On the night of June 26-27, Emitel carried out the last stage of digital terrestrial TV frequency switching, thus completely freeing the 700MHz band, which is to be allocated to the construction of the fifth generation mobile network. The changes covered the Masovian Voivodeship and the eastern part of the country: from the Suwałki region through Warmia and Mazury and Podlasie, to the Lublin region and the Zamość region. The new DVB-T2 / HEVC broadcasting standard for MUX1, MUX2 and MUX4 multiplexes is available to viewers all over Poland. The MUX3 multiplex will be switched to the new standard at a later date.
Refarming of the 700 MHz band is an operation to move terrestrial television multiplexes from the 694–790 MHz frequency to the lower band 470–694 MHz. This was related to the need to release the 700 MHz band in European Union countries for the construction of a mobile network in the 5G standard. The changes were carried out in accordance with the order of the President of the Office of Electronic Communications of January 17, 2020 on the frequency management plan for the 470-790 MHz band. Pursuant to the Regulation of UKE of June 7, 2022, the change in the broadcasting standard did not apply to the MUX3 multiplex – the public broadcaster will be able to broadcast its programs in the DVB-T standard by the end of 2023. The emission parameters of MUX8, which is transmitted in the VHF band, have not changed either, and therefore it was not subjected to refarming.
– We have successfully completed the most complex and demanding project in the history of our Company. We started the preparations already in 2018, and the first frequency switches were performed in March 2020. Nearly 300 of our experts were involved in the project implementation, the work consumed over 130,000 man-hours. About 300 employees from 40 external companies from Poland and abroad also participated in the works. We transported the equipment and devices for the project by sea, air and road. We had to cope with numerous obstacles, such as ports and airports closed due to a pandemic, local and border restrictions and limitations, which forced us to constantly change the project schedule. Therefore, congratulations to all involved and to the supporters of the project are in place. At this point, I would also like to thank the Office of Electronic Communications for very good cooperation at every stage of the project. The change in the frequency of broadcasting was accompanied by the transition to the new, more effective DVB-T2 / HEVC broadcast standard. This change will primarily benefit viewers – providing better picture and sound quality – as well as new TV channels in the future. Viewers who do not yet have TV sets that support the new broadcasting standard, I encourage you to replace them – said Andrzej Kozłowski, President of the Management Board of Emitel S.A.
The refarming process in numbers:
- We have prepared over 1,000 technical documents (technical concepts, industry studies, technological and construction projects, environmental studies)
- We have obtained 140 administrative permits (for the construction of facilities, antennas, containers, reinforcements), we have delivered and installed 319 new DVB-T2 transmitters and over 100 power summation circuits
- We have installed 95 new antenna systems, including a dozen or so multi-story peak systems weighing up to several tons were placed on the highest masts in Poland at a height of over 300 m
- We installed the systems using the traditional method, as well as using a specialized helicopter – below you will find the filmed projects: installation of antennas at the Łódź Zygry facility: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prjCVtErFiY , replacement of antennas on the mast in Ryki: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oN3o2F_koIs , replacement of antennas on the mast in Miłki: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8DqgpdxmG4
- We have made nearly 20 specialized steel structure reinforcements (masts, towers) in order to prepare the structure for the installation of new antenna systems – for the construction of new facilities, we used 240 tons of steel.
– We worked on a living organism. We couldn’t have just turned off TV for several months. So we had to act using short, often night time windows to carry out the necessary technical works. Our cooperation with broadcasters and contractual obligations are characterized by a very high level of SLA, which guarantees high signal availability. Any interruptions in broadcasting must be short-lived and affect the smallest possible number of viewers, therefore the works related to switching were most often carried out at night, between midnight and six in the morning. It was a great and exciting challenge, but our specialists fully lived up to the task – said Jerzy Godek, Director of the Technology Division, Member of the Management Board of Emitel S.A.
Due to the complexity of the works, the project was divided into stages and included:
Preliminary stages: March 2020 and June 2020 – West Pomeranian Voivodeship (Białogard, Koszalin)
Stage 1: March 28, 2022 – the region of the Sudetes and Lower Silesia, Lubuskie Voivodeship;
Stage 2: April 25, 2022 – the Pomeranian band from Szczecin to the Tri-City, a large part of Greater Poland, Kujawy, the western part of Mazovia;
Stage 3: May 23, 2022 – the southern part of Greater Poland, the Lodz Region, Kielce region, Subcarpathia, Lesser Poland, Upper Silesia, Opole region;
Stage 4: June 27, 2022 – Mazowsze, the eastern part of the country, from the Suwałki region, through Warmia and Mazury, Podlasie, to the Lublin region and the Zamość region.
Information on the changes is available on the Emitel website. The current parameters of the transmitting stations can be checked on the website: www.emitel.pl/strefa-klienta/odbior-rtv/sprawdz-parametry-emzyj/ and in the EmiMaps application: www.emitel.pl/strefa-klienta/odbior-rtv/aplikacja-emimaps/.