TV to be completely digitalized

[Gregg Lengling]

Canadian Press


Quebec — Millions of Canadians who still watch television on older equipment will have time to catch up to a coming wave of digital technology.

The federal broadcast regulator unveiled a road map Tuesday for eventually moving all Canadian television to digital signals that would allow on-demand viewing, a wide screen and clearer picture of high definition TV.

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission's plan includes a grace period for the millions of Canadians who still get their television from older sets and don't have the equipment to receive digital TV.

"Our aim is to get the digital signals out there so that Canadians can get them," Charles Dalfen, chair of the CRTC, told a meeting of broadcasters.

"I think it will move along. But we don't want to force people to go out and get new sets," he told the annual convention of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters. "We need to get everybody with the program."

Under the plan, broadcasters will be required to offer both analog and digital signals until 85 per cent of viewers have switched to digital-ready equipment.

The CRTC has yet to propose a specific timeline for the switch, but Mr. Dalfen predicted it could take five or six years.

About a quarter of Canadian households still get their television from old-fashioned airwaves, while the rest rely on satellite or cable where digital service is often available.

However, even with cable the switch to digital service has been slow.

Of the 7.3 million Canadian households with cable television in 2002, the cable industry says about 1.3 million people were using digital signals.