Arcom authorizes France 2 and France 3 to be shown in ultra-high definition on DTT
Last May, the French government asked Arcom to authorize France Télévisions to show France 2 and France 3 (national antenna) in ultra-high definition (UHD) on digital terrestrial television (DTT) from July 10 to September 10, 2024. This diffusion would cover a large part of mainland France and nine overseas France territories.
In response to this demand, on October 25, 2023 the Authority granted France 2 and France 3 UHD authorizations in mainland France, and assigned them the numbers 52 and 53 respectively. France 2 will begin broadcasting once France Télévisions has designated the multiplex operators and specified the service rollout schedule. The first diffusion sites could go live in the coming weeks. France 3's UHD diffusion has been authorized for the requested period.
In accordance with the provisions of the law, the Authority has also consulted the relevant local authorities in the French overseas territories, with a view to authorizing the diffusion of these services on numbers 22 and 23.
France 2 and France 3 will be received in UHD by viewers whose equipment is compatible with the technical characteristics used by DTT UHD signals, and in particular the new DVB-T2 and HEVC norms, which is the case for most UHD TV sets marketed since 2017. In particular, they will be able to watch broadcasts of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games with very high sound and image quality. Both services will also remain available in high definition on their usual numbers.
In conjunction with all the players involved, the Authority has also launched a project to ensure the smooth operational implementation of this UHD diffusion, and to help keep viewers informed.
The decisions adopted by the Autorité are based on technical work carried out since late spring, in conjunction with all players in the sector. They have resulted in amendments to the deliberation on the rules for sharing the resource allocated to DTT services, and to the signalling profile for the diffusion of these services. These updated texts are also published today.
Finally, in response to requests from Arcom, several private service editors have expressed interest in showing their services in UHD. Arcom is continuing its discussions with them, where appropriate, to determine the terms and conditions of such a diffusion.
Link to France 2's authorization decision
Link to France 3's authorization decision
Link to the decision to allocate numbers 52 and 53
Link to the amended deliberation
Link to "Signaling profile" document
Press release
- 129.78 KB
- in french