One million DVB-T2 boxes in Russia

About one million DVB-T2 set-top boxes have been delivered in Russia to date, according to local reports citing the head of the country’s ministry of communications, Igor Shchegolev.

Addressing students at the Moscow State University Graduate School of Television, Shchegolev said that DVB-T2 represented a more efficient way of delivering digital broadcast services than the DVB-T standard. While Russia has a plan to transition its digital-terrestrial services to the new standard it is currently broadcasting DVB-T2 services only in the Republic of Tatarstan.

Shchegolev said the authorities were involved in discussion with equipment suppliers, including a number of local Russian manufacturers, ahead of a planned mass distribution of boxes in 2013-14. The cost of digital transition has been estimated at RUB122 billion (€3.17 billion).