Freeview HD campaigners have been warned the government is unlikely to intervene against Ofcom's plan to auction off former analogue TV frequencies.
James Purnell MP, the secretary of state for culture, media and sport, said there will be few cases where spectrum should be held back from the open market.
But he added that "universal access to content of a very high quality" should be of equal importance to promoting the open market, and warned against technology 'ghettos'.
Talking to the Royal Television Society Cambridge Convention, Mr Purnell said: "A sure way to freeze innovation would be to reserve new spectrum for existing users and incumbents.
"That’s why we have a clear policy of using market mechanisms to allocate spectrum – because that is the best way of identifying the most productive use to which it can be put. Ofcom is examining the best process for allocating the spectrum to be released through digital switchover and will report later this year. It has recognized that some uses of the spectrum may be socially as well as commercially valuable.
"I welcome its moves to offer protection for the use of wireless microphones where there is a genuine special case. But the threshold for any such exception is extremely high, particularly if it means that large parts of the released spectrum are not available for new entrants to bid for.
"The second goal is universal access to distinctive and original content of very high quality. Once a programme has been made, it costs no more for millions of people to consume it than for one to do so. That means that we can maximise the benefits by maximizing access. The risk is that, without public intervention, this will not happen. A vicious circle could emerge in which the wealthy pay to watch on demand, via technology which is not affordable to the rest.
"With the right policy framework, the circle could be virtuous. An open market stimulates content creation. Public funding widens choice further. Good quality content encourages the take-up of new technologies, with government promoting universal access if it becomes appropriate.
"That commitment to universal access is one reason why we and all other industrialized nations are switching over to digital. But if we didn’t have the courage to make the transition, millions would be stuck in an analogue ghetto, with fewer channels to choose from and fewer platforms. They would be paying for BBC digital services they were never going to see."
So it appears that, if he can be convinced that a transition to universal high-definition access is the essential next step beyond switching to digital, then a special case can be made for promoting the 'virtuous circle'.
