When Alan Inkster turned on his television he was surprised to find that there was no signal for his Freeview service. It was only when he went to a community meeting later that he was told a 4G phone signal was now transmitting in the area. Mr Inkster researched the possibility of the 4G signal having an effect on his television and soon realised that this was the reason he was not receiving a picture on his TV.
Reporting it
Once he knew what was the cause he contacted at800, a government-led project which was set up to monitor disruption caused by the rollout of 4G services. As he was the only person in Shetland to raise an issue, he was told that a free filter would be sent to him which would then fix the problem.
However, when Mr Inkster spoke to his neighbour, he realised that although his television seemed fine at first, it was when he swapped from his satellite to the aerial connection that he knew it was an issue in the area and not just with his own TV.
Mr Inkster was not happy that he was not given fair warning that this problem may arise due to the mast now emitting the 4G signal, however, at800 told him that 357 postcards were sent to the residents of Scalloway advising that there was a small chance that there may be some Freeview interference.
What causes it?
The issue arises when the 4G 800 MHz signals overload Freeview receivers, which can cause a blank picture, no signal or other forms of interference. However, at800 have confirmed that they are only aware of one person in the area who has been affected. If the filter does not help, they will send an engineer to try to solve the problem.
As with any television interference, there can be a number of reasons. If the issue is only affecting you then it may be a problem with your aerial. In Gloucester TV aerial repair is easy to come by so make sure that you do your research before hiring anyone. A company such as http://steveunettaerials.co.uk/services/tv-aerials-repair-and-installation-gloucester/ will be able to provide quotes once the issue is known.
Although 4G signal interference is possible, it is unlikely, so make sure everything is checked thoroughly to eliminate any signal problems.
