Roughly all cable TV broadcasting in China will be in the digital mode by 2010, while existing analog broadcasts will be terminated by 2015, according to government sources.

An official with the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television said China initiated a large-scale promotion of digital cable TV this year. So far, 25 cities have been operating digital cable TV broadcasting on a trial basis, 19 of which have started digital pay-TV channels.

The official predicted that most regions in China would complete the transition from analog TV broadcasting to digital TV broadcasting by 2008.

Traditional analog television uses radio wave signals, but digital TV uses the language of computers, allowing for sharper pictures and sound and much bigger volume for programs.

The official said once digital TV broadcasting is made universal, television will become a multimedia information platform that provides exceedingly abundant resources with much higher quality.

(People’s Daily November 11, 2003)