Millions of homes in the UK watching TV on Freeview may soon find that a number of popular channels will be missing from their on-screen scheduler. As of June 2022, one of the signals used to broadcast everyday content – known as the COM7 mulitplex – has been turned off to pave the way for modern 5G mobile technology.
Last year, the British network EE won the tender for the use of this frequency, which will help it provide much faster downloads and more reliable connection to 5G-compatible phones.
Closing this signal for TV services will reduce the capacity of both standard and HD channels currently available.
The changes take effect on June 30 and will mean that channels such as BBC Four HD, CBeebies HD and More4 +1 may no longer be available for viewing in their regular slot – in fact some may disappear altogether.
Here it is full of channels that use COM7 multiplex.
FreeSports • Quest Red + • Now 70s • More4 +1 • PBS America +1 • This is TV • Forces TV • BBC Four HD • BBC News HD • QVC HD • QVC Beauty HD • Quest HD • CBeebies HD (daily)
It is unclear at this time whether these popular services will move to new frequencies or be phased out, but the changes are estimated to affect more than 20 million homes. Some BBC channels, such as BBC Four HD, can simply be moved to online platforms, and viewers can then tune in via iPlayer instead of Freeview.
One thing is for sure, Freeview users will have to reconfigure their TVs and receivers at some point in June to prepare for the changes. Discussions about what will happen to all available content are currently ongoing, with the announcement expected in the coming weeks.
Speaking to Express.co.uk, a Freeview spokesman said: “Ofcom’s COM7 mulitplex license expires in late June following an Ofcom tender to make more room for 5G mobile services. We are currently in touch with the channels that are in this multiplex to confirm the next steps. Additional updates to the service will be provided to viewers in a timely manner. “
We hope that more news will be announced soon on exactly how it will affect homes and what will be available to watch after the shutdown, and Express.co.uk will provide you with updates when you hear more.
So WHAT IS 5G?
5G is the future of smartphones and mobile networking technology with this service, which can transmit the network to devices over 300 Mbps.
That’s about four times faster than the average broadband connection in the UK.
Almost all new smartphones, including the latest iPhones and Samsung devices, already have this technology, which means more people will want to get the most out of it.
The future certainly looks bright for 5G, with EE recently conducting a test that managed to transfer the network to a device with more than 2Gbps using the current infrastructure. This speed makes fixed line broadband services seem slow.
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