There is a high growth of digital media in Africa with most broadcasting service moving from analogue to digital television.
So says Ibrahima Guimba-Saidou, senior vice president for SES Africa, who notes that SES plans to assist as many countries as possible with a successful digital migration before the International Telecommunication Union's mid-2015 deadline, which is when it will stop protecting analogue.
The digital transition in broadcasting is a global process involving the switch from analogue to digital broadcasting signals. After the International Telecommunications Union's mid-2015 deadline, countries will not be protected against signal interference. TV receivers will no longer receive signals because the broadcasting stations will be transmitting on digital.
Guimba-Saidou says that SES is assisting the digital migration by organising workshops with respective state or regional groups; making capacity available on newly launched satellites and advising or helping on technical capabilities.
"We have played a similar role in countries like Germany and the UK and have successfully helped them transition from analogue to digital television," says Guimba-Saidou.
He reveals that the transition is a slow process and that SES was ready but the delay was coming from the government.
Governments are harmonising standards within the region and sub-region to optimise the solutions and lower the overall costs. This takes time, but some are starting to issue requests for proposals for the provisioning and deployment of the networks.
Also, funding is one of the problems making it difficult for some countries to implement solutions on time, says Guimba-Saidou.
For a smooth transition, he points out that broadcasters should make sure they have technical capabilities as well as that enough compatible set-up boxes are available.
Government must ensure nothing prevents the import or assembly and distribution of set-up boxes and that there are enough transmitters in place, he adds.
Regulators need to make sure that the spectrum is used and allocated appropriately, notes Guimba-Saidou.
All types of broadcast communications use part of the electromagnetic spectrum, which is the entire range of electromagnetic waves from low to high frequency.
In conclusion, Guimba-Saidou believes Africa is quickly adapting to technology and this will help the continent close the digital gap. He adds that the digital television migration will be a step closer to bridging the gap.
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