3C Cool Country to Launch on Freeview in the Autumn

16th June 2004

The country music station, 3C Cool Country, that is currently on a few local DAB multiplexes will start transmitting nationally on Freeview in the Autumn. This adds to a report earlier in the year that talkSPORT had signed a contract to transmit on Freeview some time this year. What is quite unusual about this move is that 3C do not transmit on digital satellite, which is in over 7 million homes and is a significantly cheaper platform to transmit on, and Freeview is "only" in 3.5 million homes. However, because of the far lower total number of channels on Freeview it is thought that a higher percentage of people listen to the digital radio stations on Freeview than they do on digital satellite or cable.

Once talkSPORT and 3C have begun transmitting there will be 23 digital radio stations on Freeview.