It effectively turns your television into a form of computer so that it can connect to the internet, take interactive programmes and carry many, many more channels. Analogue TV is the old system of broadcasting that we have had since television began in the 1940s and 50s.
Most people say the digital system is much much better.
It gives you better pictures, better sound, more channels, interactive television, it can connect you to the internet, and you can do home shopping and home banking. Everyone says that just as computers are the future, then digital television is the equivalent. There is no set date, but Chris Smith, the Media Secretary, has said it could happen as quickly as between the years 2006 and 2010. This depends on two conditions. Analogue needs to be switched off because there is no point having analogue and digital TV together.