Digital switchover in Europe

This article discusses the political, economic, technological and human aspects of the digital switchover in Europe and explores various policies for managing the process. The article first examines the advantages and drawbacks of digital switchover, and identifies a number of challenges and policy dilemmas of making switchover an achievable objective. It goes on to look at digital television adoption across Europe and assesses the effectiveness of free-to-air digital television to accelerate take-up. Finally, the article examines EU initiatives as well as national plans in digital switchover and proposes various measures for encouraging the take-up of digital services and therefore bringing forward the likely idea of analogue switch-off

The BBC's role in the changing production ecology of preschool television in Britain

CBeebies, the BBC’s brand for young children, has become a successful public service undertaking, lauded by parents and policy makers alike. Nevertheless, it operates in a complex and highly competitive "ecology," where recent funding crises in commercial television have left CBeebies as the main commissioner of U.K.–originated content. Having outlined the broader industry context of CBeebies, this article examines changes in its organization, target audience, scheduling and commissioning practices, and relationship with the BBC’s commercial subsidiary, BBC Worldwide, to explain how wider commercial, cultural, and technological forces have impacted the Corporation’s strategies for preschool content. It suggests that growing pressures to locate funding for "fewer, bigger, better" programs may have an adverse impact on the range of content and sources of supply