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
New Communications Minister Yunus Carrim plans to put the Department of Communications (DoC) on firmer footing to deliver far more effectively in future and has called on civil society to hold government accountable for results.

Carrim, who was sworn in as Minister two months ago, after the axing of Dina Pule, has vowed to prioritise and fast-track certain aspects imperative to laying a solid base for the next five years.

The Minister has pledged to resolve the impasse between government and broadcasters involving the conditional access functions of the STBs required for South Africa’s digital migration.

Speaking at the first Google Big Tent event, in Midrand, he said that the DoC planned to gather the stakeholders in mid-September to secure a consensus on the way forward or delve deeper into the issues behind the divide.

“We are significantly behind schedule,” he said, accepting responsibility, as government, for the many delays, but stressed that the DoC “wanted to get going” on the project.

The DoC initially issued the tender for the manufacture of five-million subsidised STBs in August last year; however, the awarding of the tender was halted after e.tv  had launched a court bid to oppose Sentech’s appointment to manage conditional access to the STBs.

In December, the South Gauteng High Court ruled that broadcasters other than Sentech should also be granted conditional access control.
The DoC appealed the ruling but withdrew its appeal in Februaryt to fast-track the roll-out of digital terrestrial television (DTT).

The DoC, the South African Broadcasting Corporation and e.tv, besides others continued with court-ordered Independent Communications Authority of South Africa-led talks about the role of each party in the implementation of the conditional access, the continuation of the STB tender and the delivery of the STBs DoC for the market.

“We have met the contending parties separately and have encouraged them to meet together, but there has not been much progress,” Carrim explained.

STBs are needed to receive a digital terrestrial signal. South Africa made a commitment to the International Telecommunications Union to migrate from an analogue to a digital signal by the middle of 2015.

Following a speedy resolution, the DTT migration could be rolled out in a few months; however, should the DoC not reach a consensus with the broadcasters, Carrim has warned that the department will, taking into consideration all the views outlined, go ahead with the project.

A yet-to-be-announced technical expert with negotiating skills will facilitate the upcoming meeting.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
South Africa has until 2015 to complete the migration, after which it will no longer have exclusive use of the frequencies.

Contact Details for Project Information
DoC media liaison officer, Siya Qoza, tel +27 12 427 8511 or fax +2712 427 Sentech, tel +27 11 691 7000.