Publicly-owned network and telecoms company Sentech will invest R1 billion over the next five years upgrading SA`s analogue broadcasting infrastructure to a digital terrestrial system.
The upgrade is necessary to meet national broadcasting requirements, as well as requirements for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, says Sentech`s acting COO, Frans Lindeque.
Digital terrestrial television (DTT) test transmissions have been conducted for two years at Sentech`s main broadcast tower site in Brixton, Johannesburg. These tests have given Sentech the experience and the knowledge to begin the renovation of SA`s broadcasting system, he says.
2008 migration
"The roll-outs of DTT should begin in the metropolitan areas by 2008," he says, adding by 2010 two different multiplexes should allow Sentech to carry up to 12 high-definition channels.
"The primary benefit of DTT will be clearer, sharper pictures, without the interference and ghosting that some residents of built-up areas or hilly terrain sometimes experience. DTT also offers a wide-screen format and multiple language offerings per channel," Lindeque says.
The first requirement is to upgrade Sentech`s network and duplicate the analogue network channels on a digital system, he explains. Once that process is complete, DTT and analogue systems will be run side-by-side until SA is ready to switch off the analogue transmission, he adds.
A set-top box, which costs about R500, is required to decode the signal (even for public broadcasting service and free-to-air channels), though that price is expected to drop over the next few years, says Sentech.
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