Broadcasting Bill 2008 enacted as Broadcasting Act 2009

Sorry not to have updated the blog in a while. Well since I last blogged, Boxer bowed out, threw in the towel and Onevision said yes. Meanwhile, things seemed to go bad for Setanta UK but its looking like Setanta Ireland, who are involved in the Onevision DTT bid will get acquired by likely, Doughty Hanson (TV3 owners), Dermot Desmond and possibly Liberty Global (Parent of UPC (Chorus NTL)) http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2009/06/30/setanta-founders-secure-irish-business/ See: http://www.rte.ie/business/2009/0728/setanta.html

What is urgently needed is Digital Ireland to form made up of stakeholders. This is foreseen in a sense by the Broadcasting Act 2009  which was just passed into law earlier this month. The Broadcasting Commission of Ireland now awaits its transition into the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland which requires a statutory instrument to effect its transfer of assets, addition of powers, dissolution and its new organisational basis. See: http://www.oireachtas.ie/viewdoc.asp?DocID=9433&&CatID=59

Negotiations with Onevision are reportedly ongoing and should shed some clarity by mid to late August. Policy on digital switchover is being drawn up by a strategy advisory group formed by the department with stakeholders according to the Deparment. I would expect that a once tha all goes well, with contracts signed in September, that the budgeting, channel negotiations and strategy implementation including the equipment purchase plan will be worked on between October and December with a view towards Paddy’s day launch. Setanta Ireland’s new structure is a positive development for Irish DTT, with Dermot Desmond and Setanta’s founders more involved than ever. See: http://www.rte.ie/business/2009/0728/setanta.html