Italy sets roadmap for MPEG-4 and DVB-T2 switchover
July 23, 2019
From Branislav Pekic in Rome
Italy’s Ministry of Economic Development has published a new road map and timetable for the transition to the new DVB-T2 technology for TV broadcasting, following public consultations with stakeholders.
The new road map, which divides Italy into four geographical areas, provides for the activation of DVB-T/MPEG-4 encoding in the last four months of 2021 and of the DVBT-2 HEVC standard at national level in the period between 21 June 2022 and 30 June 2022, without prejudice to the right for operators to activate DVBT/MPEG-4 encoding or the DVBT-2 standard before the scheduled deadlines.
The process will kick-off in so-called areas 2 and 3 (almost all of northern Italy), and be implemented from September 1st to December 31st 2021. The rest of the country will follow by June 20th 2022, when the 700 MHz band will be made available for 5G.
The guidelines on the procedures for the transition to DVB-T-2 for local broadcasting require successful bidders to guarantee a price proportional to the population of the provinces concerned. In order to protect local pluralism, there are also constraints on the awarding of more than one network in the same territory to the same entity.
Local operators requesting early voluntary scrapping of networks are also entitled to advance payment of statutory compensation.