Digital TV Expands in Germany

Starting on Monday, TV viewers in several German regions will be able to drop their cable service and switch to aerial digital reception instead. Berlin residents have already had the new service since last year and now people living in Hanover, Bremen, Cologne and Bonn will follow. In order to receive the channels, they will have to buy a so-called Set-Top-Box that costs about €80 ($96.20) The new system also allows people to get good TV reception when they are travelling within areas that have the service. In 1998, the German government decided to phase out analog aerial reception and replace it with the digital version. By fall, 24 million Germans will be able to receive the new service, with complete coverage scheduled for 2010.