Name and Location
Digital broadcasting migration project, South Africa.

Client
The Department of Communications (DoC) and Sentech.

Project Description
Digital terrestrial television (DTT) is the implementation of digital technology to provide more channels and/or better picture quality and sound through a conventional television antenna or aerial, instead of a satellite dish or cable connection.

In 2005, State-owned enterprise Sentech announced plans to roll out DTT, using digital video broadcasting terrestrial (DVB-T) technology, in time for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Initially, there will be two DVB-T transmitters for each location or site.

The first phase of the project involves upgrading the Sentech broadcast network and duplicating the current analogue network channels on a digital system.

Most of the 220 sites needed to broadcast DTT to 92% of South Africa's population are already in place, but need to be upgraded to become fully digital. Once that process has been completed, DTT and analogue systems will run simultaneously (a dual-illumination process) until South Africa is ready to switch off analogue transmission. This decision will be made by government.

A set-top box (STB) will be required to decode the signal, even for public broadcasting and free-to-air channels. The STBs are expected to be subsidised.

Value
The upgrade is expected to cost R1-billion.

Supplying the STBs will cost an estimated R2.45-billion.

Duration
According to an agreement with the International Telecommunications Union, the country has until 2015 to complete the migration, after which it will no longer have exclusive use of the frequencies.

Latest Developments
Free-to-air broadcaster e.tv’s court victory against the DoC over the conditional access control over STBs could have significant repercussions for the industry, according to contract manufacturing, communications and defence group Tellumat.

The decision by the South Gauteng High Court to allow the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa to grant conditional access control to broadcasters instead of DoC-appointed Sentech could lead to significant delays, costs and service issues to changing STB management, Tellumat managing executive for STB Shaun Hendricks has said.

According to Henddricks, many manufacturers, including Tellumat, have invested many years and millions of rands in the development of the digital broadcasting specification, systems that are compliant with the specification and related solutions and market strategies.

“The specification was finalised a year ago, settling a number of undefined specification areas, including the control system – also known as conditional access (CA),” Hendricks says.

Moving the specification “even just slightly” or integrating new CA vendors could take six months to a year.

He adds that, if e.tv’s win is upheld on appeal and the station is given equal rights to managing the system, and it insists on changing the existing specification baseline, this will cause more delays and the millions invested would be lost.

The DoC, which is appealing the court’s decision, says the matter needs to be dealt with urgently or the country will miss its migration deadline.

South Africa has until 2015 to complete its migration from analogue to digital broadcasting before analogue broadcasting frequencies’ exclusivity, or protection, is lifted, resulting in signal interruptions.

“To complicate the situation unduly is not in consumers’, the industry’s or the country’s interests. It only serves the narrow interests of a few. One would hope the department would . . . pursue a solution that is both legally sound and pragmatic,” Hendricks concludes.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
On November 28, 2008, South Africa's digital signal was switched on. The analogue signal will now be turned off in December 2013, instead of November 1, 2011, as was originally targeted, allowing for a three-year period of dual illumination.

While the DoC is on schedule with the revised dates, the dual-illumination period could be extended until the global switch-off date, should it be required, ensuring that rural and poor households have STBs.

Contact Details for Project Information
DoC, tel +27 12 427 8000 or fax +27 12 427 8016; or spokesperson Tiyani Rikhotso, cell +27 83 800 9936 or email tiyani@doc.gov.za; or digital migration project leader Themba Phiri, tel +27 12 427 8146 or fax +27 12 427 8059.
DoC Go Digital, tel +27 800 463 444, fax +27 11 399 6023 or email info@godigitalsa.co.za.
Sentech, tel +27 11 691 7000.