BBC HD has started testing today ahead of its launch on the EPG next month.

It can be found on 10.847 V, in clear, under the label '6940'. Standard FTA receivers will get it as a radio station. Standard Sky Boxes will ignore it completely - and even the Humax 1000/2000 boxes cannot recognise the channel.

The broadcast is in DVB-S/MPEG4, on the same mux as BBC1 Cambridge and Channel Islands.

The stream is broadcast as follows:

090A: BBCi interactive trigger (1.5 MBit/sec)
090E: HD video at 18 MBit/sec
090F: Dolby 5.1 Digital audio at 384 kBit/sec stereo (not audible on any standard box)
0910: Audio at 256 kBit/sec stereo - audible on standard FTA boxes
0911: Teletext at 24 kBit/sec - empty

The content appears to be BBC1 playout audio - not programme audio. There is vast silence, with occasional audio between programmes or during programmes without voice-over. There are occasional full audio - such as with the Party Election Broadcast by the Liberal Democrats - shown at 1855. There is no audio during live programmes such as the news.

Apparently the BBC will from time to time switch the transmission between DVB-S and DVB-S2, but if they do this, it may appear on a different frequency, as it is not possible to have DVB-S and DVB-S2 in the same mux, but it is possible to have MPEG2 and MPEG4 in the same mux (strange but true!). The station is due to join the EPG on 15 May and will run for 12 months only.

Currently no video is available of what is actually being broadcast.

Keep it here for any further info.

Related link
BBC to trial HD broadcasts