More than 14 000 qualifying TV-owning households have to date registered to receive free set-top boxes (STBs) as SA migrates to digital terrestrial television.
This is according to Mishack Molakeng, director: media liaison office of the minister of communications, who says registration of qualifying television-owning households commenced in October 2015.
In terms of the Department of Communication's (DOC's) criteria to qualify for free STBs, applicants must prove they are South African citizens and that their household income is R3 200 (or less).
Molakeng's comments follow the DOC's announcement that residents in the village of Tiyani in Limpopo can now register to receive free STBs at their nearest post office.
Speaking at the digital migration awareness campaign in Tiyani village, DOC minister Faith Muthambi encouraged eligible residents in the area to register for STBs.
"After a consultative process with the board of the South African Broadcasting Corporation, an important decision was taken that indigent people with a TV licence debt should be allowed to apply for STBs.
"We are urging all indigent people to register at the post office and we will be using the indigent register from municipalities to check if the household qualifies to get government-subsidised STBs," notes Muthambi.
The DOC anticipates that over 150 000 residents will register for STBs in the Limpopo province.
According to Molakeng, the process of production of STBs is under way, and the distribution and installation process is ongoing in the Northern Cape.
Last year, the department decided to prioritise border-lying areas as the country switches from analogue to digital television signal.
Areas like the Square Kilometre Array in the Northern Cape, as well as Mpumalanga, Free State and the North West were prioritised for the digital migration process.
Delivering the DOC's strategic plan for the 2016 to 2020 financial years before Parliament's portfolio committee on communications, Muthambi said over the medium-term, the DOC will continue to enable economic growth in the ICT sector through the broadcasting infrastructure roll-out of flagship projects.
In support of the National Infrastructure Plan, the department is currently rolling-out STBs to the Northern Cape and Free State. Registration is under way in Mpumalanga, she told Parliament.
SA is migrating from analogue to digital broadcasting. The main reason for the migration is to release valuable spectrum, which can be used for other services.
Government will provide free STBs to five million poor TV-owning households across the country.
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