TeleWeb - teletext with internet connection

The 1997 Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA 97) saw the market launch of the first sets compatible with this display level. It was soon clear that there was little to be gained from modernizing teletext by raising the level. Despite the improvement brought about by the introduction of teletext level 2.5 – with 32 colours and improved graphics – the big gamble did not come off because it had to make allowance for the old level-1 text decoders still in use. Even the possibility of transmitting simple pictures as bit samples (DRCSs – Dynamically Redefinable Character Sets) was not up to expectation. This is because the level 2.5 graphics are only two-colour and are confined to too small a surface. The production of level 2.5 graphics with complex software tools, taking level 1 into account, also complicated the lives of teletext editors and, hence, adversely affected the changeover to level 2.5. What was more, the advertising industry found the “added value” of this improved teletext level was negligible, and this was why that industry, too, showed little interest in an increased use of level 2.5. TeleWeb — teletext with internet connection