Digital migration holds up pay-TV

By Damaria Senne, ITWeb senior journalist

Johannesburg, 26 Mar 2007

South Africans looking forward to a more competitive pay-TV environment may have to wait until the digital migration process is under way in 2008.

The digital migration strategy and implementation plan, to be presented to Cabinet for approval in April, suggests the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) should delay the licensing of pay-TV applicants until digital migration is completed.

Licensing was initially expected to take place some time this year, although the authorities have not set a specific deadline.

However, stakeholders can still have their say and succeed in opening the sector up to more competition, if they deliver written submissions to the Department of Communications before the end of next week.

Applicants for new pay-TV licences include MultiChoice (which was previously operating legally, but without a formal licence), the SABC (in partnership with Sentech), Telkom, Black Earth Communication and eTV (via E-SAT), as well as smaller players.

Department of Communications spokesman Albi Modise says the delay in licensing new players in the broadcasting arena will allow the digital migration process to take place smoothly, without interruptions caused by the entry of players who are not in the initial plan.

The written representations will be taken into consideration when finalising the digital migration strategy and implementation plan that will be submitted to Cabinet, he adds.

Left behind

Modise says some stakeholders provided verbal input to the proposed digital migration strategy and implementation plan at a workshop held in Midrand last week.

Telecoms providers, which are now allowed to provide converged services, including broadcasting services under the Electronic Communications Act, requested the department not ignore them when making decisions. Modise says director-general Lyndall Shope-Mafole has reassured these stakeholders that this will not be the case.

The final digital migration strategy is to be presented to Cabinet for approval in April and gazetted later that month.

In May, government aims to launch the digital migration strategy, along with a digital migration office to drive the implementation plan. A campaign to educate members of the public about digital migration and how it will impact them will begin that month.

The implementation plan also recommends ICASA should develop a regulatory framework for mobile/handheld TV licensing by mid-2007.