| Chinese-language television |
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| Main articles: |
| Regulatory agency |
State Administration of Press, Contents
Communications Authority (Hong Kong) Government Information Infocomm Media Development National Communications Commission (Taiwan) |
| Censorship |
| See also |
| Chinese-language TV channels |
Television in Taiwan is primarily in Chinese and English. It is delivered through analog and digital, cable, IPTV, and the Internet.
Digital television launched terrestrially throughout Taiwan on 1 July 2004, using the European DVB-T system. After years of simulcasting, Taiwan replaced American analogue broadcasting system NTSC with a digital system by 2014. [1] The Republic of China Cabinet approved a measure mandating that all new televisions are to be equipped with a digital television tuner from 2006. The rule applied to TVs measuring between 21 and 29 inches in 2007, and to sets of all sizes in 2008. To assist lower-income families with the switch to digital television, the government provided NT$300 million in aid to purchase converters or for the purchase of new digital televisions. [2] In February 2009, the National Communications Commission proposed amendments to the Cable Television Act; they include mandating cable companies to provide free set-top boxes. [1]
High-definition television broadcast was introduced to Taiwanese audiences with the trial run of HiHD, provided by Public Television Service. [3]
Cable television was legalized in 1993. [4]
Cable television is prevalent in Taiwan, as a result of cheap subscription rates (typically around NT$550, or US$15 a month) and the paucity of free-to-air television, which comprises four channels. Programming is mostly in Mandarin and Taiwanese, with some English, Japanese and other foreign-language channels. Miniseries, called Taiwanese drama, are popular and are being exported to markets mainly in East and Southeast Asia, and Latin America, with some dramas available on OTT platforms such as Netflix, YouTube, or Viki. There is a dedicated station for Taiwan's Hakka minority as well as the arrival in 2005 of an aboriginal channel. Almost all programs are in the original language with traditional Chinese subtitles.
In Taiwan, there are six nationwide free-to-air television bouquets, as follows:
| Name | Free-to-air channels | Owner | UHF channels (DVB-T) | Launched |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| China Television (CTV) 中國電視 (中視) | CTV Main Channel (CTV HD), CTV News, CTV Classic, CTV Bravo | China Television (CTV) 中國電視公司 (中視) | 24 (533 MHz) | 31 October 1969 |
| Public Television Service (PTS) 公共電視 (公視) | PTS Main Channel (PTS HD), PTS Taigi, TaiwanPlus | Taiwan Broadcasting System (TBS) 台灣公共廣播電視集團 公共電視文化事業基金會 | 26 (545 MHz) | 1 July 1998 |
| Formosa Television (FTV) 民間全民電視／民視電視 (民視) | FTV Main Channel (FTV HD), FTV1, FTV News, FTV Taiwan | Formosa Television (FTV) 民間全民電視股份有限公司 民視電視公司 民間全民電視公司 | 28 (557 MHz) | 11 June 1997 |
| Hakka Television Station (Hakka TV) 客家電視 (客視) | PTS3, Hakka TV, TITV | Taiwan Broadcasting System (TBS) 台灣公共廣播電視集團 公共電視文化事業基金會 Indigenous Peoples Cultural Foundation (IPCF) 原住民族文化事業基金會 公共電視文化事業基金會 | 30 (569 MHz) | 1 July 2003 |
| Taiwan Television (TTV) 台灣電視 (台視) | TTV Main Channel (TTV HD), TTV News, TTV Finance, TTV Variety | Taiwan Television (TTV) 臺灣電視公司 (台視) | 32 (581 MHz) | 10 October 1962 |
| Chinese Television System (CTS) 中華電視 (華視) | CTS Main Channel (CTS HD), CTS News & Info, CTS Education, Sports & Culture, Parliamentary TV 1 / 2 | Chinese Television System (CTS) 中華電視公司(華視) 台灣公共廣播電視集團 | 34 (593 MHz) | 31 October 1971 |
Taiwan terminated over-the-air analog broadcasting on 30 June 2012, and the remainder of the analog system ended in 2014, when the analog cable television broadcasts were terminated.
The first three free-to-air analogue terrestrial television stations, using the American NTSC system, were launched during the 1960s and 1970s:
These three are collectively known as the Old Three stations.
In the late 1990s, two new free-to-air television channels were officially launched:
A television channel, or TV channel, is a terrestrial frequency or virtual number over which a television station or television network is distributed. For example, in North America, channel 2 refers to the terrestrial or cable band of 54 to 60 MHz, with carrier frequencies of 55.25 MHz for NTSC analog video (VSB) and 59.75 MHz for analog audio (FM), or 55.31 MHz for digital ATSC (8VSB). Channels may be shared by many different television stations or cable-distributed channels depending on the location and service provider
Very high frequency (VHF) is the ITU designation for the range of radio frequency electromagnetic waves from 30 to 300 megahertz (MHz), with corresponding wavelengths of ten meters to one meter. Frequencies immediately below VHF are denoted high frequency (HF), and the next higher frequencies are known as ultra high frequency (UHF).
Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) is a set of international open standards for digital television. DVB standards are maintained by the DVB Project, an international industry consortium, and are published by a Joint Technical Committee (JTC) of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC) and European Broadcasting Union (EBU).
Terrestrial television or over-the-air television (OTA) is a type of television broadcasting in which the content is transmitted via radio waves from the terrestrial (Earth-based) transmitter of a TV station to a TV receiver having an antenna. The term terrestrial is more common in Europe and Latin America, while in Canada and the United States it is called over-the-air or simply broadcast. This type of TV broadcast is distinguished from newer technologies, such as satellite television, in which the signal is transmitted to the receiver from an overhead satellite; cable television, in which the signal is carried to the receiver through a cable; and Internet Protocol television, in which the signal is received over an Internet stream or on a network utilizing the Internet Protocol. Terrestrial television stations broadcast on television channels with frequencies between about 52 and 600 MHz in the VHF and UHF bands. Since radio waves in these bands travel by line of sight, reception is generally limited by the visual horizon to distances of 64–97 kilometres (40–60 mi), although under better conditions and with tropospheric ducting, signals can sometimes be received hundreds of kilometers distant.
Digital terrestrial television is a technology for terrestrial television where television stations broadcast television content in a digital format. DTTV is a major technological advance over analog television, and has largely replaced analog television broadcast, which had been in common use since the middle of the 20th century. Test broadcasts began in 1998 with the changeover to DTTV, also known as the Analog Switchoff (ASO) or Digital Switchover (DSO), which began in 2006 and is now complete in many countries. The advantages of digital terrestrial television are similar to those obtained by digitizing platforms such as cable TV, satellite, and telecommunications: more efficient use of radio spectrum bandwidth, provision of more television channels than analog, better quality images, and potentially lower operating costs for broadcasters.
The following tables show the frequencies assigned to broadcast television channels in various regions of the world, along with the ITU letter designator for the system used. The frequencies shown are for the analogue video and audio carriers. The channel itself occupies several megahertz of bandwidth. For example, North American channel 1 occupies the spectrum from 44 to 50 MHz. See Broadcast television systems for a table of signal characteristics, including bandwidth, by ITU letter designator.
DZRJ-DTV is a commercial independent digital-only television station based in Makati City, Metro Manila, Philippines. The station is the flagship TV property of Rajah Broadcasting Network, Inc., a broadcast company owned by long-time guitarist/musician Ramon "RJ" Jacinto. The station's broadcast facilities, shared with its AM and FM radio sisters, are located at the Ventures I Bldg., Makati Ave. cor. Gen. Luna St., Makati; DZRJ-DTV's transmitter facility is located at Merano Street, Brgy. San Roque, Antipolo City, Rizal Province.
MCOT Public Company Limited, formerly known as the Mass Communication Organization of Thailand, is a Thai state-owned public broadcaster. It owns and operates a number of radio and television stations in Thailand. It is based in Bangkok.
DWCP-DTV is a television station in Metro Manila, Philippines, serving as the flagship of the SolarFlix network. The station is owned by Southern Broadcasting Network, a subsidiary of Solar Entertainment Corporation. Its studios are located at the Third Floor Worldwide Corporate Center, Shaw Boulevard corner EDSA, Mandaluyong, while its hybrid digital transmitting facility is located at the Solar Entertainment Complex, along Nuestra Señora de la Paz Subdivision, Barangay Sta. Cruz, Antipolo, Rizal.
DZCE-TV is a television station in Metro Manila, Philippines, serving as the flagship of the INCTV network. Owned and operated by Christian Era Broadcasting Service International, a broadcast ministry of the Iglesia ni Cristo, the station maintains studio and transmitter facilities located at Milton Hills Subdivision, Redeemer St., Brgy. New Era, Quezon City.
Band I is a range of radio frequencies within the very high frequency (VHF) part of the electromagnetic spectrum. The first time there was defined "for simplicity" in Annex 1 of "Final acts of the European Broadcasting Conference in the VHF and UHF bands - Stockholm, 1961". Band I ranges from 47 to 68 MHz for the European Broadcasting Area, and from 54 to 88 MHz for the Americas and it is primarily used for television broadcasting in compliance with ITU Radio Regulations. With the transition to digital TV, most Band I transmitters have already been switched off.
CTS Education, Sports and Culture is a free-to-air television station in Taiwan, operated by Chinese Television System (CTS). The channel mainly broadcasts documentaries, arts and cultural programming, archival programming from the CTS library, and live sports coverage.
Analogue terrestrial television in the United Kingdom was originally the method by which the significant majority of viewers in the UK, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man received television. Analogue terrestrial television broadcasts have fully ceased in the UK with Northern Ireland being the last region to have ceased transmission analogue terrestrial television broadcasts. Northern Ireland switched off the last analogue television signals, making all of the United Kingdom only capable of receiving digital television, in the early hours of 24 October, 2012. It has been completely replaced by digital terrestrial television and other non-terrestrial means as of the end of 2012.
Digital terrestrial television in the Philippines began in 2015 with the implementation of ISDB-T, currently coexisting with analog television that operates on the NTSC standard after the set analog switch-off (ASO) deadline encountered multiple postponements.
The digital television transition, also called the digital switchover (DSO), the analogue switch/sign-off (ASO), the digital migration, or the analogue shutdown, is the process in which older analogue television broadcasting technology is converted to and replaced by digital television. Conducted by individual nations on different schedules, this primarily involves the conversion of analogue terrestrial television broadcasting infrastructure to Digital terrestrial television (DTT), a major benefit being extra frequencies on the radio spectrum and lower broadcasting costs, as well as improved viewing qualities for consumers.
In Thailand, television broadcasting started on 24 June, 1955. Color telecasts were started in 1967, and full-time color transmissions were launched in 1975. As of November 2020, there are currently 21 digital (DVB-T2) TV channels in Thailand.
Television in Japan was introduced in 1939. However, experiments date back to the 1920s, with Kenjiro Takayanagi's pioneering experiments in electronic television. Television broadcasting was halted by World War II, after which regular television broadcasting began in 1950. After Japan developed the first HDTV systems in the 1960s, MUSE/Hi-Vision was introduced in the 1970s.
UHF television broadcasting is the use of ultra high frequency (UHF) radio for over-the-air transmission of television signals. UHF frequencies are used for both analog and digital television broadcasts. UHF channels are typically given higher channel numbers, like the US arrangement with VHF channels (initially) 1 to 13, and UHF channels (initially) numbered 14 to 83. Compared with an equivalent VHF television transmitter, to cover the same geographic area with a UHF transmitter requires a higher effective radiated power, implying a more powerful transmitter or a more complex antenna. However, the additional channels allow more broadcasters in a given region without causing objectionable mutual interference.
Television in North Korea is subject to the Korean Central Broadcasting Committee and controlled by the Propaganda and Agitation Department of the Workers' Party of Korea. A study in 2017 found that 98% of households had a television set. As of 2020, there are over-the-air broadcasts in both analogue and recently launched digital formats.
