Télévision Numérique Terrestre

Télévision Numérique Terrestre first logo

TNT (Télévision Numérique Terrestre) is the national digital terrestrial service for France. It formally arrived on 31 March 2005 after a short testing period. Like Freeview in the United Kingdom it will support many new channels as well as the current terrestrial television stations. Also, like the rest of the Europe, France is using DVB-T as a transmission technology.

By 2012, at least 95% of the French metropolitan population is expected to be covered by digital terrestrial television services.

5 HD channels (4 free and one pay) were launched in October 2008 using also the H.264 / MPEG-4 AVC format.

Pay TV channels were launched in September 2005 using the MPEG4 format, unlike most of Europe which currently uses MPEG2.

Pay per view terrestrial channels use H.264 / MPEG-4 AVC. Analogue switch off is expected to be finished by 30 November 2011.^[1]

TNT is the first service to implement Dolby Digital Plus as an audio codec on its High-Definition channels. Viewers have to buy a TV set (or set-top box) that supports both MPEG4 H.264 and DD+ to enjoy HD channels.^[2]

DTT transition

By 2008, 34% of the French population was using analog TV as an only reception mode. ^[3]. The next year, the city of Coulommiers switched to digital-only TV, serving as a test city for TDF. By the end of 2009, analog TV was shut off in the Nord-Cotentin, and TDF reported no major reception problems. Citizens in TNT test-zones were informed that analog TV would shut down by early 2009, and consequently they adapted their installation.

For the rest of the country, the shut-off is planned by regions, more precisely France3 regions. It means that every transmitters broadcasting "France3 Méditerranée Provence-Alpes" will go digital at the same date, another date for those which broadcast "France3 Bourgogne Franche-Comté". Analog shut-off was planned in 2010 for the North of the France, and 2011 for the south.

Three months before a transmitter shuts analog down, it must transmit the TNT multiplexes so that the viewers can adapt their installation on time. Also, a message is displayed as marquee on analog channels warning the viewer that he will no longer receive TV if he doesn't switch to digital. To help people installing their TNT reception equipment, the French government created "France Télé Numérique".^[4] It makes didactic videos, TV ads, and goes through the local markets, to meet people and solve their problems regarding DTT reception.

Old people, or with restricted financial conditions, receive help from the French state, so that they can switch to DTT easily.

The most common adapters sold in the market only decode MPEG2 and have only one SCART output socket. Old TV sets (before 1980) need a UHF modulator between the TV and the set-top box, as they have no SCART socket. Unlike VCRs, DVB-T set-top boxes rarely include such a modulator, and a SCART to RCA adaptor is often needed to feed the modulator with the signal. The solution recommended by France Télé Numérique is just to buy a new TV set instead of using a modulator.

TNT by satellite

TNT channels are also available for reception by satellite, broadcast from the Astra satellites at 19.2° east as TNT SAT and from Atlantic Bird 3 as FRANSAT. Some of the channels are encrypted but there is no subscription charge, and both the set-top box and viewing card (valid for four years) that are required are available from hypermarkets. The public channels France 2, France3, France 5, France Ô, LCP and the Franco-German channel arte are free-to-air on Atlantic Bird 3.^[5][6]

During the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the channels France 2 and France3 were encrypted to prevent watching the matches elsewhere than in France.

Channels

National channels

EPG No. Channel Multiplex 1 TF1 R6 2 France 2 R1 3 France 3 R1 4 Canal+ HD (Pay-TVHD) R3 5 France 5 R1 6 M6 R4 7 Arte R6 8 Direct 8 R2 9 W9 R4 10 TMC R6 11 NT1 R4 12 NRJ 12 R6 13 La Chaîne parlementaire R1 14 France 4 R2 15 BFM TV R2 16 I>Télé R2

EPG No. Channel Multiplex 17 Direct Star R2 18 Gulli R2 19 France Ô R1 20-25 Regional Channels R1, L8 30 TPS Star (Pay-TV) R3 31 Paris Première (Pay-TV) R4 32 Canal+ Sport (Pay-TV) R3 33 Canal+ Cinéma (Pay-TV) R3 34 CFoot (Pay-TV) R6 35 Planète+ (Pay-TV) R3 36 TF6 (Pay-TV) R6 38 LCI (Pay-TV) R6 39 Eurosport France (Pay-TV) R6 51 TF1 HD (HD) R5 52 France 2 HD (HD) R5 56 M6 HD (HD) R5 57 Arte HD (HD) R4

Regional channels on multiplex R1

EPG No. Channel Area 20 Alsace 20 Region of Alsace 20 Angers 7 Department of Maine-et-Loire 20 Bip TV Department of Indre 20 Clermont Première Region of Auvergne 20 LCM Department of Bouches-du-Rhône 20 Normandie TV Region of Lower Normandy 20 Télé Grenoble Department of Isère 20 TLM City of Lyon 20 TLT City of Toulouse 20 TV Rennes 35 Department of Ille-et-Vilaine 20 TV Sud 77 Department of Seine-et-Marne 20 TV7 Bordeaux Department of Gironde 20 TVPI Landes, Pyrénées-Atlantiques 20 Villages TV City of Poitiers 20 Wéo Region of Nord-Pas-de-Calais

EPG No. Channel Area 21 TV SUD (Montpellier) City of Montpellier 21 Grand Lille TV City of Lille 21 Nantes 7 / TéléNantes Loire-Atlantique, Vendée 21 Tébéo Department of Finistère 21 TL7 City of Saint-Etienne 21 TLP Alpes de Haute Provence, Vaucluse 21 TV Tours Indre-et-Loire, Loir-et-Cher 21 TV8 Mont-Blanc Savoie, Haute-Savoie 21 Voo TV City of Dijon 21 Vosges Télévision Department of Vosges 23 LM TV Sarthe Department of Sarthe 23 Mirabelle TV Department of Moselle 23 TV SUD (Camargues Cévennes) Cities of Nîmes and Arles 23 Territorial TV Marne, Haute-Marne, Meuse 23 TY Télé Department of Morbihan 25 Orléans TV City of Orléans

Regional channels on multiplex L8

EPG No.	Channel	Area
20	Bip TV	City of Issoudun
20	Canal 32	Department of Aube
21	Demain IDF / BDM TV / Cinaps TV / Télé Bocal (time-shared)	Region of Île-de-France
22	IDF1	Region of Île-de-France
23	NRJ Paris	Region of Île-de-France
24	BFM Business	Region of Île-de-France
23	Canal Cholet	Department of Vendée
24	TV Vendée	Department of Vendée
25	Canal 15	Department of Vendée

National multiplexes

Multiplex 1st channel 2nd channel 3rd channel 4th channel 5th channel 6th channel 7th channel Multiplex R1 (GR1) France 2 France 5 France Ô La Chaîne parlementaire France 3 Regional Channels Multiplex R2 (NTN) Direct 8 BFM TV I>Télé Direct Star Gulli France 4 Multiplex R3 (CNH) Canal+ HD Canal+ Cinéma Canal+ Sport Planète TPS Star CFoot Multiplex R4 (Multi 4) Paris Première M6 W9 NT1 Arte HD Multiplex R5 (MR5) TF1 HD France 2 HD M6HD Multiplex R6 (SMR6) TF1 NRJ 12 Eurosport France LCI TF6 TMC Arte Regional multiplexes Multiplex Area 1st channel 2nd channel 3rd channel 4th channel Multiplex L8 (Multi 7) Region of Île-de-France Demain IDF / BDM TV / Cinaps TV / Télé Bocal (time-shared) IDF1 NRJ Paris BFM Business Multiplex L8 (Multi 7) Department of Aube Canal 32 Multiplex L8 (TVO) Department of Vendée Canal Cholet TV Vendée Canal 15 Multiplex L8 (Multi 7) City of Issoudun Bip TV See also Television in France List of television stations in France References ^ Schéma national d’arrêt de la diffusion analogique pour le basculement vers le numérique (contribution du CSA)(In French). ^ "French terrestrial TNT Service with HD-channels and first implementation of Dolby Digital Plus". http://www.hdtvtotal.com/module-pagesetter-viewpub-tid-1-pid-1248.html.  on HDTVTotal.com ^ "2011, fin de la TV analogique : une majorité de Français l'ignore". Zdnet.fr. http://www.zdnet.fr/actualites/2011-fin-de-la-tv-analogique-une-majorite-de-francais-l-ignore-39378777.htm. Retrieved 2011-10-03.  ^ "Accueil - Tous Au Numérique". Tousaunumerique.fr. http://www.tousaunumerique.fr/. Retrieved 2011-10-03.  ^ Demonstration that France 4 is encrypted ^ Demonstration that the other channels are FTA External links TVNT website