BBC TWO HD, some thoughts
Broadcast recently reported BBC HD/3D boss quits; BBC2 HD planned:
"Meanwhile, the BBC HD channel will move towards becoming a simulcast of BBC2, although a spokeswoman stressed that a full BBC2 HD channel remained a long term aspiration. No proposals have been put to the BBC Trust yet, but they could feature as part of Delivering Quality First."
It is worth noting that this idea, however unplanned, would certainly be a good "win" for the BBC, as it would be playing the Sky EPG game to their advantage.
Currently, BBC HD is Sky channel 169 and BBC One HD is 143, both quite a few pages down the Sky HD electronic programme guide.
However, as a "full replacement" channel, BBC TWO HD would appear at 102 - right at the top of the high definition channel list!
As there are only four regional versions of BBC TWO, one each for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, satellite capacity would only have to be found for an additional three high definition video streams if the HD channel was taken from the EPG.
The problem at the moment is that only three HD streams fit into an Astra 2D transponder, or four on the "wider" Astra 2A/2B satellites.
BBC three, FOUR, CBBC, Cbeebies
And just another two streams would be required to provide the other four channels, as UK-wide services BBC three timeshares with CBBC, and BBC FOUR shares with Cbeebies. And, again, as "full replacement services", they would go in the Sky EPG at 115, 116, 613 and 614.BBC one
With 15 regions on BBC one, fifteen streams would need to be carried to get BBC One HD at position 101. That would require four or five full transponders to carry the services, capacity that is not currently available.For this reason, the BBC currently plan to only provide for the 16.2% of the UK population in the nations (Scotland 8.4%, Wales 4.9%, NI 2.9%) on BBC One HD, so the channel will remain at 143, but with local news and schedules for the "nations".
11:47 AM
The Freeview HD Channels are numbered as follows :
50 BBC One HD
51 - ITV1 HD
52 - Channel 4 HD
53 - S4C HD
54 - BBC HD
It would be more logical if they were numbered as follows :
50 - BBC HD
51 BBC One HD
52 BBC 2 HD (future possibility)
53 - ITV1 HD
54 - Channel 4 HD
55 - Channel 5 HD (future possibility)
58 -S4C HD (consistent with Channel 4 (Wales) SD channel number)
Does anyone else agree ?
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2:11 PM
Bournemouth
I rather feel that the BBC regional service should receive a revamp after total digital switchover. If BBC3 and Beebies were an all day service on 7/107 and left intact as an all day service but with regional news and national news at the prescribed times it would leave 1/101 to be BBC1 National. Giving us BBC3 North, BBC3 South, BBC3 West, BBC3 Scotland etc.
Germany seems to manage this quite well as ZDF/WDR seem to show.
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Ian's: mapI's Freeview map terrainI's terrain plot wavesI's frequency data I's Freeview Detailed Coverage
Ian Smith: In the long and distant past, BBC Choice (as the pre-split CBBC/BBC3) did have Scottish, NI and Wales versions.
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10:40 PM
I have always thought that BBC should make BBC 2 an HD channel. The current BBC HD is mishmash of programing mainly repeats. Often HD versions of programs were not simulcast. As for BBC 3 & 4 HD programs they could be switched to BBC 2 until BBC 3 & 4 HD can be launched.
The BBC needs to put much more money into HD. The news is not due to go Hd till 2013.
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5:38 AM
Personally i would not encourage Local HD or ultra localisation optouts (4 or more regions) dynamic in HD as it completely a waste of bandwidth even if more space appeared.
In the BBC case it should be one channel or upto 4 to cater for the nations.
Perhaps they should bring back UK Today that was on BBC News 24 afew years ago
Then turn it into a 4 region service when space permit (NI, Scotland, Wales and England).
England will be the one to suffer less favorablely as the other nations already have 1 news/political service but they could theorically follow what they did with the Sport highlights for league football with England being split in 2 or 3 regions when I rarely watched it.
ITV1's going the way that in time likely they not need the upto 11 HD feeds (LOL) leaving around 4 - UTV, ITV, ITV Wales and STV
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5:56 AM
BBC Three/CBBC, BBC Four/CBeebies and even BBC News in HD come after 2013 should really get preference before any regional opt gets a HD simulcast that about 23 hours a day is the same.
For about a hour HD as probably many feel is particular with the English Regions would be a waste that see better as a England wide BBC One HD 'England Today' Show that contains the main news of the English Regions and they could add prompt to send from BBC One HD to the regional SD version.
Expect that been thought many times tho never acted on as they could theory start on BBC One HD with a UK Today show!
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6:17 AM
Ian would making BBC 1 national like the current BBC Three/CBBC basically and shifting the regional variations from BBC 1 the BBC 3 shift same problem elsewhere (when it goes HD)!
The Full BBC Region Service should be in SD only with a limited HD verions (4 nation programmes)
Better if they made it so that it automatically switches back and forth helping a HD viewer or even look into perhaps 'locally' (in the box) upscale SD broadcasts.
Upscaled SD has to be better than having either one HD broadcast that not relevant (being from SW England and watch London) or using limited space for HD simulcasts that bring as little as 1 hour of variation a day and in case of ITV different Adverts!
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6:49 AM
Agree Alan with your HD EPG except reservations on 58 S4C HD.
S4C SD currently happen to use 4 so in Wales assumely it would prefer Channel 4 HD 54 (x4). Doubt they (S4C) like to be given the x8 even if Channel 4 (England, Scotland and NI) SD in Wales is 8.
Agreed S4C being 56+/58 would be better and simplify things on 54 as well as those in England-Welsh co reception areas if S4C happy with 8/58!
58 'Nation HD' (S4C HD & BBC Alba HD)
53 also include non ITV1 plc regions UTV and STV).
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4:50 PM
Surely, with a bit of innovation for Freeview and Freesat, an automatic means of changing multiplex / transponder as part of the EPG could be devised. On Freeview, when tuned to BBC One, on an HD decoder it would default to BBC One HD except when a regional programme bit is set. Likewise on Freesat, the local BBC One is determined by the post code.
The channel would stay on the local SD one as long as the bit remains set and default to HD when not. This could equally be applied to BBC Two and the Sky EPG.
If they can do it for RDS Radio, traffic and DAB to FM transfer and back, the coding cannot be that difficult?
Regards
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7:23 AM
Chester Le Street
How annoying is BBC HD that it isnt BBC2HD when you want to watch BBC2 in HD.
BBC regions what a mess. First off they used to just give us music on hold when watching BBC1 HD when the local news was on, now i get Manchester local news, weather and adverts BUT i live near Durham!
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