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Ministry is also seriously considering a mobile
TV policy. If the proposal is cleared by Cabinet,
an auction process is expected to be initiated for
spectrum allocation for mobile TV service providers.
Each successful bidder would be entitled to
8 MHz of spectrum or frequency bandwidth.
JAPAN
JAPAN ADOPTS ISDB-TMM FOR
MULTIMEDIA BROADCASTING
ISDB-TMM has been adopted in Japan as one of
the standards for nationwide mobile multimedia
broadcasting, due to be deployed after 24 July 2011.
ISDB-TMM technology is said to be highly compatible
with ISDB-T, which is the standard for the
Japanese DTT broadcasting that was deployed in
2003. Nationwide broadcasting is scheduled to use
207.5-222MHz, while VHF band 90-108MHz will be
used for regional broadcasting. Also adopted for
nationwide broadcasting is MediaFLO while ISDB-
TSB has been chosen for regional broadcasting.
THE PHILLIPINES
DTT DEADLINE PUSHED BACK
TO 2015 IN PHILLIPINES
The Commission on Information and Communications
Technology (CICT) plans to push back
the deadline for the switchover from analogue to
digital broadcasting to 2015 pending the selection
of a platform. The government is studying two
options to be used for the digital TV technology –
Japan’s ISDB-T and Europe’s DVB-T. The National
Telecommunications Commission, the agency
closely working with CICT for the selection of the
digital TV platform, said Japan had offered a low
cost set top box (US$ 12) that is cheaper than the
European standard (US$ 13-14). The government
has no plans to give subsidies on the set-top boxes.
A F R I C A
GHANA
GHANA SETS 2012 TARGET FOR
DIGITAL SWITCHOVER
Ghana has set a 2012 deadline to complete the
switch from analogue to digital broadcasting services
ahead of an international deadline of 17 June
2015. A 24-man National Migration Technical Committee
to ensure that Ghana achieves the target has
been set up in Accra with a mandate to make policy
recommendations to situate the transition from
analogue to digital broadcasting. The Government
is to adopt a phased analogue switch-off process
starting with all regional capitals in December 2012.
KENYA
KENYA STARTS DIGITAL TV MIGRATION
Kenya has begun migrating to the DVB-T digital TV
standard ahead of the June 2012 deadline. According
to the Communication Commission of Kenya
(CCK), no more television broadcasting licences will
be issued until the country migrates fully to digital
technology. The liberalisation of Kenya's media
industry has seen a growth in the number of broadcaster
but the industry regulator has been unable
to meet the demand of frequencies. One analogue
frequency is able to accommodate 10 - 12 channels
in Mpeg4 format on the digital platform. To run on
the digital platform, broadcasters will be required
to pay a monthly fee of KSh300,000 to Signet.
LESOTHO
LESOTHO PLANS TO MIGRATE FROM
ANALOGUE TO DIGITAL TV
Lesotho Communications, Science and Technology
Minister, Mothejoa Metsing, has said that his
country had joined the rest of the world in making
a landmark decision to migrate terrestrial TV from
analogue to digital broadcasting by June 2015. He
said it was necessary to coordinate the migration
processes before 2015, as per regional and global
plans, because any broadcaster transmitting in
analogue that could be found to be interfering after
2015 would be shut down without any hesitation.
SOUTH AFRICA
SALES OF DIGITAL BOXES TO
START IN FIRST QUARTER
The set-top boxes that South Africans will need for
watching television when local broadcasting goes
digital, will only be available at stores throughout the
from analogue to digital terrestrial TV is scheduled
to be completed by the end of 2011. The Government
has budgeted R2.45 billion for this changeover
and this includes subsidies for the supply of
STBs to qualifying analogue television set owners.
Government sources state that the retail price of
STBs is estimated at around R700, but the prices
are likely to fall as consumer take-up increases.
lion
of the poorest households who receive a 70%
subsidy of the retail price, excluding installation.
TUNISIA
TUNISIAN TV TO SWITCH TO
DIGITAL FROM MARCH 2010
With the arrival of DTT, analogue TV will
gradually disappear from Tunisia’s television
landscape as March 2010. 90% of Tunisia’s
territory will be covered by DTT by 2010 which
is slowly but surely gaining momentum throughout
the country. The establishment of DTT will
cover all of the country by 2014. DTT will start
with a package of some 8 to 12 channels.
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