Vladimir Putin urged not to rush to digital broadcasting transition

UFA, 20 December 2018. /Bashinform News Agency, Azat Gizatullin/ translated by Tatiana Aksyutina/. Russian President Vladimir Putin today at the annual press conference, answering a question of the journalist Alexandra Tinyaeva from the “Ryazansky Krai” TV Company about switching television and radio channels to digital broadcasting, said that there was no need to rush in this matter.

The head of state explained that it was necessary to study how these practices would be conducted in separate territories and to move on carefully.

Today, deputies of the State Assembly of Bashkortostan adopted an appeal to the Russian Government asking to extend the transition to digital broadcasting, to introduce a draft federal law on securing the 22nd button for municipal channels and creating a regional broadcast multiplex with mandatory regional and municipal TV channels. Disconnection of analog broadcasting will begin in Russia in February 2019 and end in June. Digital TV coverage in Bashkortostan is 95%. After switching to it, the residents of the republic will be able to watch 20 channels in high quality for free. Digital television services are not available for 786 settlements or 5% of the Bashkortostan population.