700MHz Clearance – Your Digital TV Reception May be Disrupted
Last year, we wrote an article mentioning that the 700MHz clearance was being implemented at many transmitter groups around the UK. All of the major areas that we provide professional aerial services for such as the South West of the UK and areas across South Wales are expected to be significantly affected by the 700MHz clearance and it’s therefore important that you are ready and well informed for these changes as well as prepared for the reception interference that you may experience over the coming months.
The relevant transmitter groups that may affect our clients are the Mendip transmitter group that serves Bristol, parts of Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire as well as the Wenvoe transmitter group. This serves Cardiff, Newport and South East Wales.
Although the transmitter groups that affect these areas are due to be carried out in April – June of 2019, there has already been work carried out which has been reported to be causing interference and may affect the picture quality of your digital TV service, such as Freeview. In this article, we will cover what the 700MHz clearance is, why this clearance is occurring and what to do if you are facing reception issues.
If you are already experiencing issues, we understand that this can be highly frustrating and we are more than happy to help you if you find that you cannot resolve the issue yourself. Contact a member of our professional aerial installation and repair team today using an online contact form on our website if you are having issues. Alternatively, call now on: 01179 679 028 to arrange for a free call out.
What is the 700MHz Clearance?
Way back when, in November 2016 – Ofcom made the decision to reallocate some of the airways that are utilised by Freeview via digital TV to mobile services. This means that certain Freeview channels will need to move to new frequencies and this was coined as the 700MHz clearance. The demand for mobile data is continuing to grow and showing no sign of stopping so to cope with these demands, an additional section of the 700MHz band is being made available for future broadband use. Not only is this band used for Freeview, it’s also used for wireless communication for programme-making and special events which means that you may also see interference in wireless communication occurring.
What Will I Need to Do When the Clearance Occurs?
Around April to June of 2019 is where the clearance affecting your area may affect coverage and the channels that you can view. Retuning your TV or set-top boxes during this time should mean that most viewers should be able to restore the affected channels. Local or high definition TV channels should definitely be checked and if your equipment retunes automatically then this clearance should not affect you. It’s important to note that a small percentage of homeowners may need to replace their rooftop aerial entirely to continue to receive services. Although there’s no scheduled work to be carried out on the Mendip and Wenvoe transmitters until April – June 2019, we have already received reports of signal interruption so if you do have an issue, contact a member of our team.
Issues With Television Signal & Reception
We can help you if you are experiencing issues related to these transmitters. We can take a look and see if the issue is being caused due to changes carried out to the relevant transmitter or we can take a look at your aerial to see if your aerial needs to be replaced if retuning alone does not resolve this issue. There are also a variety of other reasons as to why your television reception could be affected so it’s important to bear these in mind when experiencing difficulties with television reception or your television aerial.
If you are facing any issues, our experienced aerial installation and repairs team can come out to see you (with no call out charge) and take a look at your aerial and the recent history or reports of interference in your area. Once we have an idea of what is causing the issues to your television reception then we can offer you a free, no obligation quotation and if you are happy with this then we are able to repair or replace your aerial / resolve the issue you are experiencing with your television reception.
What is Expected to be Implemented After the 700 MHz Clearance?
The launch of 5G (fifth generation mobile networks) was claimed to be being rolled out by Japan, China, South Korea and the US in 2018 but turbulence and aggression in the market has delayed the roll-out of this network. In the UK, the rollout date isn’t set to begin until late 2019 or early 2020 and this is why the 700 MHz band is being cleared for the implementation of 5G. 5G is set to adapt to the needs of mobile users even further as video streaming and gaming is becoming more and more popular with mobile users. Couple that with the rapid rise of mobile use for ecommerce, purchasing products and increasing the user experience and the place for 5G within the mobile market becomes more and more apparent. Virtual reality is also a key area that could be investigated with this technology with 02 running a trial in the 02 arena where people will be able to test out 5G.
Some are claiming that 5G will be as much as 100x faster than 4G. 5G promises speeds up to 1GB/s but there are estimates that it will be 10Gb/s. The additional benefits are the time that will be saved instead of waiting for downloads as well as the cross-sector implementations that could be implemented to save time and money in a variety of sectors. With faster speeds could mean that robotics can be controlled remotely offering the potential for medical robots and drones to become more and more effective.
Resolve Reception Issues With The Aerial Man Today
Although the future of 5G is a very exciting prospect, we understand the frustrations that are associated with issues with television reception. Although there are a variety of reasons as to why you may be experiencing issues with your television reception, we have been receiving reports that the 700MHz clearance is already affecting reception ahead of the scheduled clearance times for the Mendip and Wenvoe transmitters. We are more than happy to help you with any issues that you may be experiencing both before the scheduled clearance times and when these clearance times occur. If you are having any issues with your television reception then contact a member of our expert aerial installation and repair team today.
If there’s an issue that is not related to the 700 MHz clearance then we will be able to diagnose the issue and offer you a solution, whether this is relocating your current aerial, carrying out some repairs on your aerial or replacing the aerial all together. Everyone deserves crystal clear television reception and we can help you get things back to normal. Enquire with a member of our team today by using an online contact form on our website or telephone now on: 01179 679 028
