Digital Television Glossary

Digital TV is a new technology that can take a little time to get used to. As we all eventually switchover to digital TV we may have to make changes to our existing entertainment set up. If you are not technologically minded you may find some of the jargon and abbreviations take a little while to get to grips with.

The following is a glossary with some commonly used terms relating to digital TV and home entertainment.

• Analogue is the name for traditional broadcasting frequencies for TV. Analogue transmits the whole images and sounds as electrical signals as opposed to digital which transmits them as binary code.
• Bandwidth relates to the variance of a frequency of a signal broadcast. The greater the bandwidth the better picture and sound quality is and the rate at which material can be received quicker such as teletext and program guides.
• A Communal System is used to broadcast digital TV through a shared aerial for a block of flats or other shared accommodation.
• DAB stands for digital audio broadcasting. DAB offers a huge variety of music through digital radio stations.
• EPG stands for electronic program guide, a service which allows you to view schedules of forthcoming and current programs.
• FTA stands for free to air. Free to air programs and stations are free to receive through digital broadcasting.
• HDTV stands for high definition television. High definition offers vastly improved picture quality compared to traditional televisions. Several high definition channels have been launched to optimise on the improvement.
• IDTV stands for integrated digital television. Integrated digital televisions have a built in receiver allowing you instant access to FTA services.
• LCD stands for liquid crystal display. LCD screens provide improved picture quality and are compatible with HD viewing.
• MATV stands for master aerial TV. Digital services viewed through a communal aerial use master aerials to transmit programs.
• Plasma Screens offer high quality viewing suitable for HDTV.
• The Red Button on a digital TV remote can be used for accessing interactive services.
• Digital Switchover is the process of changing Britain’s transmissions from analogue to digital.
• Top Up TV is a service which allows digital viewers to order extra channels on request.
• VOD stands for video on demand. VOD is similar to pay per view and offers films and programmes to watch for one off payments.