TV viewers in the North East could lose their local programmes next month as part of a big upgrade happening across the UK.
The BBC has started to switch off its SD (standard definition) channel feeds in favour of HD (high definition) only - and if you've got an older Freesat or Sky box you may could lose access to BBC channels if you don't buy a new one.
The national rollout is starting with the English regions, with access to BBC One North East and Cumbria being cut on February 20 for Freesat and February 21 for Sky. The first region to lose SD on its local news programme was BBC One South, which switched to BBC One HD on Monday, January 23. The programme continues over the next six weeks, with all regions completing by end of February.
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Viewers will then in early 2024 lose all BBC channels. The BBC says it needs to switch off the SD channels to be able to launch HD versions of its channels, but it's not known how many families will have to buy new equipment to continue to watch the BBC.
BBC's Director for distribution & business development, Kieran Clifton, said: "This is not a decision that’s been taken lightly - indeed, it’s been one of the key reasons why we’ve held back so long in our HD rollout plans until now. However, the number of SD-only satellite devices is now at a much-reduced level so to hold back the closure of our SD channels any longer would deny the benefit of all our channels being available in HD to a much greater proportion of the audience."
If you don't know whether you need to upgrade your box, there is any easy way to check, depending on whether you have a Freesat or a Sky box.
Freesat: Go to channel 799 on your TV. If it shows a "Good News!" message, you're good to go. However if you get a message reading: "Sorry, your satellite set-top box is not capable of receiving high definition services", you'll need to get a replacement to continue receiving BBC channels in future.
Sky: Go to channel 105 on your TV and read the message carefully. If it says Channel 5 HD" then you're fine, but if it's just "Channel 5" then you can only receive SD channels so will need to replace your box.
If you pay a monthly amount to Sky for your TV, then you can contact Sky directly by going to www.sky.com/help/bbchdupgrade and they'll assist you in the upgrade. If you only use your Sky box to watch free-to-air channels (and you don’t pay anything to Sky for your television services), then a Freesat replacement boxes will get you back on track.
The BBC and Freesat have launched a website called HD Satellite Upgrade to support people with SD-only satellite boxes to move to a high-definition (HD) device. You can register your interest to find out if you’re eligible for extra support and help to make the switch.
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