New pay-television service Siyaya TV seems ready to launch some of its offerings before the end of this year, using direct-to-home (DTH) satellite broadcasting, according to the City Press.
Recent reports indicated Siyaya will hold the broadcast rights of national football team matches from next year onwards - a deal disputed by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC).
Siyaya was one of five new players that received conditional pay-TV licences from the Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) in April.
ICASA spokesperson Paseka Maleka is quoted by the paper, saying Siyaya's submissions were made by the end of July, while licences issued are "technologically neutral", meaning both DTH and digital terrestrial television (DTT) can be used.
The paper quotes Siyaya's UK technology partner Motion Television, which says plans are afoot to launch channels on Sentech's Freevision platform.
According to the City Press, Siyaya signed a series of deals with Motion last year, including supplying set-top boxes (STBs) and a video-on-demand service using Motion's ContentExpress software. The UK company also acted as an adviser to Siyaya for its application to ICASA.
Motion also struck a deal with Chinese STB manufacturer Shenzhen Skyworth Digital Technology - the same company setting up a STB manufacturing plant at Dube Tradeport in KwaZulu Natal.
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