Uganda’s switchover to digital terrestrial television transmission got off to a chaotic start last week. PHOTO | TEA GRAPHIC
What you need to know:
Uganda began implementing a phased analogue switch off on June 15, starting with Kampala and areas within a 60-kilometre radius of the capital.
Uganda’s switchover to digital terrestrial television transmission got off to a chaotic start last week, with both broadcasters and viewers bemoaning inadequate stocks of set-top boxes in the market.
Uganda began implementing a phased analogue switch off on June 15, starting with Kampala and areas within a 60-kilometre radius of the capital. Thousands were left with blank screens as the few thousand STBs imported by approved dealers were out of stock by mid-morning.
Uganda will progressively switch off analogue transmission, completing its migration on August 31. The country’s sole signal distributor, Signet/Uganda Broadcasting Corporation, signed a memorandum of understanding with pay-TV firms MultiChoice’s GOtv and StarTimes on Thursday, to import and sell free-to-air decoders to bridge the shortage.
Sam Batanda, the manager of Signet Uganda, told The EastAfrican that the importation would offset the shortage of the set-top boxes.
“We are also in consultation with GOtv to ensure that those who have acquired their pay-TV decoders and are unable to pay monthly subscriptions can return them to their retail shops in exchange for the free-to-air decoder at an additional cost,” Mr Batanda said.
Under the new arrangement, GOtv and StarTimes will sell their free-to-air decoders at Ush125,000 ($38.53) and Ush140,000 ($43.25) respectively. The two companies will also continue to sell their pay-TV decoders in competition with Azam TV and Wananchi Group’s Zuku TV that sell DVB-T2 decoders for between $19 and $52.3.
GOtv has already imported 100,000 free-to-air decoders out of the planned 500,000; StarTimes has shipped in 40,000 decoders.
Uganda had about 800,000 decoders on the market prior to the switch, according to Information Communications and Technology Minister Thembo Nyombi.
Mac Viva Global Holdings Ltd, Kagadi Technical Services, and Brivid Uganda Ltd are currently selling their decoders for Ush130,000 ($41.2), Ush150,000 ($47.5) and Ush180, 000 ($57), respectively.
According to UCC acting director for broadcasting Fred Otunnu, Uganda has just over five million television sets.
However, only 65 per cent of viewers, about 3.5 million, will migrate to digital broadcasting. By the switch-off, more than 1.5 million viewers had not purchased set-top boxes or digital-enabled television sets.
