Broadcasting, Radiocommunications & Television Concern

The Broadcasting, Radiocommunications & Television Concern (Concern RRT) is Ukraine's state-owned operator of television and radio broadcasting, radio relay and satellite communications. It is the backbone of the country's national terrestrial broadcasting infrastructure, transmitting the signals of national, regional and commercial broadcasters across the whole territory of Ukraine. The Concern belongs to the sphere of management of the Administration of the State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine, and its property is state-owned, held under the right of economic management. Concern RRT traces its institutional roots to 1 July 1944, when the Kyiv Directorate of Radio Communications and Broadcasting was organized. In 1951 the Kyiv Television Centre began test transmissions, and in 1973 Ukraine's transmitting television and radio centres were consolidated into a single production and technical structure. The Concern itself was registered as a legal entity on 12 February 1992, in the early years of independent Ukraine. As of May 2018 it united 25 branches and 2 enterprises. The Concern's infrastructure is extensive: more than 500 antenna-mast structures ranging from 70 to 386 metres in height, over 12,000 km of radio relay lines, two powerful radio centres, a space communications station in Kalynivka (Makariv district, Kyiv region) and two transmitting earth stations in Lviv region. It operates more than 400 radio and television transmitting stations, including 76 powerful ones, over 1,200 television transmitters and over 400 radio broadcasting transmitters. Concern RRT is a member of the international satellite communications organization INTELSAT and a shareholder of the European satellite communications organization EUTELSAT S.A.; its satellite communications facilities operate in the HELLAS SAT system and can distribute broadcasting programmes to all regions of the world. Its customers include Ukraine's national television and radio companies, regional and local television and radio companies, commercial broadcasters, telecommunications operators and communications enterprises. Nearly 3,000 highly qualified specialists of Concern RRT ensure the transmission of 30 national television and 15 national radio programmes, as well as the programmes of regional and most commercial television and radio companies throughout the country. The Concern provides full technical maintenance and operation of communications networks, terrestrial and satellite television and radio broadcasting. In recent years the Concern has been central to Ukraine's digital transition and information-security efforts. It built the nationwide digital terrestrial television network MX-7, which entered test operation on 1 June 2023. During 2014–2018, in the context of the conflict in eastern Ukraine, its specialists installed additional transmitters and antenna-feeder systems in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, restored destroyed infrastructure and built a new 180-metre radio and television mast at the Kramatorsk transmitting station. Concern RRT remains on the list of objects not subject to privatization because of their nationwide importance.

The history of the Broadcasting, Radiocommunications & Television Concern (Concern RRT) begins on 1 July 1944, when, pursuant to order No. 328 of the USSR People's Commissariat of Communications of 14 June 1944 and order No. 207 of the Kyiv Regional Communications Administration of 29 June 1944, the Kyiv Directorate of Radio Communications and Broadcasting was organized in place of the existing Kyiv receiving and transmitting radio centre. All receiving and transmitting radio stations were included in its composition. The Kyiv Directorate of Radio Communications and Broadcasting was classified as a first-class radio enterprise. On 5 November 1951, the Kyiv Television Centre, built in 1949–1951, began its existence with its first test television broadcast. It included an apparatus-studio block (ASB) and an ultra-short-wave radio station (UKhR). It was a complex of an ultra-short-wave radio and television station with a capacity of 10 kW and a 192-metre antenna tower. At the beginning of 1953, the apparatus-studio block at 26 Khreshchatyk Street began operation. It was the first television centre in the USSR built according to a comprehensive project using fully domestic equipment of a modern standard. At that time the Kyiv Television Centre was among the first ten television centres in Europe. From 1953, a mobile television centre appeared in Kyiv, travelling to report from emergency sites. From 1956, television films were made in Kyiv. Over the following 15 years, television centres opened successively in Kharkiv, Donetsk, Odesa, Lviv, Dnipropetrovsk, Luhansk, Simferopol, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Chernivtsi and other cities. From 1 January 1973, all transmitting television and radio centres of Ukraine, as well as the republican communications and television networks, formed a single production and technical structure — the Republican Production and Technical Directorate of Radio Communications, Broadcasting and Television (RDRT). The following year the name was changed to the Republican Node of Broadcasting, Radio Communications and Television (RVRT). Under this name the structure operated in the 1970s and 1980s. From 1989 it became the RRT Production Association, and from 1992 — the RRT Concern. The legal entity of the Concern was registered on 12 February 1992. As of May 2018, the Concern united 25 branches and 2 enterprises. Its infrastructure includes more than 500 antenna-mast structures (from 70 to 386 metres high), more than 12,000 km of radio relay lines, two powerful radio centres, a space communications station in the village of Kalynivka in Makariv district of Kyiv region, and two transmitting earth stations in Lviv region. It has more than 400 radio and television transmitting stations (76 of them powerful) located throughout Ukraine, more than 1,200 television transmitters and more than 400 radio broadcasting transmitters. Concern RRT is a member of the international satellite communications organization INTELSAT and a shareholder of the European satellite communications organization EUTELSAT S.A. Its satellite communications facilities operate in the HELLAS SAT system and can provide satellite distribution of broadcasting programmes to all regions of the world. Nearly 3,000 highly qualified specialists of Concern RRT ensure the transmission of 30 national television and 15 national radio programmes, as well as the programmes of regional and most commercial television and radio companies throughout the country. The Concern provides full technical maintenance and operation of communications networks, terrestrial and satellite television and radio broadcasting. Throughout the years of independence, Concern RRT has been included in the list of objects not subject to privatization due to their nationwide importance. In the difficult conditions of today, a priority for Concern RRT is countering the information component of hybrid warfare and strengthening Ukraine's information space. To coordinate and organize interaction among all authorities and enterprises responsible for the state's information security, the Government created a Commission on ensuring the stable functioning of the national television and radio broadcasting system, operating under the Ministry of Information Policy of Ukraine, which includes representatives of the National Council, the National Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine (NSTU), Derzhteleradio, the National Commission for State Regulation of Communications and Informatization (NKRZI), the Ministry of Finance, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and Concern RRT. In 2014–2018, in the area of the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO), Concern RRT specialists put into operation 1 digital television transmitter with a capacity of 1 kW and 27 new analogue television transmitters, restored the operation of 3 television micro-retransmitters (i.e., a total of 30 analogue transmitters additionally launched) and increased the capacity of 3 television transmitters tenfold. They also put into operation 45 FM radio transmitters and 1 powerful medium-wave transmitter. For receiving Ukrainian television channels on the front line in the ATO area, 200 sets of satellite receiving stations were deployed in cooperation with security structures. A notable achievement was the construction and commissioning at the Kramatorsk radio and television transmitting station of a 180-metre radio and television mast to replace a support destroyed by shelling; the work was carried out on the initiative and at the expense of Concern RRT's own resources, a unique experience as the construction of such a tall structure in Ukraine during the years of independence was carried out for the first time. Preparing for the transition to digital broadcasting, Concern RRT specialists gained significant experience in deploying and supporting the operation of digital television networks both independently (in 2001–2006 in Kyiv, in 2009 in 9 regional centres of Ukraine) and in cooperation with provider companies (in 2008–2009 with LLC UCTM, in 2011 with LLC Zeonbud). According to the plan of measures for the introduction of digital television and radio broadcasting in Ukraine, approved by order of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 788 of 26 October 2016, the creation of a state operator of a digital multi-channel television network using the infrastructure of the Broadcasting, Radiocommunications and Television Concern and the cessation of analogue television broadcasting were envisaged. In the course of implementing this plan, the interdepartmental coordination group for the introduction of digital television and radio broadcasting in Ukraine at the Administration of the State Service of Special Communications approved the plan prepared by the National Council of Ukraine on Television and Radio Broadcasting for the phased switching off of analogue television. On 1 June 2023, Concern RRT completed construction of the nationwide digital terrestrial television network MX-7, which began operating in test mode.

• Kyiv Directorate of Radio Communications and Broadcasting organized.

• First test television broadcast from the Kyiv Television Centre.

• Apparatus-studio block at 26 Khreshchatyk Street began operation; mobile television centre appeared in Kyiv.

• All transmitting television and radio centres of Ukraine formed a single production and technical structure (RDRT).

• Structure became the RRT Production Association.

• Legal entity of the Concern registered.

• Deployment of digital television networks in Kyiv.

• Deployment of digital television networks in 9 regional centres of Ukraine.

• Installation of additional transmitters and restoration of infrastructure in the ATO area; construction of a 180-metre mast at Kramatorsk.

• Nationwide digital terrestrial television network MX-7 began test operation.

State-owned national operator of television, radio, radio relay and satellite communications infrastructure, providing transmission services to broadcasters and telecommunications operators across Ukraine.

• Terrestrial television broadcasting

  Technical maintenance and operation of terrestrial television broadcasting networks.

• Radio broadcasting

  Technical maintenance and operation of terrestrial radio broadcasting networks.

• Distribution networks

  Provision of telecommunications channels for use.

• Satellite broadcasting

  Satellite distribution of broadcasting programmes via INTELSAT, EUTELSAT and HELLAS SAT systems.

• MX-7 digital terrestrial network

  Nationwide digital terrestrial television network in DVB-T2 format.

1. 1Концерн радіомовлення, радіозв'язку та телебачення — official websiterrt.ua
2. 2Історія — official websiterrt.ua
3. 3Про нас — official websiterrt.ua
4. 4Тарифи — official websiterrt.ua
5. 5Broadcasting, Radiocommunications & Television Concern — Wikidatawikidata.org
6. 6Концерн радіомовлення, радіозв'язку та телебачення — Wikipedia (Ukrainian)uk.wikipedia.org