Some 500 households in Finland still out of range of digital network

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By Pyry Lapintie
      The reach and reception quality of digital television improved considerably in Finland during the autumn and towards the end of the year, after 42 new sub-transmitters had been set up in different parts of the country to complement digital TV broadcasting.
     
The installation of the supplementary transmitters reduced the number of those households that are out of range of the digital network from 5,000 to 500.
      Another eight sub-stations are planned to be set up in the near future.
     
The installation of the two most northern sub-transmitters in Utsjoki, in Finnish Lapland, has been delayed by the weather, while the Finnish Communications Regulatory Authority is still negotiating with the Russian and Norwegian authorities over the frequency coordination of those sub-transmitters which are to be set up in six other locations close to the eastern and northern borders.
      ”These 500 households are scattered around Finland. For example, in Central Finland many buildings are located down in valleys where the reception of television is poor”, says Communications Manager Birgitta Selonen from Digita Oy, the leading Finnish distributor of radio and television services.
     
According to Area Manager Aki Nurmi from Digita’s Turku radio and TV station, some shadow areas also exist in the archipelago off Turku, where dozens of cottages on the sunny southern or western shores of islands are out of range of the digital network, as large rocks or cliffs behind the houses prevent them from getting a terrestrial signal, while the only reception direction is from the northward or eastward landmass.
     
”One should also bear in mind that the range of the current digital television network is already more extensive than that of the analogue televison ever was”, noted Selonen.
      Nevertheless, those whose television sets remain dark can hardly be blamed for wondering how the Finnish Broadcasting Company YLE and Digita Oy have the nerve to demand that their customers pay a full licence fee for such poor service.
      Many people among the islands have already spent hundreds of euros on new equipment, while the digital images still remain grainy and jerky.
      According to Digita, supplementary transmitters have already been set up in Korpo, Houtskär, and Gustavs, all municipalities in the Turku archipelago. Further improvements have been planned, and Digita will inform the viewers of them in the near future.
      The switchover to digital broadcasting in Finland took place in September 2007, with analogue television broadcasting coming to an end across the country.
     
     
Helsingin Sanomat / First published in print 7.1.2008


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Digital television era comes in tonight (31.8.2007)
  Switch to digital television will darken Toini Sanila´s set (28.8.2007)
  Financing YLE operations through digital TV smart card gets support (14.12.2007)

Links:
  Digita Oy
  Finnish Communications Regulatory Authority

PYRY LAPINTIE / Helsingin Sanomat
pyry.lapintie@hs.fi