MUMBAI: Britain's television regulator Ofcom has given the go ahead to British DTT platform Freeview to begin carrying subscription-only channels.

It has thus lifted a 2002 ban by the previous regulator, the Independent Television Commission.

Freeview is transmitted on television multiplexes licensed by Ofcom under the Broadcasting Act 1996, three of which state that all channels must be free-to-air.

Ofcom said the decision to lift the restriction was influenced by the rapid development of DTT, which is now in more than a third of the 18 million UK households that can access digital television on a variety of platforms.

In a statement Ofcom says, "Ofcom believes that the current restriction on pay TV channels is no longer a matter requiring regulatory intervention and that finding the right balance between pay and free-to-air services on the DTT platform can be better left to the market".