The Switchover Help Scheme was part of the

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 ...

switchover Switchover is the manual switch from one system to a redundant or standby computer server, system, or network upon the failure or abnormal termination of the previously active server, system, or network, or to perform system maintenance, such as ...

process in the United Kingdom. Funded by an increase in the TV licence fee, and administered by the

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. ...

on behalf of the

Department for Culture, Media and Sport , type = Department , logo = Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport logo.svg , logo_width = , logo_caption = , seal = , seal_width = , seal_caption = , picture = Gove ...

, it aimed to ensure that up to 7 million households meeting its eligibility criteria would continue to be able to receive television broadcasts after analogue transmissions had been switched off. The service was scheduled to run until March 2013 after which no more households could apply, however the switchover process was completed on 23 October 2012 with the ceasing of analogue TV broadcasts in Northern Ireland.

Eligibility criteria

The scheme was open to all households in which (between eight months before and one month after analogue switch-off at the relevant transmitter) one or more residents were at least 75 years old, or received a

Disability Living Allowance Disability Living Allowance (DLA) is a social security benefit in the United Kingdom paid to eligible claimants who have personal care and/or mobility needs as a result of a mental or physical disability. It is tax-free, non- means-tested and non- ...

Attendance Allowance Attendance Allowance is a non-contributory Social Security benefit paid to elderly disabled people in the United Kingdom. It was introduced in the National Insurance (Old Persons' and Widows' Pension and Attendance Allowance) Act 1970 . The benefi ...

, or one or more residents were registered as blind or partially sighted. Also, all residents who had lived in a care home for at least 6 months were automatically eligible.

Cost

If the eligible person (or the person's partner) also received income-related benefits or pension credit, the scheme was free of charge for the standard option. All other recipients had to pay a flat fee of £40.

Procedure

The scheme provided, in essence, whatever it took to get an appropriate digital television service into the household, by the most cost-effective method. For most households this was a set-top box for digital terrestrial TV; the models supplied had to meet certain core requirements beyond what is seen on standard digital boxes, most notably the provision of

Audio description Audio description, also referred to as a video description, described video, or more precisely called a visual description, is a form of narration used to provide information surrounding key visual elements in a media work (such as a film or tele ...

. The remote controls provided had also to meet requirements for ease of use. The scheme also provided any help that was required to get the equipment running, including user training and, if necessary, replacement of the aerial system. Householders who preferred to replace an analogue TV set completely, with a digital TV, or wanted a box which included a digital TV recording facility, could obtain these at discount prices. Householders who chose not to receive digital terrestrial TV could opt for a discount on the cost of a subscription-based TV service (

satellite A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioiso ...

or cable) – or off the cost of a

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. F ...

installation.

Whitehaven trial

It has been reported that in the

Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and port on the English north west coast and near to the Lake District National parks of England and Wales, National Park in Cumbria, England. Historically in Cumberland, it lies by road south-west of Carlisle, Cumbria, C ...

area, the first non-voluntary conversion from analogue to digital television, take-up of the help scheme has been surprisingly low. This may be partly due to the high percentage of homes already receiving satellite TV in the absence, before switchover, of any Freeview transmissions. Additionally, many householders who met the age criteria but had no special needs did not require the enhanced set-top box, or a replacement aerial (most of the population lives within a few kilometres of the transmitter) and therefore had no reason to pay the £40 flat fee.

Helping Hand Campaign

The Helping Hand Campaign urged people to tell those aged over 75 and disabled people about the special assistance available for switching from analogue to digital television.

References

{{reflist

External links

Switchover Help Scheme website
Digital television in the United Kingdom