Advanced Television

Portugal’s Competition Authority wants more DTT

July 5, 2013

From Branislav Pekic in Rome

Portugal’s Competition Authority has recommended more free-to-air TV channels on DTT, both public and private, as well as national and regional.

In a report on the state of the DTT market in Portugal, the Authority concludes that the current channel offer is “manifestly beyond the means” of potential operators and it recommends evaluating the interest of “creating price conditions, possibly via regulatory means”, which provide access to the broadcast network, in particular to local authorities, in order to stimulate the increase of the number of FTA channels.

The regulator also recommends an “increased involvement” of public broadcaster RTP in this process, including providing FTA thematic channels – currently only available on pay-TV – such as RTP Memoria and RTP Informação.

Last but not least, the Authority has also criticised the existing DTT platform, because it is “limited to replicating” the channel offer of the old analogue terrestrial system.

Categories: Articles, Broadcast, DTT/DSO, FTA