) forum, chat about almost anything you like! Including sport, trivia, games etc.
This article has been in the news today although lost with the pope resigning
I am one of those mentioned who may be affected receiving my freeview signal from Winter Hill
Forewarned as they say is forearmed
Kind regards Stephen
Millions of British TV viewers could lose their signal as a result of new high speed 4G mobile phone signals.
The firm set up to monitor the problem today admitted it was in a race against time to distribute filters to an estimated 2.3 million viewers before the networks go live in the summer.
40,000 homes will lose their signal entirely, and will be forced to use alternatives such as satellite or cable to receive a TV signal.
Digital Mobile Spectrum Limited, a new company funded by £180m of the proceeds of the ongoing 4G radio spectrum auction, is in charge of the problem.
The auction is expected to finish later this month, allowing mobile operators to begin building the 4G networks by the summer.
'We need to be fully operational by March to be in place to mitigate any interference issues,' said Simon Beresford-Wylie, a telecoms industry veteran today appointed as chief executive of DMSL.
'I look forward to working closely with broadcasters and mobile network operators to ensure everyone continues to be able to receive their current TV service.'
He claims engineers will be able to predict where interference will occur, based on a 'sophisticated model' developed with the mobile operators.
'We expect to be able to identify affected households.
'We will need to procure millions [of filters] in the first instance,' he said.
'We’re focused on being able to provide anyone who may be affected with the information and equipment they’ll need to ensure they continue to receive free-to-air TV.'
The areas likely to be worst hit identified by Ofcom include those served by the Crystal Palace transmitter in London and the Winter Hill transmitter in Lancashire.
However, the firm has not yet revealed detailed information of the affected areas.
The services are not the first 4G networks to operate in the UK.
However, EE’s 4G network, operating in major cities, does not interfere with television signals because it reuses the 1,800MHz radio spectrum band originally allocated for 2G mobile networks.
The 800MHz band, ideal for covering rural areas with 4G, is likely to interfere, however, as digital terrestrial television uses the adjacent 700MHz band.
Of the 2.3 million potentially affected homes, regulators have calculated that for almost 40,000 could permanently lose their Freeview signal because a filter will be ineffective.
The chairman of DMSL, Andrew Pinder, said, 'Ensuring Britain’s terrestrial TV continues uninterrupted while Britain benefits from 4G at 800 MHz is a huge responsibility.'
