It leaves the BBC, ITV and C4 as the remaining shareholders in the organisation responsible for developing and managing Freeview

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Arqiva is standing down as a shareholder in Digital UK from March 2021. No reason was given for the company’s move.

Digital UK leads the strategy and development of Freeview as well as the management of the Digital Terrestrial TV (DTT) platform. With Arqiva no longer a shareholder, its remaining shareholders are the BBC, ITV, C4.

Arqiva has been involved in the development of Freeview since its launch over 18 years ago and has been a shareholder in Digital UK since 2005.

The company will now withdraw from its board involvement in Digital UK, and withdraw as a shareholder in DTV Services Ltd., the marketing body for the Freeview platform.

Arqiva will, however, continue its role carrying around half of the channels on the Freeview platform and as the sole transmission provider for the Digital Terrestrial TV (DTT) platform.

It will also continue to work closely with Digital UK on matters related to Freeview.

Jonathan Thompson, CEO of Digital UK said: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank Arqiva for all their support for Freeview over the years. They have been an important and valued partner to Digital UK, and without them Freeview would not have been the British success story it is today. We look forward to continuing to work closely together in the future to ensure the platform remains just as compelling for British viewers in the future.”

Shuja Khan, chief commercial officer of Arqiva, added: “Arqiva has been a member of Digital UK since it was founded in 2005 and we are proud of the role we have played in making Freeview such a successful platform, serving the needs of around 18m TV households on a daily basis. Freeview’s delivery of free-to-air, universal and high-quality content must continue, with the emphasis on universal. While we have stepped down as shareholder, we believe in the platform’s future and will continue to deliver and invest in the infrastructure and related services required to provide a wide and growing range of services to our media customers.”