The BBC says satellite television will provide poor value for money, but could be used as a potential nightlight service ahead of a full transition to streaming TV.
- Cost of offering satellite service to be 5x as much per viewer hour by end of decade
- Broadcaster expects to start discussions with SES over future satellite service next year
- Uncertainty over satellite capacity beyond 2030 as current satellites reach end of life. It could mean the future of Freesat (pictured) could be very limited.
The BBC has told Ofcom’s review of TV distribution that an “agreed plan with Sky and the wider industry” needs to be put in place over the future of satellite TV.
Its future has come into focus as part of an Ofcom industry consultation to inform the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) over options for the provision of universal free-to-access TV in the future. Terrestrial TV is also threatened, but for different reasons.
Regarding satellite TV, Sky currently has a contract with satellite operator SES until the end of 2028.
The BBC estimates Sky will exit satellite within five to ten years. However, anything over six years would be dependant on new satellite capacity becoming available. That’s because existing satellites (Astra 2E, F and G) reach end of life by end of 2029.
BBC commercial offshoot UKTV and QVC have now signed satellite carriage agreements running until 2029. Sky, through Sky Sports+ (reported yesterday), Sky Glass and Stream is migrating viewers to IP-streaming.
Clock ticking on a decision
The BBC says any decision by Sky to exit satellite would “challenge the viability of the Freesat platform”. It’s concerned that satellite operator SES may conclude it’s no longer viable to provide a satellite service just for the public service broadcasters.
SES will need to make decisions on whether to commission new satellites to replace those orbiting at 28.2°E soon. The orbital position is used primarily to deliver TV and radio services to the UK, Ireland, plus West Africa (via a different beam not receivable in Europe).
Meanwhile, the BBC warned that due to technical dependencies between Freesat and Sky, “the BBC and other public broadcasters would also have to invest to reengineer their own systems to ensure that they could continue to provide their channels on the platform”.
▶ How many people use satellite?
According to figures quoted by the BBC, Freesat is used by 1.2 million households as their primary method of watching TV.
Sky satellite is used by 6.2 million households, which is a decline on the 10 million figure once quoted by Sky, when it only offered a satellite TV service. Sky hasn’t provided any breakdown of how many streaming users it has.
Nightlight service
Nevertheless, the BBC says satellite has the option to provide a nightlight service as the UK switches to internet-based TV platforms. In the event that terrestrial TV services are closed completely, satellite could temporarily fill in gaps until universal internet access is provided. The satellite TV service would then just carry the main UK channels.
It told Ofcom that “further work would need to be undertaken with the wider industry to understand whether a [digital satellite] nightlight is both feasible and desirable from a technical, commercial and audience perspective.”
Separately, Everyone TV, of which the BBC is a shareholder, has previously indicated that Freely devices with satellite capability are in the pipeline. This will allow viewers to connect their TV to both a satellite dish and the internet. In time, broadcasters could seamlessly migrate viewers from satellite to IP reception, without viewers necessarily noticing. Where an online stream of a channel is available, the receiver would pick that over the satellite signal of the same channel.
By: Marc Thornham | Image: Freesat devices and interface.