A few days ago, I was invited to a house warming party for a friend who has just come back from the UK. His house is a complete disaster, with half of his blue trunks unpacked and cardboard boxes strewn around the house.
Over the few weeks he has been back, he has been busily building a cabinet that will house his digital goodies, since he plans to create a full digital home. This hasn't stopped him from unpacking his TV - on the floor - with his PlayStation 3, Wii, shiny new DSTV PVR decoder, Xbox 360, Xbox 360 special edition, a DVD player, a hi-fi system, with uber speakers - do I need to go on?
I joked with him after he explained his DIY plans to me, saying he doesn't need a bigger cabinet, he needs a bigger house.
The truth of the joke only struck me a few days ago, because the trouble is, my friend may not be the only one who needs a bigger place to live once the digital migration of TV gets under way.
Brand happy
In November, I was at the grand ceremony that opened the start of the digital migration trials. The newly-designed decoders for each of the broadcasters were displayed with as much pomp as the gadgets deserved.
The broadcasters were excitedly explaining how each digital trial was being run and one can't help but get caught up in the possibility that we could be watching high-definition quality TV, with digital functionality tacked on the side.
MultiChoice has been in the game for ages, and has managed to build channels for gaming and interactive voting. If I could vote for my president while watching the proceedings live on SABC, I probably would.
You would think that cutting every cost possible would be the best way forward.
Candice Jones, telecoms editor, ITWeb
And the new decoders could have these kinds of capabilities. The problem is, not one of the broadcasters, nor the regulator, has thought out the process thoroughly. It could have something to do with the confusion around the industry created by the late minister of communications, Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri.
The broadcasters have been cagey on the topic, but it looks like they will each have their own new decoders built. A pretty little thing that can be branded and handed to us, the consumer, with little enough space under our TVs to add a sheet of paper, let alone another set-top box.
I am pretty sure their marketing departments have explained the importance of owning the branding on devices that are sent into homes. After all, it worked for Creepy Crawly.
Home improvement
While the lucky consortium which has been contracted to build these new boxes strikes it rich, home owners across SA, hoping to keep the TV on, will have to design something of a server room for all their new devices.
Let's face it, most of us who don't have DSTV are likely to go out and pay our subsidised costs for the new set-top boxes, because missing the Amazing Race on a Tuesday night is not going to be our idea of fun.
The question is, why is it so hard for corporate competitors to work together on certain projects? If they were really so concerned about the bottom line, then sharing the manufacturing costs of a decoder should be in both companies' best interests.
The telecoms companies were hit by the same disaster - the result is five million cell towers littering our countryside, masquerading as plastic trees. Although it appears the telcos are coming around - possibly because of the growing competition locally.
It may be slightly more complicated for the broadcasters. SABC, being the public broadcaster, will want to add government services to its bouquet. Meanwhile, eTV will want to possibly create an advertising system and M-Net will just want to put a big sticker on that says: “We rock”.
On the other hand, every single one of the TV providers has complained that the migration process is going to be expensive. Some have demanded compensation from the regulator and others are gaining government funding for it.
You would think that cutting every cost possible would be the best way forward.
Fortunately for the consumer, the actual migration to digital (or the dual illumination period) seems to have been postponed and may only actually get under way late in 2010. It's good news, because by then house prices will be at an all-time low and buying a house with a bigger lounge may not be a pipe dream.
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