Broadcast Networks Europe is dedicated to maintaining an efficient and fair regulatory and operational environment for Terrestrial Broadcast Network Operators with a view to ensuring European citizens continue having universal access to a broad range of TV and radio programs and content as well as other over-the-air services.

 

The Digital Dividend

As European countries increasingly switch-off their analogue terrestrial television services, some spectrum capacity is becoming freed-up and this can be used to offer new services. The availability of this spectrum capacity, the so-called digital dividend, can present opportunities for new digital television services with a broader range of content, high definition services and eventually entirely new services such as 3DTV. The more efficient use of spectrum offered by the new digital systems also allows for other services such as broadband wireless telecommunication to be introduced using a portion of the frequencies traditionally used for broadcasting. The availability of such frequencies will depend on country specific decisions by regulators and governments in each European country.

BNE believes an effective regulatory framework should be put in place that can be tailored to a variety of situations and, in particular, allow for the launch of future new DTT services.

In view of the European Commission’s roadmap for the use of the digital dividend, BNE would like to recommend that the EU Commission takes into account the following:

  • The effects on competition (in particular platform competition)
  • Incremental private value of DTT platform
  • External value (e.g. economic growth)
  • Public value (e.g. public service and regional policy benefits provided by DTT)
  • Difficulty to complete the analogue switch off by 2012
  • Migration costs
  • Support to cross-border coordination
  • Challenges of harmonisation of spectrum usage


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Please find below the following BNE comments, position papers, responses to consultations:

Public consultation on the draft RSPG Report on spectrum aspects related to “The future of radio broadcasting in Europe: Identified needs, opportunities and possible ways forward”
23 November 2010 -> 21 January 2011  

EMF Directive (2004/40/EC)
5 April 2011

Public consultation on the draft RSPG opinion on Cognitive Technologies
23 November 2010 -> 15 January 2011

Public consultation on the draft RSPG Opinion on Common EU Policy Objective for WRC-12
23 November 2010 -> 15 January 2011

Public consultation on the RSPG Opinion in preparation for the radio spectrum policy programme (RSPP)
 31 March -> 30 April 2010