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.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
RSS