Freeview Australia Plans Catch-Up Service

SYDNEY: Freeview in Australia is planning an advanced electronic program guide, FreeviewPlus, which will deliver catch-up programming from the free-to-air channels.

Set to launch in early 2014, the hybrid broadcast broadband TV (HbbTV) technology combines the Internet and broadcast television. The HbbTV standard has been adopted by a number of broadcasters in Europe, notably in France and Germany.

Freeview is the free digital television service in Australia, comprising all the channels from Australia’s free-to-view broadcasters. Freeview is a not-for-profit organization owned by ABC, SBS, Seven Network, Nine Network, Network Ten, PRIME7 and Southern Cross Television.

“From next year, Australian TV viewers will be able to enjoy one of the most sophisticated and yet easy-to-use free-to-air TV services in the world,” said Liz Ross, the general manager of Freeview Australia. "Everyday 14 million Australians are tuning into live FTA TV and viewers have shown how much they love catch-up services with one in four now watching catch-up TV."