As of midnight Dutch time, whatever the hell that is, last night, analog television was discontinued in the Netherlands. The bandwidth formerly used by analog airwaves will now be put to use by Royal KPN NV for digital TV. As part of its agreement, KPN shouldered the cost of building the digital infrastructure and it must continue to broadcast three state-supported channels and a bunch of regional public broadcasters free of charge. It’s arrangement is good until 2017.There will also be a pay service available for about $18.50 a month that is roughly equivalent to basic cable.
The Dutch are the first country to fully abandon analog TV, though it surely won’t be the last. Dutch Pull Plug on Analog Television [ABC News]
