Raymond Snoddy on media: How Freesat banished sceptic in me

Marketing 24-Jun-08

There is not much chance of stopping this article resembling an advertorial. But then, when you really like a product, why not participate in the holy grail of marketing - word-of-mouth recommendation.

After all, as we have already discovered, it is not just Sir Michael
Parkinson who thinks Sky+ is terrific. Almost everyone who has one
thinks personal video recorders are the one gizmo among all the

electronic tat that is pretty close to essential.

In fact, meeting someone from the media world these days who admits they
haven't got one - or, shock horror, in extreme cases, have not even
heard of the beast - is the modern equivalent of the gent who in ancient
times lit up his cigar before the Loyal Toast. Social death.

The bit of kit I am championing is not in the same revolutionary class
as Sky+, but it is easy to take a shine to Freesat.

At the outset, when the BBC and ITV launched the project, it appeared a
tad superfluous - had they nothing better to do with their money than
launch a rival to Sky's free satellite service? Surely this was just
another example of Murdoch envy.

When the satellite installer turned up to perform his very first Freesat
installation along the Antrim coast in Northern Ireland, opposite the
Mull of Kintyre, where the writ of Freeview does not run, the scepticism
went straight out of the window.

Until then, visits to home territory were like a return to medieval
times. Just four television channels. Can you believe that? The fingers
may have played nervously with the remote, but it made not a blind bit
of difference and radio reception was so poor you couldn't even get the
Today programme.

Suddenly, for £100, for the dish installation and an HD box that
doesn't cost much more, you have access to 72 channels of television
plus essential radio.

The key differentiators of this product are the BBC and ITV HD channels
with, presumably, Channel 4 HD to follow.

We may be talking here about an old-fashioned analogue tube TV rather
than the latest swish HD model, but in an area of middling quality
reception at best, the transformation was total.

There is clearly going to be a tidy market here for those who don't want
to, or can't, afford subscription television.

Then there is the 20% of the country that cannot receive Freeview at the
moment.

The second-home market also covers more than 600,000 households in
England alone and it is quite difficult to justify the Sky football
subscription when you can't be there all the time.

It could add up to a tidy total over time and help the transition to
analogue switch-off, which may not hit the Antrim coast until as late as
2013.

However, as the BBC used to say when it was still promoting its
magazines on-air, there are other titles in the market.

The free Sky satellite service does much of the same things as Freesat -
without HD and with lots of inducements to trade up to subscription.
However, the broadcaster hasn't exactly been heavily promoting it, for
obvious reasons.

Nonetheless, the fact remains that it was Freesat that caught my
attention and led to action - and it is a relationship that is going to
last.

There are also signs that the manufacturers are getting behind it with
at least five Freesat HD systems on the market already.

The double-page colour spread in the Mail on Sunday advertising the
latest Panasonic TV with Freesat HD already built in is another sign of
a fresh brand being born.

Moreover, this time in County Antrim, it really will be possible to see
the ball at Wimbledon on the new digital gear.

- Raymond Snoddy is a media journalist and presenter of BBC Television's
Newswatch

30 SECONDS ON ... FREESAT

- Freesat began broadcasting on 6 May and offers a satellite alternative
to Freeview.

- With the capability to reach 98% of UK households, Freesat has more
than 80 free digital channels, including high-definition BBC and ITV
programmes. It also provides super-fast digital text and enhanced
interactivity.

- Freesat intends to grow its channel line-up each month, with plans for
up to 200 channels to be on air by the end of the year.

- Freesat requires three different types of receiver: a standard
definition box, an HD box and an HD integrated digital TV with Freesat
built-in (IDTV).

- Box prices start from £49, with an HD box available from £120, plus installation costs from about £80.

- This summer, Alba and Humax digital TV recorders will be available,
enabling viewers to record, pause, rewind and fast-forward shows.