel.
* By 2012, SAORVIEW offered 98% coverage for all channels. This was a significant improvement in free-to-air television coverage. Similar services such as Saorview available in the United Kingdom (i.e.
Freeview Freeview may refer to:
* Freeview (Australia), the marketing name for the digital terrestrial television platform in Australia
* Freeview (New Zealand), a digital satellite and digital terrestrial television platform in New Zealand
*Freeview (UK), ...
) and other parts of Europe are not compatible with Ireland's DTT service. RTÉ recommends that consumers wishing to avail of the SAORVIEW service only purchase receivers that carry the SAORVIEW approved logo. In practice, most MPEG-4 DVB-T compatible equipment, such as that conforming to the UK's Freeview HD standard, is capable of receiving SAORVIEW transmissions, albeit with some limitations to the EPG function. As the Freeview HD system is based on the newer
DVB-T2
DVB-T2 is an abbreviation for "Digital Video Broadcasting – Second Generation Terrestrial"; it is the extension of the television standard DVB-T, issued by the consortium DVB, devised for the broadcast transmission of digital terrestrial tele ...
standard, SAORVIEW reception is dependent on the
backward-compatibility
Backward compatibility (sometimes known as backwards compatibility) is a property of an operating system, product, or technology that allows for interoperability with an older legacy system, or with input designed for such a system, especially i ...
of such devices.
Historical testing
DVB-T
DVB-T, short for Digital Video Broadcasting – Terrestrial, is the DVB European-based consortium standard for the broadcast transmission of digital terrestrial television that was first published in 1997 and first broadcast in Singapore in Febr ...
was repeatedly tested from
2RN's
Three Rock Mountain
Three Rock Mountain (; archaic: ''Sliabh Ruadh'') is a mountain in Co Dublin, Ireland. It is high and forms part of the group of hills in the Dublin Mountains which comprises Two Rock, Three Rock, Kilmashogue and Tibradden Mountains. The m ...
transmitter, with relatively long tests in 1998 and 2001, and shorter tests in 2004, with a single multiplex carrying the four Irish analogue terrestrial channels, and
Tara Television
Tara Television (or Tara TV) was an Irish cable and satellite channel aimed primarily at Irish people living in Britain, it was set up in 1996 and began broadcasting a year later before being finally wound up during the early hours of 1 July 2002 ...
while it was in existence, on both UHF (channel 26) and VHF (channel D). These were under temporary licences for testing, which are regularly awarded. RTÉast Networks also broadcast test DVB-T with analogue TV and radio channels from the
Clermont Carn
Clermont Carn (), also known as Black Mountain, is a mountain that rises to in the Cooley Mountains of County Louth, Ireland. It is at the border with Northern Ireland, and is also the location of the Clermont Carn transmission site. The moun ...
transmitter in the Cooley Mountains, County Louth with some signal bleed into Northern Ireland.
A contract to run a nationwide system, with six multiplexes from main sites, and four from relay sites was awarded in 2001 to ITS Digital Limited, led by former RTÉ executive, Mr Peter Branagan and trading as "It's TV", who intended to launch a pay TV and broadband service. ITS wanted to offer broadband internet access using the
DVB-RCT DVB-RCT (Digital Video Broadcasting - Return Channel Terrestrial), provides a method by which the DVB-T (and in theory DVB-T2 but DVB-T2 probably trialled first about 5 years after last DVB-RCT field trial) platform can become a bi-directional, asym ...
standard (which while high bandwidth at up to 30 Mbit/s, is not fast enough with 20,000 people on one mast). They had no broadband licence and no viable business plan without selling broadband, and due to lack of funding withdrew its application in October 2002.
The government also planned to privatise RTÉ's transmission network at this time but this too failed in October 2002 following the withdrawal of ITS Digital Limited DTT licence application and a number of other factors.
Disability organisations and the switchover
TV Access, a coalition of organisations that promote issues surrounding individuals with disabilities and senior citizens, began a campaign to highlight the switchover from analogue to digital television (DTT) broadcast services in its contribution to the Oireachtas Communications Committee heard on Wednesday, 1 April 2009.
TV Access aimed to make the wider public aware of the needs of aging and disabled viewers; they also launched a website.
Promotion for DTT roll-out began on 17 March 2011.
Multiplex licensing process
*The establishment of a commercial multiplex for Digital Television Terrestrial within Ireland was punctuated with many delays. The BAI (then the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland) engaged in two phases of targeted consultation to assist in the development of its DTT Multiplex Licensing Policy. These consultations ran from May to December 2007 and involved the production of a comprehensive consultation document outlining policy proposals in relation to DTT licensing and the commissioning of independent research on DTT. It was initially proposed that
RTÉ Television
RTÉ Television is a department of Raidió TeilifÃs Éireann (RTÉ), the Republic of Ireland's state controlled national broadcaster. Its first channel was TeilifÃs Éireann, which began broadcasting on 31 December 1961. Since the 1960s, RT ...
would operate the free-to-air public service multiplex,
RTÉNL would provide the relevant broadcasting technologies and a third party would provide the pay or subscription service. These third parties included
Easy TV
Easy TV was a consortium that were offered a licence by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) to run the pay television services on the DTT platform in the Republic of Ireland. It was last one standing and least preferred in the 2008 conte ...
,
One Vision (DTT) and
Boxer Boxer most commonly refers to:
* Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing
*Boxer (dog), a breed of dog
Boxer or boxers may also refer to:
Animal kingdom
* Boxer crab
* Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans
* Boxer snipe ee ...
. Initially, Boxer Ireland was given the licence to operate the pay DTT service. Boxer's failure to negotiate with
RTÉNL and the economic downturn in Ireland resulted in Boxer no longer holding interest in pursuing its business in Ireland. On 20 April 2009, the BAI announced that Boxer had ended negotiations on the DTT contract without a successful outcome. Following this the consortium that made up One Vision were issued the licence. Once again, One Vision failed to negotiate with RTÉNL, hence negotiations were unsuccessful. On 29 April 2010 it was announced that Onevision had pulled out of negotiations. Finally, The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland began negotiating with Easy TV (a consortium made up of RTÉ and
UPC Ireland
Virgin Media Ireland is Liberty Global's telecommunications operation in Ireland. It is the largest digital cable television provider within the country. As of 31 December 2014, the company offers broadband internet, digital television and d ...
). RTÉ publicly confirmed on 14 May 2010 Easy TV was "declining their offer to pursue negotiations" on the DTT contract.
The BAI officially confirmed Easy TV's withdrawal and the conclusion of the current DTT licensing process on 18 May 2010.
*In July 2010, the then Minister for Communications Eamon Ryan announced that RTÉ would provide a basic free-to-air service without a pay DTT element. The free-to-air service would provide up to seven to ten channels and would roll out between 31 October 2010 to 31 December 2012. The new service would provide viewers with existing Irish channels, while also providing opportunities to expand existing channel portfolios. This service would be provided by
Saorview
Saorview ( ) is the national digital terrestrial television (DTT) service in Ireland. It is owned by RTÉ and operated by 2RN.
The service began operation on 29 October 2010 on a trial basis with a full launch on 26 May 2011. By legislation i ...
and
Saorsat
Saorsat ( ; the Irish word Saor, meaning free, therefore implying an Irish analogue of the UK's Freesat) is a free-to-air satellite service in Ireland. The service launched on 3 May 2012.
Overview
The RTÉ Network Limited (RTÉNL) analogue te ...
the latter to be used in areas were availability to access the Saorview is limited due to geographics.
Cross-border partnership
On 1 February 2010 Ireland's then-Minister for Communications
Eamon Ryan
Eamon Michael Ryan (born 28 July 1963) is an Irish Green Party politician who has served as Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications and Minister for Transport since June 2020 and Leader of the Green Party since May 2011. He ha ...
signed an agreement with the UK's
Ben Bradshaw. This agreement was designed to ensure viewers within
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
could watch
RTÉ One
RTÉ One ( ga, RTÉ a hAon) is an Irish free-to-air flagship television channel owned and operated by Raidió TeilifÃs Éireann (RTÉ). It is the most-popular and most-watched television channel in the country and was launched as ''TelefÃs à ...
,
RTÉ2
RTÉ2 is an Television in the Republic of Ireland, Irish free-to-air television channel operated by public service broadcaster RTÉ. It was launched in 1978 as the Republic of Ireland's second television channel.
History
In the 1970s, the Iri ...
and
TG4
TG4 ( ga, TG Ceathair, ) is an Irish free-to-air public service television network. The channel launched on 31 October 1996 and is available online and through its on demand service TG4 Player in Ireland and beyond.
TG4 was formerly known ...
on a
free-to-air
Free-to-air (FTA) services are television (TV) and radio services broadcast in unencrypted form, allowing any person with the FTA Receiver, appropriate receiving equipment to receive the signal and view or listen to the content without requiring ...
basis after the digital switchover.
While initial reports suggested that BBC services would equally be made available free-to-air in the Republic of Ireland at the same time, this was not to be the case. Instead
BBC One Northern Ireland
BBC One Northern Ireland is a Northern Irish television channel based on the UK-wide BBC One, owned and operated by BBC Northern Ireland. The service is broadcast from Broadcasting House in Belfast. In the rest of the UK, BBC One Northern Irela ...
and
BBC Two Northern Ireland were to be made available on a paid-for basis.
In practice all BBC satellite channels can be received freely in the Republic of Ireland, due to
overspill
In nonstandard analysis, a branch of mathematics, overspill (referred to as ''overflow'' by Goldblatt (1998, p. 129)) is a widely used proof technique. It is based on the fact that the set of standard natural numbers N is not an internal su ...
from the United Kingdom.
Following a broad range of technical work, the two governments agreed an effective way to provide for the continuing provision of TG4 by building a new, low power TV multiplex in Northern Ireland. In addition to carrying TG4, this multiplex, which is part of the UK DTT system, also carries RTÉ 1 and RTÉ 2.
/ref> This increased the coverage of these channels in Northern Ireland, to 90% of the population in Northern Ireland to receive their services on a free-to-air basis, either through overspill as before or via the new multiplex.
The former analogue signals were switched off on a co-ordinated basis in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland on 24 October 2012.
Foreseen as part of the agreement between both governments was the establishment of a joint venture (as a not-for-profit company) between RTÉ and TG4 to run the multiplex which is licensed under the UK's Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006
The Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006 (c 36) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. This Act repealed the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949.
The Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006 had as its purpose to "consolidate enactments about wireless telegr ...
by Ofcom at the request of the UK government. In addition, the licensee has put out to competitive tender all the elements of the multiplex operation which are contestable and the multiplex is operated on an open book basis.
Mobile terrestrial television
Mobile Terrestrial Television is TV on mobile phone handsets, which does not have contention problems compared to 3G networks.
The Commission for Communications Regulation issued its response to Consultation 08/44 about interest in multi-city mobile TV licenses that could cover up to 40% of the population that would lead to the Award of available UHF spectrum in the urban areas of Cork, Dublin, Galway, Limerick and Waterford. That response to consultation was issued on Tuesday 28 July 2009.
Cable
Prior to Sky Digital, cable television was the most common system for distributing multi-channel television in Ireland. With more than 40 years of history and extensive networks of both wired and "wireless" cable, Ireland is amongst the most cabled countries in Europe. Forty percent of Irish homes received cable television in September 2006. The figure dropped slightly in the early years of the 21st century due to the increased popularity of satellite reception, notably Sky
The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space.
In the field of astronomy, ...
, but has stabilised recently.
In Ireland, Virgin Media Ireland
Virgin Media Ireland is Liberty Global's telecommunications operation in Ireland. It is the largest digital cable television provider within the country. As of 31 December 2014, the company offers broadband internet, digital television and ...
, which formerly traded under the brand names Chorus NTL and UPC Ireland, is by far the largest cable operator, almost all of the state's cable TV operators and formerly all of the state's MMDS licences. Virgin Media offers digital cable television services in cities and towns throughout the country (with the exception of Cork, where the network is digital-only). It offered MMDS services in rural areas until the MDS licences were withdrawn in 2016. Other than Virgin Media, the only other operators providing digital cable systems are Crossan CableComm which operates in Longford, Smyths Cablevision, which operates in Cavan, and Casey Cablevision which operates in Dungarvan, County Waterford
County Waterford ( ga, Contae Phort Láirge) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region. It is named ...
.
Satellite
Direct broadcast satellite
Satellite television is a service that delivers television programming to viewers by relaying it from a communications satellite orbiting the Earth directly to the viewer's location. The signals are received via an outdoor parabolic antenna comm ...
service has been available since the late 1980s
File:1980s replacement montage02.PNG, 420px, From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, ''Columbia'', lifts off in 1981; US president Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev ease tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the ...
with the arrival of free-to-air satellite Astra and subscription service Sky Television.
In 1988 a pan-European satellite service was launched through SES
SES, S.E.S., Ses and similar variants can refere to:
Business and economics
* Socioeconomic status
* Scottish Economic Society, a learned society in Scotland
* SES, callsign of the TV station SES/RTS (Mount Gambier, South Australia)
* SES S.A., ...
. The service provided viewers with pan-European channels which targeted the entire continent. On 5 February 1989, when Sky Television launched, British Satellite Broadcasting
British Satellite Broadcasting (BSB) was a television company, headquartered in London, that provided direct broadcast satellite television services to the United Kingdom. They started broadcasting on 25 March 1990. The company was merged with ...
, which was also available in Ireland, launched in 1990 and the two merged to form British Sky Broadcasting
Sky UK Limited is a British broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television and broadband Internet services, fixed line and mobile telephone services to consumers and businesses in the United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of ...
in 1990. For most of the 1990s
File:1990s decade montage.png, From top left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope orbits the Earth after it was launched in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War ...
however, Sky's DBS customer base in Ireland was dwarfed by the large numbers receiving its channels via cable. Sky Digital, Ireland's first digital television
Digital television (DTV) is the transmission of television signals using digital encoding, in contrast to the earlier analog television technology which used analog signals. At the time of its development it was considered an innovative advanc ...
service, launched in October 1998. However, in the absence of any subsidy
A subsidy or government incentive is a form of financial aid or support extended to an economic sector (business, or individual) generally with the aim of promoting economic and social policy. Although commonly extended from the government, the ter ...
for the Sky Digibox in Ireland – viewers in the UK could avail of both a Sky subsidy and one from British Interactive Broadcasting
Sky UK Limited is a British broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television and broadband Internet services, fixed line and mobile telephone services to consumers and businesses in the United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of ...
– the cost to initially acquire Sky Digital equipment was very expensive ( IEP 450) and subscriber numbers did not rise until both these subsidies were introduced into Ireland in 2000. In 2001, UK and Irish terrestrial channels became available to Irish Sky customers for the first time.
While Sky
The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space.
In the field of astronomy, ...
is the biggest satellite service in Ireland, it is by no means the only satellite broadcast available. Most free to air broadcasts available in Europe are available in Ireland via the right receiver (set top box
A set-top box (STB), also colloquially known as a cable box and historically television decoder, is an information appliance device that generally contains a TV-tuner input and displays output to a television set and an external source of si ...
) and a dish pointed at the correct satellite. In 2008, Sat4free, an adapted version of the UK Freesat equipment, began selling in Ireland. It is a fixed NI postcode version of a Freesat receiver. Some retailers in Ireland sell actual Freesat setboxes. Both Freesat and Sat4free are superior to generic satellite receivers for the reception of UK television, only old stock of Sat4Free is now available and new purchases should be "Freesat HD" even if the TV set is not HDTV. Imported "Grey market
A grey market or dark market (sometimes confused with the similar term " parallel market") is the trade of a commodity through distribution channels that are not authorized by the original manufacturer or trade mark proprietor. Grey market pr ...
" (as the contract the operator has doesn't permit direct sales outside the intended Geographic area) satellite receivers are sometimes used to watch both FTA and subscription channels from visitors home countries (e.g., Cyfrowy Polsat)
Following the failure of the commercial DTT process in May 2010 RTÉ submitted a revised DTT plan including an FTA satellite option to the Dept of Communications in mid-June 2010 for approval. RTÉ publicly announced at an Oireachtas Joint Committee on Communications discussion in mid-July 2010 that a free-to-air satellite service, called Saorsat
Saorsat ( ; the Irish word Saor, meaning free, therefore implying an Irish analogue of the UK's Freesat) is a free-to-air satellite service in Ireland. The service launched on 3 May 2012.
Overview
The RTÉ Network Limited (RTÉNL) analogue te ...
, would be offered to complement the terrestrial DTT service. Saorsat will enable Irish public service channels to be made available free to air and unencrypted, for the first time, as a means of covering the last 2% of the population who will be unable to receive the Saorview terrestrial service.
RTÉ said the combined offering was designed to be the most cost-effective solution for viewers and broadcasters; to offer for the first time 100% coverage of free-to-air public service television services in Ireland, and to provide full national backup coverage on satellite in the event of an emergency or catastrophic failure of the DTT system.
Approval for the revised National DTT plan and the new Saorsat satellite service was announced by the Minister for Communications at the end of July 2010.
The Saorsat
Saorsat ( ; the Irish word Saor, meaning free, therefore implying an Irish analogue of the UK's Freesat) is a free-to-air satellite service in Ireland. The service launched on 3 May 2012.
Overview
The RTÉ Network Limited (RTÉNL) analogue te ...
satellite service has been available publicly since 3 May 2012 as tests had commenced at the end of May 2011.
Streaming
With over one quarter of the population viewing programming on streaming platforms, many public service broadcasters and international streaming services serve the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland some of the most popular include:
* Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
* Amazon Prime
Amazon Prime is a paid subscription service from Amazon which is available in various countries and gives users access to additional services otherwise unavailable or available at a premium to other Amazon customers. Services include same, one- ...
* Apple TV+
Apple TV is a digital media player and microconsole developed and marketed by Apple Inc. It is a small network appliance hardware that plays received media data such as video and audio to a television set or external display. Since its secon ...
* Walter Presents
Walter Presents is a video-on-demand service of the UK's Channel 4, part of its All 4 online platform. Launched on 3 January 2016, it specialises in foreign-language drama and comedy with English subtitles. It is named after Walter Iuzzolino, ...
* Disney+
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment
Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...
* Volta
Free to access:
Republic of Ireland
* RTÉ Player
RTÉ Player is an on demand video service provided by Irish public media broadcaster RTÉ.
The service provides live and recorded RTÉ television programmes, and content exclusive to the player as well as content from other international broad ...
* Virgin Media Player
Virgin Media Player (formerly 3Player) is a live streaming and on demand video service available in Ireland, provided by Virgin Media Television (formerly TV3 Group), a subsidiary of Virgin Media Ireland, for programmes broadcast on the compa ...
* TG4 Player
TG4 ( ga, TG Ceathair, ) is an Irish free-to-air public service television network. The channel launched on 31 October 1996 and is available online and through its on demand service TG4 Player in Ireland and beyond.
TG4 was formerly known ...
* arte
Arte (; (), sometimes stylized in lowercase or uppercase in its logo) is a European public service channel dedicated to culture.
It is made up of three separate companies: the Strasbourg-based European Economic Interest Grouping ARTE, plus ...
* All 4
All 4 is a video on demand service from the Channel Four Television Corporation, free of charge for most content and funded by advertising. The service is available in the UK and Ireland; viewers are not required to have a TV licence—required ...
(selection of on demand content only. Live TV not available)
* BBC iPlayer
BBC iPlayer (stylised as iPLAYER or BBC iPLAYER) is a video on demand service from the BBC. The service is available on a wide range of devices, including mobile phones and tablets, personal computers and smart televisions. iPlayer services del ...
(Ireland version, on Sky Glass
Sky UK Limited is a British broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television and broadband Internet services, fixed line and mobile telephone services to consumers and businesses in the United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of ...
only)
Northern Ireland
* RTÉ Player International
* BBC iPlayer
BBC iPlayer (stylised as iPLAYER or BBC iPLAYER) is a video on demand service from the BBC. The service is available on a wide range of devices, including mobile phones and tablets, personal computers and smart televisions. iPlayer services del ...
* All 4
All 4 is a video on demand service from the Channel Four Television Corporation, free of charge for most content and funded by advertising. The service is available in the UK and Ireland; viewers are not required to have a TV licence—required ...
* ITV Hub
ITVX (formerly ITV Hub) is a British online video-on-demand service operated by ITV plc, ITV. The service offers predominantly features content from ITV1, as well as ITV Digital Channels, ITV Digital channels and some licensed content. The serv ...
* My5
My5 (previously Five Download and later Demand 5) is the brand name of video-on-demand services offered by Channel 5 in the United Kingdom. The service went live on 26 June 2008. It is owned by Paramount Global and operated by their Paramoun ...
Other technologies
DVB-H
* O2 Ireland
Telefónica Ireland was a broadband and telecommunications provider in Ireland that traded under the O2 brand (typeset as O2). O2 Ireland was previously called Esat Digifone when it was owned by Esat Telecommunications (and Telenor) from 1997 ...
and 3 Ireland
Three Ireland, officially Three Ireland (Hutchison) Limited (formerly Hutchison 3G Ireland Ltd), is a telecommunications and internet service provider operating in Ireland as a subsidiary of CK Hutchison, operating under the global Three bran ...
undertook trials of DVB-H. However delays in licensing broadcast spectrum to the mobile sector in Ireland forced telecoms providers such as O2 to proceed with 3G/HSDPA Mobile TV. Vodafone Ireland and 3 Ireland already have significant digital video content distributed over their 3G and 3.5G (HSDPA) networks
Virgin Media Ireland provided a wireless cable service over an all digital MMDS network reaching over 80% of the country. This network operated at 2.5 GHz to 2.7 GHz until the 18 April 2016.
The now defunct SCTV Digital provided an advanced digital television service to Cork City and parts of County Cork. It is licensed to operate all over Munster. Operating at 11.7 GHz to 12.5 GHz ( MVDDS) it delivered approximately 75 digital television channels and video on demand services from "Sky By Wire".
Digital satellite is the only form of subscriber satellite transmission available in the country and is provided by Sky
The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space.
In the field of astronomy, ...
(and Sky+ HD
Sky+ HD was the brand name of the High-definition television, HDTV service launched by Sky plc on 22 May 2006 in the United Kingdom and Ireland to enable high definition channels on Sky (UK and Ireland), Sky to be viewed. For the first two ...
). The Freesat
Freesat is a British free-to-air satellite television service, first formed as a joint venture between the BBC and ITV plc and now owned by Digital UK. The service was formed as a memorandum in 2007 and has been marketed since 6 May 2008. Free ...
a UK service is also available in the country, as are FTA satellite channels from several other European countries.
One company provides digital television via IPTV; Magnet Entertainment.
*Magnet Networks offers viewers in Ireland the chance to view RTÉ One
RTÉ One ( ga, RTÉ a hAon) is an Irish free-to-air flagship television channel owned and operated by Raidió TeilifÃs Éireann (RTÉ). It is the most-popular and most-watched television channel in the country and was launched as ''TelefÃs à ...
, RTÉ2, TV3, TG4, 3e and Dáil & Seanad TV channels via the internet.
Deflectors (UHF television programme retransmission)
In rural areas where neither cable or direct terrestrial overspill was available, UHF television programme retransmission systems or deflectors picked up the UK terrestrial channels (either from Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
or Wales), and retransmitted them on local UHF signals along with other channels.
These operators faced legal action in the late 1990s from MMDS operators, as they did not pay royalties to the relevant broadcasters, and were not licensed. When the deflectors were shut down, there was such an outcry in those areas that an independent election candidate in County Donegal
County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...
, Tom Gildea
Thomas Gildea (born September 1939) is an Irish former politician who was elected as an independent Teachta Dála (TD) at the 1997 general election.
A farmer representing Donegal South-West, he won popular local support for his campaign to l ...
, was elected as a TD on a platform of supporting legalisation, which occurred in 1999.
Deflectors were first licensed in 1999 by the then spectrum regulator, the ODTR.
The Wireless Telegraphy (UHF Television Programme Retransmission) Regulations, 2009 were the last for deflectors, as all deflector licences expired in December 2012 due to the transition to DTT.There are few (if any) such systems still operating in Ireland.
Television licence
In Ireland, a television licence
A television licence or broadcast receiving licence is a payment required in many countries for the reception of television broadcasts, or the possession of a television set where some broadcasts are funded in full or in part by the licence f ...
is required for any address at which there is a television set or device not exempted under Staturory Instrument 319 of 2009 see. In 2008, the annual licence fee is €160.[
] Revenue is collected by An Post
(; literally 'The Post') is the state-owned provider of postal services in Ireland. An Post provides a "universal postal service" to all parts of the country as a member of the Universal Postal Union. Services provided include letter post, p ...
, the Irish postal service. The bulk of the fee is used to fund Raidió TeilifÃs Éireann
Raidi (; ; also written Ragdi; born August, 1938) is a Tibetan politician of the People's Republic of China. He served as a vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress from 2003 to 2008, and the highest ranking Tibeta ...
, the state broadcaster
State media or government media are media outlets that are under financial and/or editorial control of the state or government, directly or indirectly. There are different types of state and government media. State-controlled or state-run media a ...
. The licence must be paid for any premises that has any equipment that can potentially decode TV signals, even those that are not RTÉ's. The licence is free to senior citizens (to anyone over the age of 70, some over 66), some Social Welfare
Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifical ...
recipients, and individuals who are blind. The fee for the licences of such beneficiaries is paid for by the state.
Most-viewed channels (IRL)
The channels with the largest AGB Nielsen viewing share from 2002 – 2012 are outlined in the table below:
See also
*
* Television in Northern Ireland
Television in Northern Ireland is available using, digital terrestrial (known as Freeview), digital satellite (from Sky & Freesat) and cable (from Virgin Media).
Analogue terrestrial used UHF 625 lines, in common with the rest of the UK, althoug ...
* Television in the United Kingdom
Regular television broadcasts in the United Kingdom started in 1936 as a public service which was free of advertising, which followed the Mechanical television#Television demonstrations, first demonstration of a transmitted moving image in 1926 ...
* List of Ireland game shows
* 1960s in Irish television
* Timeline of RTÉ Television
* Timeline of commercial television in the Republic of Ireland
This is a timeline of the history of commercial television in the Republic of Ireland.
1980s and 1990s 1988
*October – The Independent Radio and Television Commission is established under the terms of the Radio and Television Act, 1988 to re ...
References
* Archived a
Ghostarchive
and th
Wayback Machine
External links
Broadcasting Commission of Ireland
MAVISE – TV market in Ireland
Broadcasting Complaints Commission
Polytron Technology Ireland
Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources – ''Broadcasting''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Television In Ireland
1949 establishments in Ireland