According to a survey conducted by the Nielsen Admosphere agency for the CRA, more than half of domestic households currently use DVB-T2 broadcasting, namely 55 percent. The remaining 45 percent is shared by other types of broadcasts, which are paid – for example, IPTV, satellite or cable.
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Given that the free DVB-T2 signal is available to 99 percent of households, through 78 transmitters and 163 repeaters, it is quite surprising that so many people pay for television services. This is probably due to the fact that the mentioned types of connections usually offer a much wider program offer and sometimes also premium functions, such as the possibility to look back or rewind the ads.
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The transition didn’t take a year
The transition to the new DVB-T2 broadcasting standard started in the Czech Republic on 27 November 2019. At that time, the people of Prague first lost their first generation of digital terrestrial broadcasting, and the Prague Žižkov and Cukrák transmitters were retuned.
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České Radiokomunikace was originally supposed to complete the transition to the new standard before the summer holidays – this June. However, due to the spread of coronavirus, the schedule has been adjusted and people have been given more time to prepare for the transition.
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According to the government-approved schedule, the last transmitter was switched off on Wednesday, October 28, when it was Valašské Klobouky – Ploštiny. A total of 182 transmitters and repeaters of four nationwide DVB-T networks operated by Czech Television, Czech Radiocommunications, Czech Digital Group and Digital Broadcasting were switched off.
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“In less than a year, the entire Czech Republic switched to a new television broadcast. This is despite the fact that due to the spring wave of the covid-19 epidemic, the switching had to be interrupted for almost four months, “said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry and Trade Karel Havlíček.
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Frequencies guaranteed until 2030
The frequencies for terrestrial television broadcasting in DVB-T2 are guaranteed by the state at least until 2030. So people do not have to worry about having to change their televisions again or buy set-top boxes in a few years due to a more modern television standard.
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As can be seen from the lines above, the transition to DVB-T2 certainly did not concern everyone. Cable, satellite and Internet users have not been affected by the changes in recent months.
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The DVB-T2 standard therefore achieves better coverage in the Czech Republic than older DVB-T. At the same time, it offers Czechs more television programs, as well as higher picture quality. However, there were many more reasons for switching to DVB-T2, such as the advent of high-speed 5G mobile internet.
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Wireless bands are not inflatable and the Czech Telecommunication Office clearly determines who is allowed to operate in a particular frequency band and what it can do. As indicated in the lines above, the transition to the second generation has made it possible to free up important bands for high-speed mobile internet. Domestic operators will thus be able to build new networks that will ensure higher transmission speeds.
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