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    will 4G networks disrupt TV signals?

    Why will 4G networks disrupt TV signals?

    From next month televisions across the country will begin losing their signal, as the airwaves become more crowded by the introduction of 4G mobile broadband networks, writes Christopher Williams.

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    According to Ofcom, as many as 2.3 million households could be forced to take action if they want to continue receiving digital terrestrial television and not lose ?some or all of their TV channels?.

    Britain already has one 4G network, EE, which is available in 27 towns and cities. In its current form, however, it does not have an impact on television signals. This is because it operates in the 1,800MHz spectrum band, comfortably clear of the 700MHz band occupied by Freeview.

    Along with O2, Vodafone and Three, however, EE is currently bidding on chunks of spectrum in the 800MHz band, close enough to cause major problems of both interference and RF overload.

    "European countries, including the UK, have been working towards making the same section of the airwaves available for mobile broadband," an Ofcom spokesman explained.

    "This brings many potential benefits, such as greater economies of scale for handset manufacturers which can feed through into lower consumer prices. In the UK, digital television uses spectrum which is adjacent to that which European countries have decided to use."



    Regulators have had several years to plan the solution. The 800MHz band was formerly used for analogue television, which was finally switched off in October, a ?digital dividend? that has long been designated for 4G networks.
    It is particularly suitable for casting 4G networks over wide, relatively sparse areas. To complete their networks, operators will use chunks of the 800Mhz band alongside chunks of the 2,600MHz band (or 1,800MHz for EE), which is more suited to providing high capacity and high speeds in cities.
    Hidden Content
    A 4G television filter similar to those DMSL is expected to distribute

    Ofcom?s estimate that 2.3 million households could have their television signal disrupted is based on some complicated physics and a lot of guesswork.
    Nobody can yet say whether individual homes will suffer because it will depend on how operators roll out their 4G networks. Indeed, regulators trebled their original estimate of 760,000 households affected to up to 2.3 million after industry figures said it had underestimated the number and power of the base stations that will be installed. The government is taking a "wait and see" approach to the scale of the problem.
    There are factors that make it more likely Freeview viewers will suffer disruption, however. The main risk will come from living close to a 4G base station.
    Those who share a communal aerial are also more likely to be affected, because those systems typically use a signal amplifier vulnerable to RF overload.
    "Interference to Freeview is only likely to happen where the new 4G base station transmitters are positioned close to houses," an Ofcom spokesman said. "This likelihood increases if a booster amplifier is used by the household, or the local mobile base station is using frequencies that are close in the spectrum band to those used for television."
    In anticipation, ?180m of the proceeds of the multibillion-pound 4G auction have been earmarked for Digital Mobile Spectrum Limited (DMSL), a new company jointly owned by the four operators and tasked with mitigating the problems. Most of its money will go on buying and distributing small filters via a Hidden Content , which householders will be expected to fit to their aerial cable to cut out interference.
    According to the plan, the devices will be sent out in advance of 4G networks being switched on. Ofcom?s consumer research says that than nine in 10 people are confident they are capable of fitting the device, but ?20m of DMSL's budget has allocated to send engineers to the homes of elderly and disabled viewers.
    Each household will get only one filter, however, so those with more than one Freeview set will have to buy their own too. Likewise those who use an indoor aerial or who already have cable or satellite will get no help. Ignoring households that don't wholly rely on Freeview reduces the estimated size of DMSL's problem to 900,000 households.
    The low-cost filters will not restore the television signal for up to 40,000 homes. They face more upheaval, as DMSL will arrange for an alternative to digital terrestrial television broadcasts, such as Freesat or cable, to be installed at a cost to the firm of up to ?10,000.
    With the first round of the spectrum auction complete, and operators poised to race to deploy their 4G networks as soon as the licences are issues, DMSL itself faces a race against time to ensure it is ready. Last week exectives said they would begin buying millions of filters.
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    Re: will 4G networks disrupt TV signals?

    That is why secrity cameras are required.

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