Digital Switchover will confirm the end of the VCR - is Britain prepared?

Monday, August 16th, 2010

Large number of households may be unable to record TV at the end of 2012

The completion of the Digital Switchover at the end of 2012 will sound the death knell for the analogue VCR. With an estimated 50 million sold in the UK over the past 25 years, this will leave a sizeable section of the population with no means to record television programmes.

Latest figures from GfK Retail and Technology indicate that cumulative sales of DVD and Set Top Box recorders since 2004 stand at fewer than five million. With the number accounted for by Digital Broadcasting Operators, (who facilitate hard disk drive recording and ‘catch up’ services to consumers), at around the ten million mark, this still leaves a considerable shortfall.

It should be borne in mind that consumers do have a multitude of options available to them in the modern broadcasting age. Many networks now operate sister or auxiliary channels allowing viewers to watch repeats of their favourite programmes; DVD box sets are released much quicker post-transmission and the affordability of laptops coupled with faster broadband speeds offer the opportunity to watch television at almost any time of day with no need for a recording device. That said, this still leaves many households and consumers whose soon-to-be obsolete VCR gives them no means of television recording. So how will the industry look to fill the void?

“With the Digital Switchover scheduled for completion in a little over two years, this leaves little time for people to address their home recording needs,” commented GfK analyst Nick Simon. “Hopefully the London Olympics will provide the catalyst for the industry to fill what could potentially be a significant gap in the market.”