Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 29 May 2001

Vol. 537 No. 2

Written Answers. - Digital Broadcasting.

Willie Penrose

Ceist:

78 Mr. Penrose asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage Gaeltacht and the Islands the progress which has been made regarding the provision of digital terrestrial television; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15740/01]

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands (Miss de Valera)

Last year the Government agreed revised arrangements as provided for in the Broadcasting Act, 2001, for the introduction of digital terrestrial television – DTT – in Ireland. These revised arrangements provide that the DTT platform will be established by two separate but inter-linked transactions: (a) the separation out and sale by RTE of the existing RTE transmission network as a going concern and subject to RTE being able to retain a shareholding of up to 28% in the new entity; and (b) the selection of the DTT multiplex company, the DTT retail business, to be licensed by the Office of the Director of Telecommunications Regulation.

An interdepartmental project management group chaired by my Department and including the Departments of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Finance and Public Enterprise is managing the process to select the DTT multiplex company. A consortium of advisers headed by AIB Corporate Finance is executing that process under the direction of the project management group. The public phase of the selection process commenced in the week ending 18 May when advertisements were placed in national and international newspapers inviting interested parties to participate in the process to be selected as the DTT multiplex company.

I understand from RTE that the public phase of its transmission network sale process has also begun and that RTE's advisers commenced the distribution of its pre-sale document to interested parties on 11 May.