China will push the development of digital cable TV this year in a move to realize the digitization of China's radio and TV service.

Zhang Haitao, deputy director of the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT), made this statement Tuesday in Qingdao, a seaside city of east China's Shandong province.

"Program preparation, sending and transmission in most radio and TV stations in China have been digitized. But as most families still use analog TV sets, the digitization of program reception is still a problem and considered to be an obstacle to the entire digitization of China's radio and TV service," said Zhang.

According to Zhang, a three-step strategy by SARFT for the digitization of China's TV and radio service began this year.

In the first step, China would make great efforts to develop digital cable TV in 2003.

The second step will begin in 2005 when live digital TV transmission service through satellites and the experiment of land-based digital TV will be carried out. It is estimated that by then China's digital cable TV users will be up to 30 million.

In 2008, as the last step of the strategy, China will take advantage of the opportunity to transmit the 2008 Olympic Games to be held in Beijing to spread land-based digital TVs and high definition televisions.

When the three steps are completed, China's digital radio and TV service will cover the whole country in wire, satellite or wireless ways.

The transition to digital cable TV will be carried out in eastern, central and western China in turn and in four stages divided by the years of 2005, 2008, 2010 and 2015. And in 2015, all analog transmissions will be ended in China.

A digital cable TV network is being constructed in six provinces including 40 cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing and Qingdao.

"Users of digital cable TV can select programs," said Zhang.

So far, 27 pay digital TV channels and seven pay digital radio channels have been authorized by SARFT in China.

(Xinhua News Agency November 19, 2003)