Italy to cease MPEG-2 DTT in December
October 10, 2022
From Branislav Pekic in Rome
Italian broadcasters united in the Confindustria Radio Television association have agreed that December 20th will be the last day of broadcasting DTT channels in MPEG-2.
Consequently, from December 21st, TV viewers will only be able to receive TV channels broadcast using MPEG-4 encoding.
According to the association, the establishment of a common date will enable broadcasters, equipment manufacturers and the relevant institutions to plan an appropriate communication campaign aimed at those who have not yet replaced their existing reception equipment.
The switchover of the transmission encoding from MPEG-2 to MPEG-4 represents a pre-requisite for the roll out of DVB-T2 and is also part of the process of the release of the 700 MHz frequency band for 5G mobile technology.
A Parliamentary bill was adopted on September 21st that provides a bonus of up to €50 to interested citizens for the purchase of satellite reception equipment.
Alternatively, they can also apply for the existing €30 bonus for the purchase of MPEG-4 compatible DTT reception equipment.