Digital migration delay costs Sentech R213-million
Sentech needs an additional R213-million to avoid charging broadcasters for transmitting their digital TV signal, Setumo Mohapi, CEO of Sentech, explained in a presentation to the Select Committee for Labour and Public Enterprises last week (15 August 2012).
The figure is based on the assumption that South Africa would switch off its analogue television signal during June 2015, as agreed with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).
According to deputy director general of the Department of Communications (DoC), Themba Phiri, the state-owned signal distributor has thus far been allocated R1.8 billion for South Africa’s digital terrestrial television roll-out and dual illumination.
As a member of the ITU, South Africa’s current commitment is to complete its digital migration by 17 June 2015 Phiri told the committee.
Phiri said that South Africa’s self-imposed digital migration timelines of November 2008 to November 2011 proved to be unrealistic, and added that SA would not be able to meet the SADC deadline for 2013.
Asked by the committee whether there wasn’t a way for South Africa to make the SADC migration date, Phiri said that it was very clear that the country could not meet the deadline for 2013.
There is not enough time to complete the work and there were also funding constraints, Phiri said.
However, South Africa would be able to meet the ITU deadline of 2015 as it still has three years to do the work, Phiri said.
The extension of the switch-off date from 2011, to 2013, and now to 2015 means that there will be additional costs in the “dual illumination period” during which both analogue and digital TV signals are broadcast, Mohapi explained.
He added that Sentech has been transmitting both analogue and digital signals since November 2008 and would continue to do so until analogue switch off.
The dual illumination funding request was to cover the incremental cost arising from dual illumination during 2014 and 2015, Mohapi said.
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