Mystery surrounds the unexpected disappearance of two Freeview channels from That’s TV, which crashed off air this week.
That’s TV (UK) and That’s TV 2 are, as of Wednesday evening, still off air on Freeview channels 56 and 65. The classic entertainment channels specialise in re-runs of classic British TV alongside music videos.
Scheduled programmes include Benidorm, Shameless, Steptoe & Son l, Yes, Prime Minister and Rising Damp.
The channels are understood to have fallen off-air on Monday. Since then, Freeview users have been greeted by a simple message stating the channels are “currently not available”. The channels are still live on other TV platforms.
No explanation or apologies
By the time of publication, the broadcaster had not responded to enquiries about the loss of service.
Viewers directly seeking answers have also been left frustrated. Freeview Advice has been unable to provide a concrete explanation to enquiries via social media beyond acknowledging issues that are being worked on. That’s TV’s social accounts have fallen silent, with no apologies for the loss of service.
Sister channels still on air
That’s TV’s other services, including its network of local TV services, That’s TV3 and That’s Christmas continue to broadcast as normal on Freeview.
All of That’s TV’s national channels, including the ones unavailable on Freeview, are still broadcasting on satellite.
Additionally, That’s TV’s local services, broadcast in 22 locations across the UK including Belfast, Cambridge, Edinburgh, Manchester, Reading, Sheffield, Swansea and York on Freeview 7 or 8, are also still on-air.
The local services simulcast That’s TV (UK) outside of local news times. This means some viewers can still watch programmes usually on channel 56 via channel 7 or 8 instead.
Freely also affected
Freely users using their TV in hybrid mode are also affected by the current outage.
On devices that support hybrid mode, where TVs are connected to a TV aerial and a broadband internet connection, the TV will receive additional services via the same signal used by Freeview. The affected channels appear on channels 42 and 45 on Freely’s hybrid channel list.
Analysis: Why are some That’s TV channels are affected and not others?
In the absence of an official statement from That’s TV, there is one factor that can explain why some of That’s TV’s channels are still available on Freeview.
In order to broadcast on Freeview, commercial channel operators must sign a carriage agreement with one of a small number of multiplex operators, who control the capacity available for TV services. However, capacity is limited and a broadcaster may need to strike multiple agreements with different operators as and when Freeview slots become available if they want to make multiple channels available on the platform.
Both That’s TV UK and That’s TV2 are carried by one multiplex operator. The unaffected channels – That’s TV3, That’s Christmas and That’s TV local – are carried by different operators.
The nature of the current outage indicates a technical, legal or contractual issue between That’s TV and a multiplex operator.
Multiplex operators won’t comment on such issues. Freeview is limited to what it can say, as it is not a direct party to the contract. That leaves the broadcaster to issue a statement to explain what’s happened.
By: Marc Thornham | Image: That’s TV