A senior Freeview manager has called for Ofcom to provide spectrum to hi-def Freeview channels "by any means necessary".

The Freeview official claims Ofcom should not rely on an open auction to ensure Freeview homes can see high definition TV programmes.

"Millions of our customers are buying HD televisions because they naturally expect to be able to watch Freeview in HD. For that reason alone, it is very important Ofcom somehow secures high-definition space for Freeview," Freeview's head of strategic marketing, Liz Reynolds, told TV industry newspaper Broadcast.

An Ofcom spokesman said broadcasters would be welcome to bid for a slice of the former analogue TV spectrum, but it has so far refused to guarantee any frequencies if free-to-air channels cannot compete with other bidders.

The sale of UHF TV spectrum being released by the switch to digital TV will be the largest spectrum sale in 30 years.