Advent of digital age revolutionises media

Date: 25/07/1996

By Michael Mann

THE technological revolution in the media industry could be very bad news for video shops and cinemas all over Europe. If the pundits are to be believed, it could also spell disaster for the health and fitness of many of the EU's 370 million citizens.

In the brave new world, viewers will be able to sample the cream of hundreds of television channels. Having picked out the bits they like best, they will be able to design their own evening's viewing to suit their particular tastes.

“Just imagine settling down to watch Sampdoria versus Juventus, followed by a documentary on fly-fishing, your favourite cookery programme, then rounding things off with a Hollywood blockbuster,” says an industry insider with evident relish.

The following morning, exhausted by the previous evening's activity and unenthusiastic about the prospect of a morning in town, viewers will be able to buy groceries, pay bills and renew driving licences without leaving the comfort of their armchairs.

What has made this dream (or nightmare) possible is the advent of digital technology, which has removed virtually all limitations on the number of channels available, and improved picture and sound quality.

Where traditional terrestrial 'analogue' TV - the basic system has not changed since television was invented in the 1920s - limited the number of channels to single figures in most European countries, digital technology has opened up the possibility of literally hundreds of channels competing for viewers' time and attention.

Even the recent proliferation of analogue satellite channels will fade into obscurity in the digital age. Up to ten digital stations can be fitted into the space occupied by one conventional satellite channel.

Previously, there was simply not enough airspace to send a large number of television signals through. Natural limitations were aggravated by government legislation, which sought to reserve some airspace for other forms of electronic communication.

Sending information in digital form removes this problem in one fell swoop and entrepreneurial souls and legislators alike have been quick to recognise the revolution which is upon them.

Canal+ launched a 20-channel digital-TV service in France in April and is looking to do the same in Belgium by the end of the year.

German media mogul Leo Kirch has already announced the launch of up to 50 digital channels in Germany and has now entered talks with former arch-rival Bertelsmann. The UK's BSkyB is looking towards up to 150 digital satellite channels for the UK alone by the autumn of 1997.

FilmNet is talking about up to 30 channels in the Benelux, with Telepiu launching a 'bouquet' of channels for the Italian market.

The flexibility offered by digital technology should also prevent the type of embarrassment suffered last year by FilmNet over its SuperSport channel. Because of Belgium's unique political sensitivities, the new service was heavily advertised all over the country, but the limits on analogue transmission meant that SuperSport could only be watched in Flanders.

The initial success of satellite broadcasters and pay-TV initiatives has been driven by films and sport. Most experts expect digital TV to be launched in a similar manner. Football fans all over Europe will be overjoyed at the prospect of the simultaneous transmission of every football league match on a different channel, allowing each and every holder of an 'electronic season ticket' to choose between the joys of Coventry versus Wimbledon or Liverpool versus Manchester United. Increasingly, wealthy clubs may even start up their own 'pay-per-view' services.

The number of channels capable of being beamed into every household also promises a revolution in video-on-demand. Gone will be the days when movie buffs queued for half an hour outside multiplex cinemas. Instead, companies could offer all the top ten films beginning at 15-minute intervals, allowing viewers to choose when to settle down, what movie to watch, and even what language to watch it in.

But the major firms stress that video-on-demand and interactive TV are something for the medium-term. The flexibility of the Internet has allowed it to develop comparatively quickly and there is an obvious and rapid return on investment.

While interacting with images on a TV screen using the remote control as a mouse is technically viable, the economic returns are less easy to identify at the moment.

But US companies Zenith and Diba have already joined forces to market large-screen TV sets which will allow viewers to surf the 'Net' without the use of a computer. They will go on sale in October.

Setting out his vision of the future, BBC Director-General John Birt also talked earlier this year of a single machine - a cross between a computer and a TV, with a large flat screen on the wall, giving high -quality pictures and CD-quality surround sound.

But two principal technological problems could hold back this hi-tech future. For now, most viewers will have to stick with their old-fashioned analogue sets. The firms realise they will have to wean people off old technology slowly, so digital and analogue will have to exist side-by-side.

“Politically, we cannot set a date for switching off analogue, because that will mean people having to throw out their old boxes,” said one company spokesman.

Difficult decisions must also be made about the type of decoders to be used to unscramble digital messages sent into homes by the TV firms. The big issue is how to prevent viewers having to buy a number of different 'black boxes'.

While TV companies wrestle with these challenges, the major headache for the consumers will be much more straightforward: “What the hell am I going to watch this evening?”