Sibongakonke Shoba
6 July 2009
Johannesburg — A BLACK business consortium is to serve papers on the Independent Communications Authority of SA (Icasa) opposing the publication of digital terrestrial television (DTT) regulations governing the allocation of additional digital channels.
The National African Federated Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Nafcoc) consortium is opposing the allocation of 50% of Multiplex 3 to M-Net, saying this would extend MultiChoice's monopoly to digital terrestrial television.
This will be the second court application brought against a decision made by Icasa this year.
Last month, the Congress of South African Trade Unions unsuccessfully challenged the listing of Vodacom shares on the JSE and Telkom 's sale of its 15% stake in the company to UK-based Vodafone. This new court application could delay the implementation of migration from analogue TV to digital.
The digital switch time-frame is from November last year to November 2011, although Icasa indicated on Friday it would engage with Communications Minister Siphiwe Nyanda with a view to extending this.
Nafcoc says Icasa should have allocated some of the spectrum to black companies, and regulated to ensure the sustainability of these black-owned pay-TV businesses.
M-Net and MultiChoice, the operator of DStv, are both owned by media group Naspers . They enjoy a monopoly on pay-TV in SA, as other licencees -- On Digital Media (ODM), Telkom Media and Walking on Water TV (WOWtv) -- have not yet been launched.
All three, however, have indicated their interest in DTT.
SA is busy migrating from analogue to digital TV broadcasting. Digital TV signals take up less space, so several additional TV channels will become available.
However, digital migration is extremely expensive for broadcasters, as they pay to broadcast both analogue and digital TV signals, but their revenue does not change.
They are usually allocated additional TV channels as an incentive.
If M-Net conducts a "hard switchover" within 12 months by swapping customers' analogue decoders with digital decoders, it will be rewarded with 50% of a multiplex for its own use.
A multiplex is a technical term for the transmission of several TV channels on one frequency.
The number of channels that can be carried in this way depends on the technology used, but M-Net is likely to end up with four to eight channels altogether.
The commercial launch of DTT was originally scheduled for November 1 last year, but the Cabinet approved digital migration policy only last year, delaying the publication of regulations governing the switch- over, including the DTT regulations published by Icasa on Friday.
Icasa spokesman Sekgoela Sekgoela said he could not comment as the authority had not received any correspondence from the consortium.
"What we did was right," Sekgoela said. "If we did not think it was right we would not have published the regulations."
Icasa councillor Robert Nkuna said on Friday the remaining 50% of the disputed multiplex would be awarded to "interested parties", including licencees such as ODM, Telkom Media and WOWtv, once
M-Net had completed moving its customers to a digital signal.
In a letter to Icasa chairman Paris Mashile, the Nafcoc-led consortium said it was shocked that the final regulations had been promulgated without a "proper or formal" consultative process having been conducted after extensive concerns were forwarded in response to draft regulation on or before April 30.
"Although some amendments are reflected in these latest regulations, which might be the product of private bilateral discussions with individual stakeholders, no formal consultative process had been convened by Icasa in respect of the numerous specific concerns raised by the 16 objectors," the consortium said in its letter.
The consortium also objected to the way control of Multiplex 3 was "unilaterally" awarded to M-Net.
Icasa allocated Multiplex 1 to the South African Broadcasting Corporation, Multiplex 2 to e.tv and 50% of Multiplex 3 to M-Net.
Consortium spokesman Andisa Ramavhunga said that this would give M-Net a platform to have between four and six channels. "Icasa should have given that to other role players," said Ramavhunga.
Sekgoela said the regulations would not give M-Net monopoly. "It will create space for more competition," he said.
Ramavhunga said Icasa could avoid going to court by accommodating the consortium's requirements.
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