Breaking the news without breaking the connection

Modern networks are on track to support the future of television broadcasting.

In 2021, a huge fire at an Arqiva broadcast tower at Bilsden, in North Yorkshire, knocked out BBC broadcast coverage for half a million homes across the North of England. While viewers awaited repairs, data showed a significant increase in television being consumed over the internet from this region, with notable weekly spikes around the BBC News at Ten, EastEnders and MasterChef.

This unexpected test has been an important marker, because, as an Ofcom report released today notes, a decade from now we could see the full retiring of traditional broadcasting, with delivery of television moving fully – or predominantly – online. Ahead of 2034, Public Service Broadcasters (PSBs) like the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 already offer services as ‘online only’ and statistics – like those released by Ofcom that show a 30% decline in broadcast consumption since 2018 – will tell you this is an inexorable shift to meet how the public choose to consume TV.  

The telecoms industry is investing heavily to be ahead of this change. By the end of 2026, Openreach will have built gigabit capable full-fibre connectivity to 25 million homes and businesses – with an ambition to reach up to 30mn by 2030. At the same time, the Government’s Project Gigabit scheme will help drive coverage beyond even that, delivering to over 99% of UK premises by 2030. That’s more than can be reached by DTT (Digital Terrestrial Television) today and still four years ahead of its possible retirement.

But connectivity isn’t just about fibre underground; 4G and 5G mobile networks are also evolving and expanding, offering both consumption on the move and an alternative option for home broadband. Fixed Wireless Access (i.e. broadband over a mobile network), can provide superfast download speeds and performance, and are more than capable of streaming video on demand and television to individual households where fibre is not yet available. For the very hardest to reach – in the region of 100,000 homes and businesses – there is a growing confidence that, with the right support, a mix of fixed wireless solutions and low earth orbit satellites – like those offered by Starlink or OneWeb – will meet consumer demand.

Of course, it’s not just about the building of networks; it’s also about ensuring the capacity to support modern services.  97% of the UK can already access speeds of 30 Mbps, which surpasses the basic requirements of modern streaming or watching ‘normal’ TV over broadcast. For example, a standard definition Netflix stream takes around 3.5 Mbps.

Where networks face bigger challenges, such as the higher viewing demand for national moments of live TV, or the inefficient delivery of some types of content, we’re innovating new solutions like MAUD (multicast assisted unicast delivery), a technology that could help to deliver peak live traffic up to ten times more efficiently. Growing demands will require evolving solutions with a greater contribution and coordination from wider industry, but there’s little doubt that overall, Internet connections should offer a far better experience than DTT, delivering higher quality content to customers across a broader range of devices than DTT is capable of.

Access, therefore, to good connectivity by 2034 is unlikely to be a major issue. Instead, the focus now must be on take up – a key barrier identified by Ofcom today.

Digital inclusion has rightly been at the top of the agenda since the pandemic highlighted its systemic importance. Affordability is clearly one aspect of take up but is rarely the only barrier. According to research from AbilityNet – who raised these issues with the help of Sir Geoff Hurst earlier this week – for most digitally excluded people a combination of low confidence, low skills and low motivation also play a big role.

Specific goals, such as making a doctor’s appointment, can drive motivation better than an abstract offer of learning digital skills and structuring support around these personal goals will help to generate better outcomes. As Ofcom notes, while the flexibility of IP platforms holds promise to tailor solutions to need, their current complexity is a barrier for those digitally excluded, and bringing in the TV sector's skill at creating easy to navigate interfaces can have a big impact. Industry, policy makers and representative groups must work tirelessly to support the skills people need to use the internet and – in cases where they cannot afford it – to access it.

It’s important, because these changes could make a huge difference to the digital divide in the UK. By adopting internet technology, customers won’t just be getting a wider range of content, they’ll also be taking steps along a critical digital pathway to access new opportunities – entertainment, further education and social experiences – as well as crucial public services that are increasingly digital, such as online banking or video link GP appointments.

This week, the media Secretary of State announced an ‘audience engagement programme’ to collect views on the matter but, as Ofcom make clear today, prolonging the ageing DTT infrastructure will reach a tipping point where it’s economically unviable – creating a dual cost of delivery at a time when it’s clear that full fibre is the future. DTT has served the country well but, as some groups are coming to realise, is now starting to hold consumers back, by slowing down the digital adoption of other services among groups that often have the most to gain.

We welcome Ofcom’s paper today because it sets out the choices for policymakers.

They could accept that, without coordinated action, some customers will continue to seek to access linear TV over legacy technologies. But that approach leans into the digital exclusion of these groups and will only deepen their wider economic and social exclusion. Or they could use the changes coming as an opportunity to support all households to gain IP connectivity. The challenges we know exist can be addressed via good policy making, and the social and economic benefits of doing so are considerable and reach far beyond the TV sector.

Notably, Ofcom are clear that the status quo undermines the goal of a universal and inclusive service, and interestingly, the three options they set out can all be achieved in an 8-10 year timeframe.

With Government committed to the legacy terrestrial broadcast system only until 2034, that’s food for thought.