Today marks the promised day for the complete switch-over from analogue to digital terrestrial television (DTT) in the Free State, after the province was earmarked as the one that will be the first to fully migrate.
Last month, after missing the initial 31 December 2018 deadline to migrate the Free State to DTT, the Department of Communications (DOC) confirmed the switch-off had been pushed to the end of February.
This, said the DOC, was to give those Free State residents yet to register for government-subsidised set-top boxes (STBs) more time to do so.
The DOC's Mish Molakeng indicated that due to overwhelming demand for STBs by qualifying television-viewing households, the department decided to give residents a grace period of eight weeks to register.
According to him, over 75% of television-viewing households have already registered for STBs in the Free State province.
Government plans to subsidise over five million households with set-top boxes. The STBs are an essential part of the migration process as they are required to convert digital broadcasting signals on analogue TV sets. The decoders allow consumers to receive DTT without having to buy a new digital TV.
Moving target
In the 10 years since Cabinet approved SA's policy to migrate from its analogue broadcasting system to digital, the migration date has been moved numerous times. Currently, July 2020 has been touted as the "official deadline" for the country to complete the Broadcasting Digital Migration (BDM) programme.
The project has been characterised by hurdle after hurdle, ranging from legal battles over the standards of STBs, corruption allegations relating to the procurement process of the digital TV decoders, as well as party politics over amendments to the ANC's BDM policy.
Furthermore, the DOC, which is facilitating the country's digital migration process, has undergone numerous leadership changes, with five different ministers in the space of two years.
Government has identified the BDM programme as a key project to improve the lives of South African citizens. The state is of the view that successful migration will empower it to bridge the digital divide, increase the competitiveness of the economy, create jobs and build social cohesion.
The country's switch to DTT will also make radio frequency spectrum available, which is currently occupied by analogue services, for mobile broadband and broadcasting services.
In National Treasury's latest Estimates of National Expenditure (ENE) document, the DOC once again promised to fast-track the much-delayed digital migration process.
In the ENE, the DOC states: "The shift from analogue to digital broadcasting is critical to transforming the communications sector, as it frees up much-needed spectrum for broadband and other modern communications services. Digital broadcasting, therefore, will enable South Africa to adapt to and participate meaningfully in a globalised economy."
SA missed the June 2015 deadline set by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) for countries to complete the full switch from analogue to DTT. The ITU has called on nations to migrate to digital to allow radio frequency spectrum to be freed up for mobile broadband services.
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