By Ian Quinn, Media Week , 15 November 2006, 2:17pm

Freeview digital TV recorders by Christmas

Freeview today announced that six major manufacturers have signed up to produce Freeview Playback-branded digital TV recorders, although most will not be in the shops in time for Christmas.

Technology firms Alba, Humax, Sagem, Sharp, Sony, and TVonics have all signed up to meet standards set by the DTT platform, with the rollout of personal video recorder technology - similar to that offered by Sky+ - seen as a vital next step for its growth.
Media Week first broke the news that Freeview had delayed a major marketing campaign to promote the next generation of branded products, which had originally been due to start in September.
The first digital TV recorders to feature the Freeview Playback brand will now available in Sony Centres across the country in time for Christmas, said Freeview. It said it expected a wide range of Freeview Playback products from key manufactures to be available from large high-street retailers by July 2007, backed by a major cross-media marketing campaign, including in-store promotion and online advertising.
Cary Wakefield, Freeview General Manager, said: "Our aim is for Freeview Playback digital TV recorders to be widely available throughout the market by the end of 2007. The involvement of these key manufacturers confirms our commitment to clearly define the digital TV recorder category and is a major step towards establishing an industry standard by providing a quality assurance for consumers."