One of the theoretical benefits of the much-maligned Freeview alliance — the grouping of commercial networks which so far hasn’t offered much more than a heavily-delayed EPG which is only supported by a handful of set-top boxes — is the notion that Freeview might provide a centralised catch-up service for watching programs online, similar to Hulu in the US. That idea is still theoretically on the drawing board, but don’t expect it to happen any time soon. More »
Tomorrow sees the first region in Australia, Mildura/Sunraysia, switch off its analogue TV signal and move to a totally digital regime. While it’s a historic moment, it doesn’t take John Logie Baird to work out what it actually means: not all that much. More »
Remember how Freeview has been promising a flashy electronic program guide for more than a year? The upgraded EPG is being officially rolled out this week. More »
Freeview has so far managed to do a pretty good job of convincing the tech-savvy that it hasn’t got a clue, so it’s good to see the commercial network digital TV conglomerate doing something right for a change. More »
While there’s plenty to criticise about Freeview, a recent article in the Herald Sun managed to totally mislead a large proportion of the population by claiming that many TVs would become redundant on May 1 when Freeview launches. Nick over at Gizmodo has a nice overview of the issue and why the Melbourne paper got it so wrong, but the bottom line is that there’s no scheduled change to the transmission standards being used by Australian TV stations, and hence no prospect of everything going dead in a month or so. Time to call your Victorian relatives, perhaps? Don’t Panic! Your TV Will Not Stop Working After May 1 [Gizmodo AU]
When Lifehacker recently discussed the pros and cons of Freeview, the still-nascent plan to promote digital TV via extra free-to-air channels, some commentators pointed out that accessing these channels won’t require a Freeview-branded set-top box — any digital TV or set-top box would do. While that’s true, it turns out Freeview will have one nasty brand-enhancing trick up its sleeve. Ty Pendlebury at CNET reports that the electronic program guide (EPG) for Freeview won’t be compatible with current TVs and boxes — you’ll need a Freeview box to access that, though some manufacturers may offer firmware upgrades to make it possible. The lack for many years of a decent and comprehensive free EPG was unquestionably one of the reasons why media centres haven’t been as successful in Australia as elsewhere, so it’s disturbing to say the least to see the industry perpetuating its small-minded view of sharing programming information with newer platforms. Freeview EPG won’t be compatible with current TVs [CNet]
