TVNZ goes into partnership withTelecom for TiVo  Oct 2009

Another set top box arrives.   The TiVo media device allows viewers to receive all free-to-air digital TV channels as well as broadband content, services and games.

Compatible with New Zealand Freeview HD broadcasts, TiVo will enable viewers to record their favourite shows, pause and rewind live TV, watch movies on demand and access services such as pizza ordering, shopping and weather forecasts through their television.

TV Works  TV3 +1  started 31 March 2009

TV Works the owner of TV3 and C4 launched a new channel  called TV3 +1 Its exactly the same as TV3 but delayed 1 hr.  Available on Freeview and Freeview HD.

HD TV8 Chinese channel started in October 2008

As Auckland has the biggest chinese community, there is a Chinese channel totally in Mandarin for this community. Its freeview offering is only on HD Freeview which is a good move because most of the community are using those wire mesh dishes to receive this type of service now and wont have to invest in another dish only a UHF aerial. Avaliable also in Wellington and Christchurch

HDTV Terrestrial Digital - Official launch was 14 April 08

NZ’s HDTV High Definition Terrestrial Digital Television - Freeview HD.  As the Analog TV will be shut off about 2012-15 depending on the conversion rate over to Freeview. The digital HD service will provide 75% of all homes and with the Satellite Freeview supplimenting the rest of the population.

Not everyone is going to get the Freeview HD service. The broadcast area covers 75% of the population from launch day including Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga, Palmerston Nth, Napier, Hastings, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. Even then in these places, if you don’t receive good analog signals of Prime or Maori TV, then you will be committed to the satellite receiver system. 

### Very interesting ###

More and more leisure time is being spent on the internet. It is now 50 / 50 between internet and TV. With the internet figures growing, how viable will the TV business be in the future. While TV adverts are on what does one do? “Lets have a cuppa” . . . “I’ll just go and check my emails”!  Advertisers are not going to take this audience loss and pay the same advertising costs! Checkout moves from Telstar/ Clear into the TV market with internet online TV content like TIVO.

Did Freeview choose the wrong system? MHP European system is better than the MHEG5 but slightly more expensive.  With the price coming down on MHP, it would be better to have gone with this for Freeview HD TV.  I agree with Y of the UK, MHEG5 a “lemon”. Italy bought into the MHEG5 and now have dumped it for the more traditional faster loading EPG. If a research group did a survey of how many people use the “EPG” button as opposed to the “info” button, this would show that the MHEG5 (EPG) is only used by 1% . . . if that, compared to 99% using the “info” button.   It might be a good survey for the Consumer Magazine to do.  As of 2009 it is noted that in the UK all the major TV set manufacturers have dropped the MHEG5 from their receivers.  It seems that the Freeview restrictive practices in the UK have been dropped for a very good reason.  Maybe its time for Freeview NZ hierarchy to do the same.

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