bassethound
06-09-12, 15:23
Culture and communications minister Ed Vaizey is to launch a new task force next week - led by the Digital TV Group - which will aim to keep Britain at the cutting edge of the TV industry.
On Monday (September 10), Vaizey will officially announce the DTG's Future of Innovation in Television Technology Taskforce.
The government-supported initiative will showcase UK leadership in television technology innovation, and also explore ways to build on this for future growth.
From BBC iPlayer to Sky Go, Britain has consistently pushed the boundaries in modern TV services, including industry-leading innovation across both pay-TV and free-to-air sectors.
Chaired by David Docherty, also chairman of the DTG, the task force will comprise a small group of experts and "thought leaders" drawn from the content and technology sectors.
It will help define the measures that should be implemented to "leverage the UK's track record of innovating in television technology, in order to deliver sustainable UK economic growth".
A particular area of focus will be to build on the work of the DTG's D-Book 7: the technical specification for Freeview HD and connected TV that taps into the increasing convergence of broadcast and internet-delivered services.
"The UK has a demonstrable track record of innovating in television technology, from the invention of television itself through to modern day innovations such as the BBC iPlayer, Freeview, Freesat, Red Button, Sky Go, Virgin TiVo and YouView," said Docherty.
"According to recent research by Futuresource Consulting, UK programming is watched in about 350 million homes in 100 countries; making the country second only to the United States in terms of exports of programming (up 13% to £1.4 billion in 2011). The UK also accounted for almost half of all online TV traffic in Europe in 2011."
He added: "The Future of Innovation in Television Technology Taskforce will examine how we can build on this history of innovation to deliver sustainable UK economic growth through the convergence of creative, digital and IT."
Vaizey will officially launch the task force at 2.30pm next Monday at the DTG's offices in Vauxhall, London. The project's key findings will be presented to the industry at the annual DTG Summit in 2013.
On Monday (September 10), Vaizey will officially announce the DTG's Future of Innovation in Television Technology Taskforce.
The government-supported initiative will showcase UK leadership in television technology innovation, and also explore ways to build on this for future growth.
From BBC iPlayer to Sky Go, Britain has consistently pushed the boundaries in modern TV services, including industry-leading innovation across both pay-TV and free-to-air sectors.
Chaired by David Docherty, also chairman of the DTG, the task force will comprise a small group of experts and "thought leaders" drawn from the content and technology sectors.
It will help define the measures that should be implemented to "leverage the UK's track record of innovating in television technology, in order to deliver sustainable UK economic growth".
A particular area of focus will be to build on the work of the DTG's D-Book 7: the technical specification for Freeview HD and connected TV that taps into the increasing convergence of broadcast and internet-delivered services.
"The UK has a demonstrable track record of innovating in television technology, from the invention of television itself through to modern day innovations such as the BBC iPlayer, Freeview, Freesat, Red Button, Sky Go, Virgin TiVo and YouView," said Docherty.
"According to recent research by Futuresource Consulting, UK programming is watched in about 350 million homes in 100 countries; making the country second only to the United States in terms of exports of programming (up 13% to £1.4 billion in 2011). The UK also accounted for almost half of all online TV traffic in Europe in 2011."
He added: "The Future of Innovation in Television Technology Taskforce will examine how we can build on this history of innovation to deliver sustainable UK economic growth through the convergence of creative, digital and IT."
Vaizey will officially launch the task force at 2.30pm next Monday at the DTG's offices in Vauxhall, London. The project's key findings will be presented to the industry at the annual DTG Summit in 2013.