ITV Channel set to be the only station not broadcasting in HD

BBC South West, including the Channel Islands, is now available in HD on satellite and all BBC regions are due to become HD by the end of March.

The corporation has announced that it plans to turn off its standard definition TV channels by the end of March 2024.

Channel announced in 2015 that it had acquired HD equipment but said that no date had been set for it to start broadcasting in the format.

The Channel Islands are now the only ITV region that do not have ITV1 in HD, although HD versions of ITV2, 3 and 4 are available via satellite.

‘ITV continues to review its transmission HD capabilities across all its licences while retaining a localised news service,’ said an ITV spokeswoman.

The BBC started HD broadcasts in the mid-2000s, with BBC One HD launched in late 2010, while ITV1 HD was launched as a standard channel in April that year.

Viewers who use the Freeview digital terrestrial platform will not have to do anything in order to view the HD broadcasts when they begin.

But satellite viewers who do not have a HD-capable box will need to upgrade or they will lose access to all BBC channels when the old SD channels are deactivated.

Sky subscribers who have an old non-HD box are being offered a free upgrade to SkyQ and should have been contacted by the company.

Freesat viewers will need to buy a new satellite receiver if theirs cannot receive HD broadcasts.

Freesat viewers can check if their box is compatible by going to channel 799 and will also find information at www.hdsatelliteupgrade.co.uk/

A link to the BBC information is at www.bbc.co.uk/reception

Sky’s help pages are at www.sky.com/help/home/sky-tv