Communications minister Siphiwe Nyanda says SA is on track to meet the November 2011 deadline to switch over to digital TV, contradicting recent statements by industry.
The minister said the country was “very advanced in terms of migration” and, as far as he is aware, SA is “still on track”. Nyanda was making his comments based on information from the recently reconstituted Digital Dzonga.
Pearl Seopela, chief director of communications at the Department of Communications (DOC), confirms that November 2011 is the agreed switchover date to digital TV broadcasting, switching off analogue. The international cut-off date is mid-2015.
However, before SA can switch to digital, several issues must be resolved.
The most important aspect is the choice of digital standard, which is currently in flux as the Southern African Development Community has yet to announce what standard the region will implement. This decision is expected to be made at next month's meeting of regional communications ministers, and the region will choose one standard to be implemented across the area. However, the decision will only be announced in December.
Without knowing what standard to use, manufacturers cannot produce set-top boxes that will be needed to convert digital signal for viewing on analogue televisions, and Sentech may have to change parts of its transmission network if the Japanese ISDB-T standard is implemented.
As a result, industry argues that the digital migration process has been delayed by years and, if SA switches, millions that have already been spent on designing equipment will have to be reinvested in the new standard.
Pressure
Nyanda says the 2011 deadline “puts pressure on SA to sort out the matter of the standards as soon as possible”. He explains that when the country elected to use DVB-T, it “did so with reservations”.
The official decision is still to use DVB-T, says Nyanda. However, he says there were “recent technological developments” and SA cannot “stay captive to a standard if there is another standard that is better”.
Nyanda says this was the rationale behind looking at the Brazilian standard, as the department wants to use a standard that will benefit all of the country's citizens. However, he adds that the choice will not be made lightly, as “many people are concerned about this thing”.
Lacking skills
Industry has spent an estimated R700 million gearing up for the switchover to digital broadcasting, an investment that may be wasted if SA implements ISDB-T.
Sentech alone has spent R500 million and has been testing broadcast on the DVB-T standard. It expects to have 60% of the local population covered by the end of next March. The state-owned entity is working towards a complete turn-off of analogue in 2015.
Altech CEO Craig Venter has previously warned that a change in tack on the standard will set back the process of putting decoders into South African households by three to five years. He explains that industry has been gearing up for a transition to digital on the DVB-T standard since 2006.
“In fact, if a different standard is adopted, we will have to import skills and technology and turn our backs on what exists locally. This will stifle growth of the ICT sector,” says Venter.
Steven Ambrose, MD of WWW Strategy, says there is no way that South Africa can be ready to switch off analogue by November next year. He explains that SA is not likely to have completed migration by 2015 “at the earliest”.
“Even if we decide tomorrow on what standard to use and then issue all the necessary information to set-top box manufacturers to make the equipment, we couldn't possibly manufacture and distribute significantly [enough] to meet the deadline.”
Other industry stakeholders, who asked not to be named due to the politically sensitive nature of the debate, were sceptical that SA would switch off analogue next year, but said November 2011 would make a good launch date.
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