Africa-Press – South-Africa. After well over a decade of delays and setbacks, the government’s installation of set-top boxes, crucial for moving television in SA from analogue to digital, has finally passed the one-million mark.
Communications Minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni told Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies that she would announce a date for the analogue television terrestrial signal to be switched off after the final applications for set-top boxes on Friday.
The migration of the South African terrestrial television broadcast signal has faced multiple delays for over a decade. In June, the Constitutional Court found Ntshavheni’s March deadline for the switch-off of the analogue signal was unconstitutional and invalid.
Since the ruling, Ntshavheni has had to reassess the deadlines and ramp up assistance to low-income households with installing the set-top boxes that will give their television sets the digital broadcast signal once the analogue signal is finally switched off.
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Ntshavheni said the courts were of the view that she needed to consult with affected stakeholders before determining an analogue switch-off date.
“We then went on this process and went to Cabinet announcing 30 of September as the last date for applications for households that will need assistance with set-top boxes,” said Ntshavheni.
Ntshavheni said the Department of Communications gazetted the extension of assistance to households in all languages and paid for SABC advertising slots to spread the message to the general public.
She said the department also partnered with the South African Local Government Association with processing applications at a ward level. Ntshavheni said the National House of Traditional Leaders also assisted with spreading the message in rural areas.
The project manager for the digital migration process Teboho Leshope said the public service broadcaster allowed the department to reach households needing set-top boxes through multiple daily broadcast alerts on television and radio.
“We have created sufficient awareness around this process, particularly on television. We are working with SABC TV and SABC Radio and broadcasting six times per day on radio and three times per day on the television channels,” said Leshope.
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Leshope said outside of the SABC’s broadcasting platforms, 96 community broadcasters have been sharing the message at least three times a day. He said the department was still analysing the number of applications and registrations from August and September. Registrations were being monitored at Post Office branches, he said.
“Based on the total number of registrations and installations, we have installed over a million set-top boxes across the country, and based on the number of registrations excluding August and September, we have about 200 000 installations to complete.
“At the end of September, we will consolidate the new number of new applications and registrations, and based on the run rate of installations we will then determine what the analogue switch-off date for South Africa will be. The minister will commence consultations with stakeholders affected by the analogue switch-off,” Leshope said.
He said in the coming months the department will drive installations and awareness campaigns to prepare households for the analogue switch-off, after which, the minister will make the final announcement for the analogue switch-off.
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