
--
The secret R800 SAs TV viewers dont know theyll have to pay to keep watching their free television --
Mon, 19 Sep 2016 14:23
--
On 16 September Thinus Ferreira reported that tens of millions of South African TV households have no idea that theyre going to be forced to pay around R800 and more just to keep watching the free TV theyve been watching as the countrys long-delayed and derailed switch from analogue to digital television drags on.
More than a year after South Africas department of communications missed the international deadline of June 2015 to complete the switch to digital terrestrial television (DTT) - a process known as digital migration thats already fraught with several allegations of corruption thats being investigated - the South African government finally revealed in parliament on Thursday the shocking cost to TV households of the very expensive exercise.
South Africas TV households without satellite television - people who watch the SABC, e.tv and community TV stations without DStv, M-Net, StarSat or OpenView HD - are going to be forced to fork out hundreds of rands to buy a decoder known as a set-top box (STB) and in many instances also a new antenna.
Without it, viewers will eventually be cut off and no longer be able to receive free-to-air channels like SABC1 for instance.
While the government is set to give free STBs away to only the poorest of the poor households - around 5,2 million TV households - it leaves millions of South African TV households who are going to discover that they have to pay out of their own pocket hundreds of rand just to keep watching their Generations, Muvhango and Rhythm City on the SABC and e.tv when the existing analogue TV signals are eventually switched off.
In its presentation to parliament, the department of communications revealed that about 650 000 STBs without any encryption system have been manufactured in South Africa and have been delivered to the South African Post Office. The Post Office will have to help with distribution.
These STBs that were ordered and manufactured in bulk cost the government (including VAT) R687,94 (CZ Electronics), R689,26 (BUA Africa) and R689,26 (Leratidima) each.
Ellies satellite dishes cost R441,71 and antennas from Temic Manufacturing and QEC cost R135,09 and R177,70 each.
The costing gives a shocking indication of what South Africans who dont qualify for a DTT subsidy will have to pay commercially when they are forced to buy a STB and an antenna for their TV sets.
While most new flatscreen TV sets now have DTT tuners already built-in, millions of South African TV households who dont qualify as poor enough but already have a TV set, simply dont have the expendable income to buy a new flatscreen costing thousands or even the R800 to buy a STB and antenna.
Further complicating the already convoluted and delayed process is ongoing legal action further hampering the DTT roll-out process.
These already manufactured STBs - around 650 000 - were made without a built-in encryption system known as (CA) conditional access.
e.tv took the government to court over the lack of a CA system in STBs and in May this year won its digital TV box encryption case in the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA).
The minister of communications Faith Muthambi decided to appeal the decision further and is taking it to the Constitutional Court in a case that is set to be heard on 17 February 2017.
If Faith Muthambis appeal here fails as well, the already manufactured STBs thats cost the government R305 million so far - some of which have already been handed out to poor households - will be the wrong ones that doesnt have the encryption features broadcasters like e.tv and others might use in future to protect their content and broadcast high definition (HD) TV channels.
Minor challenges
Faith Muthambi told parliament on Thursday that the DTT project is being rolled out despite minor challenges.
Challenges relate to lack of funding for a public awareness campaign, dual illumination [and] the establishment of a contact centre. On The South African Post Office, there is also risk issues.
Besides average South Africans being clueless that theyre going to have to pay to keep watching free television, theres also controversy about the awarding of the STB tenders with an forensic investigation that was launched, as well as an investigation into a company that got a tender to do DTT public awareness campaigns.
As the department of communications has said for over a decade now with few actual DTT deliverables as South Africa kept falling behind with the switch to digital TV, Faith Muthambi again on Thursday told parliament that the department is committed to work with all key role players to ensure that the broadcasting digital migration process is successfully implemented.
Written by Thinus Ferreira.
Source: TVWithThinus
Related Articles
-- --
-- --
-- Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. comments powered by Disqus
Most recent headlines
17/12/2025
Investigative journalists across the Western Balkans and T rkiye continue to con...
17/12/2025
Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame Inducts 10 Industry Icons During Unforgettable ...
17/12/2025
ESPN to Debut MNF Playbook with Next Gen Stats, a New AI-Driven NFL Data-AltCastThe series, powered by Adrenaline TruPlay AI, launches Dec. 22 and runs through ...
17/12/2025
Inaugural Optum Golf Channel Games Debut Under the Lights' in Primetime on ...
17/12/2025
The right playlist is essential on New Year's Eve, building the energy as you get ready and keeping it high as you count down to midnight. This year, Spotif...
17/12/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
17/12/2025
Audiences Watched Over 103 Billion Minutes of TV on Thanksgiving Day
NFL Games ...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
KPop Demon Hunters Stars Visit Berklee for Weeklong Celebration Andrew Choi and EJAE, who voiced the film's main characters and contributed to its soundtr...
17/12/2025
Wednesday 17 December 2025
Heated Rivalry will be coming to Sky and streaming service NOW on 10 JanuaryTurn on cookies to view this content. Go to Privacy opti...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Inside The Unseen World Of Indian Customs: Netflix Reveals The...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix announces PAPARAZZI KING: the docu series coming to Ne...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils First Look at Jo Nesbo's Detective Hole Pr...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Welcomes Warner Bros. Discovery Board Recommendation
Business
17 December 2025
Global
Link copied to clipboard
After Careful Revi...
17/12/2025
RT has announced that Kathy Fox has been appointed Commissioning Editor with re...
17/12/2025
The Hao AI Lab research team at the University of California San Diego - at the forefront of pioneering AI model innovation - recently received an NVIDIA DGX B...
17/12/2025
Editor's note: This post is part of Into the Omniverse, a series focused on ...
17/12/2025
With the new season of Dancing with the Stars shimmering in the not-too-distant future this New Year, the celebrity and dancer pairings of the twelve couples ha...
16/12/2025
Hawkins has landed on Spotify, just in time for Stranger Things Season 5, Volume...
16/12/2025
Wherever you are, your favorite music and audio content should go seamlessly with you. That's why Spotify has partnered with NAVER Corp, Korea's leading...
16/12/2025
2025 Wrapped arrived bigger and bolder than ever. This year's experience is designed to be ultra personal and shareable, with new features like Wrapped Part...
16/12/2025
Three 12-kilowatt Advanced Electric Propulsion System thrusters, supplied by L3Harris Technologies, form the core of Gateway's propulsion system. Pictured i...
16/12/2025
The challenge facing America's defense industrial base is not just about speed - its about rebuilding the foundation that makes speed possible. Our nations ...
16/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
16/12/2025
SEVILLE, Spain Canal Sur, the public broadcasting service for Andalusia, Spain, has completed a total technology refresh based on Pebble's resilient, softwa...
16/12/2025
NEW YORK Teleprompting hardware provider Telescript International has acquired all software code and intellectual property previously owned by Telescript West. ...
16/12/2025
As cable operators face increased competition from 5G fixed wireless access providers, a new report from Ookla Research finds that T-Mobile is the FWA speed lea...
16/12/2025
Apple has announced a major upgrade to the Apple TV app for device owners outside the Apple ecosystem with news that the Apple TV app for Android now supports G...
16/12/2025
Space42 grows Direct-to-Device partner ecosystem through a Memorandum of Underst...
16/12/2025
16 Dec 2025
VEON Announces Release Date for Full Year and Fourth Quarter 2025 R...
16/12/2025
16 Dec 2025
VEON's Kyivstar Invests in Renewable Energy in Ukraine with Acq...
16/12/2025
Back to All News
Emma Appleton, Fares Fares, Frida Gustavsson and Jakob Oftebro...
16/12/2025
Back to All News
Docu-reality My Korean Boyfriend Gets a Trailer and Premiere D...
16/12/2025
Harmonic's XOS Advanced Media Processor Improves Streaming Video Quality and Boosts Viewer Engagement SAN JOSE, Calif. - Dec. 16, 2025 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: ...
16/12/2025
RT Sport Awards 2025 live on RT One and RT Player at 8:05pm on Saturday 20 December.
On Saturday 20 December live on RT One and RT Player at the earlier t...
16/12/2025
Singer -songwriter Brian Kennedy has been announced as the final celebrity dance...
15/12/2025
Harlem Globetrotters Celebrate 100th Anniversary With New Brand Campaign From Th...
15/12/2025
Top L-R: La Tierra Del Valor (The Home of the Brave), Mangittatuarjuk (The Gnawe...
15/12/2025
L3Harris will leverage 15 years of experience supporting the E-4B Nightwatch and...