According to Ofcom, terrestrial digital TV viewing now exceeds analog in the United Kingdom. Ofcom estimated that in the first quarter of 2006, the number of digital terrestrial-only television households rose by over 787,000, to a total of more than 18.2 million, exceeding the number of analog terrestrial-only households for the first time. Ofcom, an independent regulator and competition authority for the U.K. communications industries, said the growth was fueled by sales of Freeview set-top boxes and integrated DTV sets.
While the number of digital satellite TV viewers increased by 26,000 to almost 7.7 million subscribers, the number of cable television subscribers increased only slightly. The number of analog cable subscribers fell by 65,000, while digital cable subscriptions increased by 70,000. The total number of cable TV subscribers in the U.K. is now just over 3.3 million.
For more detailed information on the United Kingdom's DTV transition, see the Ofcom Digital Progress Report for Q1 2006. Also, visit the BBC's recent article.
