TV winners

By TOBY WALNE, CHIEF MONEY REPORTER
Updated:

 

COUCH potatoes were hit hard when the plug was pulled on crisis-hit ITV Digital at the beginning of May.

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Though its subscribers can now pick up a basic pack of free channels through their set-top boxes, they no longer enjoy the wide choice of viewing they had before.

But from next month, the BBC, in partnership with broadcasting infrastructure provider Crown Castle, will deliver 27 channels free to anyone with a set-top box or a digital television. It is part of a Government drive to have everyone watching digital TV by 2006. As well as the five terrestrial channels the package will include BBC 4, BBC News 24 and ITV 2, plus channels offering news, history, classic films, children's shows and music.

The decision facing viewers is whether simply to enjoy these channels for free or to sign for satellite or cable services that offer a much wider choice - at a price.

Jon Miller, head of product development for uSwitch, an internet service that compares utility and TV packages, says: 'The choice is simple, though you wouldn't believe it from looking at the dizzy array of TV package deals on the market. If you want more choice, you must pay for it, either through Sky or a cable TV company. But if you are happy with just the basic channels, it makes sense to save yourself money and stay put.'

Since the collapse of ITV Digital, Sky Digital has been the only truly nationwide provider of TV packages. Cable TV can reach only areas where lines have been laid, covering about half the population.

Sky offers more than 378 channels if all options are included - easily the widest choice. Its most popular deal costs £37 a month and gives access to 233 channels, including its key sports programmes. But subscribers must pay an installation fee of between £70 and £100 and sign for at least a year. Sky offers a staggering 96 channel packages, not including bolt-on deals such as Film Four for £6 a month. These extras are available at similar cost on cable TV.

The two main cable providers, NTL and Telewest, unable to compete on the range of channels, throw in phone lines and internet access. Essential, Telewest's most popular deal, offers 38 channels for £18.50 a month. The TV deal plus a phone line with unlimited free calls nationwide all day costs £34.50 a month, plus an installation fee of £50.

NTL's most popular deal is the Family Pack, which offers more than 70 channels and a phone line. It costs only £26 a month, but calls are not free and installation costs £75. And, of course, all TV viewers have to pay the Government £112 a year for a colour licence, or £37.50 for a black and white one, to help fund the BBC.

Former ITV Digital customers can take heart at the extra choice available through their set-top boxes. Other TV addicts who want these channels must buy a box for between £100 and £160, or buy a television with integral digital access.

One couple who have decided to pay extra for more channel choice are Sarah McKenzie, 30, and her partner, Peter Jones, 28, who have just signed up to Sky TV in time for the start of the football season. The couple, both computer consultants, made the switch after moving to a new house in Bromley, Kent, last month because they are football fans who don't want to miss any Spurs matches on TV.

Sarah says: 'We are not telly addicts, but we wanted a package that included coverage of the Premiership. We researched the market and chose Sky's £37-a-month deal. Though this gives us a lot of channels that we are not interested in, football lies at its heart.'

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