Digital 3 & 4 sign with Arqiva

Arqiva has been awarded a contract estimated to be worth up to £1 billion by Digital 3 and 4 Ltd to design, build and operate a new high power national digital terrestrial TV network until 2034.

The new network will carry ITV and Channel 4's main digital services including ITV1, ITV2, ITV3, ITV4, Channel 4, E4, and More4 and will broadcast to 98.5% of the UK population.

Mike Hughes, project director at Digital 3 and 4, said: "We're delighted to have reached agreement with Arqiva on this all-important contract, which will mean that ITV's and C4's terrestrial transmission costs will fall compared to today's levels as we transition to a fully digital network."

"This is a complex deal and we have total confidence that Arqiva will deliver according to our needs. It forms a crucial part of the DSO project and will ensure that these public-service channels are available to almost everyone in the UK through a roof-top aerial, " Hughes added.

The UK's digital switchover involves the replacement of 5000 analogue and 500 digital transmitter systems with 4000 new digital transmitter systems at 1154 sites. Arqiva has now signed contracts with Digital 3 and 4, the BBC and SDN to roll-out their high power DTT networks for switchover.

Steve Holebrook, managing director of Arqiva's Terrestrial Media Solutions division, added: "With the award of the BBC contract last year, Arqiva is now responsible for rolling out all of the public-service digital terrestrial TV networks, as well as the network for SDN which was also recently announced, and we're looking forward to playing such a key role in DSO."

The SDN contract, announced at the end of last month, means Arqiva will increase the transmission power of Multiplex A - which includes Five, S4C, QVC and Top Up TV's pay-channels - to reach over 90% of the UK population by the end of switchover.