Spain: 2nd digital dividend in the 700 MHz band
September 25, 2014
From David Del Valle in Madrid
As Spain gets ready to retune its DTT aerials with broadcasters freeing up the 800 MHz band for 4G services, the State Secretary of Telecommunications, Victor Calvo-Sotelo, has announced in Parliament that a new digital dividend will take place in the 700 Mhz band.
“This second process will be easier because that range (of frequencies) are not being used with two or three exceptions,” he said.
With the new DTT technical Plan broadcasters must retune their DTT channels in one month and simulcast their DTT signals from October until March 25th (5 months). The government has urged citizens to readjust their aerials -whose cost will be paid through state subsidies of up to €286 million- as soon as possible with the December 31st deadline to complete the whole process.
In the new DTT map, with 8 multiplexes, concerning nation wide TV channels the public broadcaster RTVE will finally operate one multiplex and two thirds of another, instead of half as was said. Mediaset will have half of a multiplex and one fourth of another one; Antena 3 will exploit half of a multiplex, the fourth part of another one and half of another one; whereas Net TV and Veo TV will operate half of a multiplex each one.
The government will invest €6 billion in a public media campaign to inform about the new DTT map and the reorganisation of the channels.