GO's TV coverage now reaches most households

GO has invested €2.3 million (Lm1 million) in new TV infrastructure in Maghtab, extending its digital terrestrial TV network coverage to practically all of Malta and Gozo.

When GO took over the DTTV operator in February, it realised that its 70 per cent coverage was not adequate and had to be stepped up, said GO CEO David Kay.

Its DTTV can now reach 95 per cent of households.

The major upgrade project at what is known as a headend - a sort of "nerve centre" where TV signals are received - for the DTTV network of GO Plus has also resulted in the improved quality of transmission.

As a result of the project, the addition of more channels to the GO Plus line-up is in the pipeline in the coming weeks, he said.

Mr Kay said the investment also included new transmitting facilities at the Naxxar tower, while the extended reach of GO's DTTV is also underpinned by a number of repeaters around Malta and Gozo.

GO Plus TV subscribers in Gozo have also benefitted from an upgraded reception after a repeater was recently installed at the multi-function telecommunications tower in Nadur.

Since February, the company has invested heavily in its TV infrastructure and content acquisition, while on the network side, coverage has been improved to the extent that, in certain areas, it is possible to receive the signal from an indoor antenna, rendering the service easily portable to another residence - and even a boat.

On the new headend setup, GO has worked closely with its newly-appointed strategic provider of multi-platform video-processing solutions, Tandberg Television, owned by Ericsson. Its system can expand to support the introduction of modern-day, exciting services, including mobile TV and IPTV in the not-so-distant future.

"The TV upgrade further enhances GO's reputation as the leading telecommunications operator in the Maltese Islands," Mr Kay said. GO is the first telecommunications company in Malta to have a quad-play offering, he said, adding that the aim was now to consolidate its position.

GO technical director Joseph Bugeja said the Portomaso transmission equipment has been upgraded, the tower at Naxxar extended and new transmission equipment installed at the Naxxar radio station.

The new headend was built at the recently refurbished premises of GO's Maghtab earth station complex, and includes new signal reception services, a new encoding setup and a state-of-the-art monitoring and control station.

GO, he said, was the second or third in the world to have a new system of digital equipment to maximise bandwidth, provided by Tandberg.

Mr Bugeja said GO was seeking to benefit from new frequencies for the launch, in the near future, of high-definition (HD) TV channels, which require three to five times more bandwidth than the current digital channels.

The company was also working on its Internet Protocol TV project, which would give more interactivity to the TV experience. IPTV is a system whereby a digital TV service is delivered by using Internet Protocol over a network infrastructure, which may include delivery by a broadband connection.

GO Plus would be enhancing its line-up of channels in the coming weeks and months, said GO's chief commercial officer Keith Fearne.

It has now reached 20,000 subscribers, and the numbers were still growing, he said.

The DTTV transmission project was carried out in collaboration with international firm Electrosys, a worldwide market leader in the manufacturing of digital transmission equipment.