SDN and Discovery Channel

RNS Number : 0609G

ITV PLC

17 October 2008

 



17 October 2008

SDN and Discovery Communications

SDN Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of ITV plc, today announces that it has agreed a new long-term DTT carriage contract with Discovery Communications. 

Jeff Henry, Managing Director ITV Consumer, said:

'SDN is delighted to be working with Discovery Communications to enhance Freeview's channel offering even further. Freeview continues to go from strength to strength and is now firmly established as the UK's most successful digital platform with primary sets in nearly 10 million UK homes. A staggering 12 million Freeview devices were sold in the last year alone, many of them converting second and third sets. On the back of this it is little wonder that Freeview capacity remains such a sought-after commodity.'

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About SDN

SDN is a UK-based digital terrestrial television (DTT) multiplex operator, holding the licence to broadcast DTT channels over a specified bandwidth, constituting roughly a sixth of UK's current DTT capacity and a third of fully commercial capacity.  SDN derives its income from broadcasting channels on behalf of content providers, with channels marketed to consumers as part of the Freeview, Top Up TV, or BT Vision services.  SDN revenues in 2007 were £33m, up from £16m in 2005, the year in which SDN was acquired by ITV plc.

Within SDN's current capacity of up to nine full videostreams, half is reserved under the 1996 Broadcasting Act for use by Five which broadcasts its three channels on DTT and sub-licenses the remainder of the capacity to Top Up TV. The other channels carried by SDN include QVC, Price Drop TV, Nuts TV, CITV, Bauer Radio, and Teletext. 

 

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