The transition to digital television broadcasting was completed yesterday with the transmission of analog signals for terrestrial TV being officially phased out nationwide.
“We are witnessing a historic moment,” Premier Sean Chen (陳冲) said at a changeover ceremony hosted by the National Communications Commission (NCC) in Taipei.
In a four-phase process that started on May 7, northern Taiwan was the last area to finally make the transition from analog to fully digital wireless high-tech TV broadcasting.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Turning off the analog terrestrial TV transmission meant that “a digitalized era of high-definition TV has come,” Chen said, adding that challenges of digitalizing cable TV and improving the quality of featured content still lie ahead.
The representative of the Association of Terrestrial Television Networks, Li Tai-lin (李泰臨), who is chief executive of China Television Co, said that while digitalization is certainly an improvement to the quality and diversification of terrestrial TV broadcasting, there is still pressure for the terrestrial TV companies to provide high quality content for the increased bandwidths.
According to commission Chairperson Su Herng (蘇蘅), the digitalization of TV broadcasts is a ongoing trend unfolding rapidly around the world.
Germany and Switzerland have already made the switch, the US did so in 2009, the UK began in 2007 and is scheduled complete the process this year, while Asian countries such as Japan completed the move last year and South Korea is scheduled to be finished by the end of the year, Su said.
Although improving the quality of domestic TV programs may be a tough challenge, the commission has requested that the companies provide at least one to three hours of high definition content per day in the initial stage, Su said.
TV companies will also have to consider how best to improve their content to meet the interactive features of digital TV, Su added.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Tropical Storm Fung-Wong would likely strengthen into a typhoon later today as it continues moving westward across the Pacific before heading in Taiwan’s direction next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am, Fung-Wong was about 2,190km east-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving westward at 25kph and possibly accelerating to 31kph, CWA data showed. The tropical storm is currently over waters east of the Philippines and still far from Taiwan, CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said, adding that it could likely strengthen into a typhoon later in the day. It is forecast to reach the South China Sea
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
RSS