Global digital TV migration could switch off millions of Kenyans

As the international deadline for digital migration approaches, questions have emerged on whether Kenya will enjoy a smooth switchover, with the price of set-top boxes being prohibitive for many consumers.

Information and Communications permanent secretary Bitange Ndemo last week told Smart Company that the Treasury had declined an appeal by his ministry to give subsidies on set-top boxes in order to make them affordable.

“The Treasury has declined to issue the Cabinet memo, especially because the government is a bit squeezed financially at this time. There are also fears that some people may abuse the opportunity and sell subsidised set-top boxes outside the country,” said Dr Ndemo.

The ministry had approached the government for the subsidy after a waiver on duty on imported set-top boxes — devices that convert digital signal into a format compatible with analogue TV sets — failed to deliver significant impact on retail prices of the gadgets.

It is estimated that at least four million analogue TV sets in the country will have to be connected to set-top boxes in order to receive the digital signal.

But the high pricing, currently retailing at well over Sh5,000, has made it difficult to switch off the analogue signal even in places already served with the digital signal.

Having failed to beat a self-set deadline of June 2012, Communications Commission of Kenya director-general Francis Wangusi refused to commit to a new cut-off date by which the country should have effected a complete switchover.

The analogue-to-digital shift was conventionally agreed upon at the Radio Communication Conference (RRC) held in Geneva, Switszerland under the sponsorship of the International Telecommunications Union in May 2006.

The global cutover date is set for June 2015 but, locally, the government ambitiously backdated the deadline to June this year.

But why switch? Switching from analogue to digital allows broadcasters to offer higher picture quality because a digital signal can be compressed far more than the analogue one.

Compression allows stations to fit more information in the signal. That means that you get a clearer image with digital television than you would from an analogue signal.

In fact, even though digital signals get weaker with distance, just as analogue signals do, the former will not degrade in quality. As long as you have a signal, you will get a clear picture.

There is another advantage to having additional bandwidth available. Using digital broadcasting, local broadcasters are able to offer more programming to their viewers than they would with an analogue signal. How?

Multicasting, or broadcasting several shows within a single frequency. If you have a digital-to-analogue converter box and a terrestrial antenna, you can take advantage of your local station’s multicasting, if they will offer it.

Analogue Television

• Information : Analogue TV sends information in a single bandwidth
• Sound: Clarity of stereo sound is subject to bandwidth interference, position, and directional aim of signal antennae
• Signal: Analogue signals get weaker the more distant they are from a broadcast tower. Analogue signal quality is also subject to height of aerial antenna and proximity to obstructions such as tall buildings and tree
• Reception: Analogue signals are subjective to weather patterns such as rain or cloudy skies
• Cost: Analogue televisions are less expensive. The use of digital set-top box converters allow analogue TV’s to receive digital signals

Digital Television

• Information : Digital TV can send twice as much information in the same amount of bandwidth as analogue TV, resulting in a higher-quality picture and sound
• Sound: Digital TV has more superior surround sound than analogue stereo. It broadcasts CD quality Dolby Digital Surround Sound
• Signal: Digital TV and analogue signals get weaker the more distant they are from a broadcast tower. The picture on high definition (HD) TV stays perfect as long as a signal is being picked up
• Reception: Digital TV can pick up all 18 of the digital signals, which are impervious to weather patterns such as rain or cloudy skies
• Cost: Because of the image clarity difference, digital televisions are more expensive than the analogue ones. However, keep in mind the fact that these HD signals can be received for free through basic antenna reception as long as the television has high definition parameters and with the aid of a set-top box