Kenya’s efforts to go digital from the analogue broadcast of television signals has run into legal setbacks amid pressure from the East African Community (EAC) for the region to fast track the shift to digital broadcasting. EAC ministers’ in-charge of communications called for speedy legislation to be put in place to allow for the migration to the digital broadcasting.
The EAC ministers, who met in Arusha, northern Tanzania, during the 9th meeting of the Sectoral Council on Transport and Communication, directed the region’s five member states to expedite legislation for the implementation of the digital broadcast. The ministers also urged the EAC member states to strictly monitor technological developments for digital broadcast receivers, in order to enable the region develop receiver specifications to minimize the cost of acquiring the technology.
“The EAC said states should zero-rate duty on set top boxes as a means of accelerating digital broadcast migration programmes and submit this recommendation to the ministers of finance for consideration,” the EAC said in a statement received in Nairobi late on Monday. The EAC directive for an accelerated drive towards digital broadcasting came as the Kenyan telecommunication regulator, the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) battled with broadcasters to apply for new licenses under a new regime.
CCK’s acting Director-General Francis Wangusi, said a new licensing regime has been put in place in Kenya to ensure better management of broadcast frequencies. “You will all appreciate that spectrum is a scarce public resource and it is therefore incumbent upon the Commission, on behalf of Kenyans, to see how best we can achieve plurality, diversity and more innovation yet still maintain a vibrant sector. ” The ministers want states to limit the number of signal distributors, provided a public signal distributor is fully funded by the state.
If not, to open signal distribution market segment to full competition, where the state cannot fund a public signal distributor. Kenya now boasts 100 broadcast stations spread countrywide. “These changes have come about as a result of the regulatory reforms that have yielded various market segments,” Wangusi said. The Media Owners Association, which battled the CCK over the award of a signal distributor’s licence to a newly-registered Chinese firm, successfully stopped the CCK from switching off broadcasters failing to beat a Nov. 15 deadline for new license.
“In order to operationalise this new framework and effect the migration of the broadcasters to the new regime, the CCK notified all broadcasters on 15 Aug. providing a window of three months for submission of applications for licences,” Wangusi said. Information and Communication Ministry Permanent Secretary Bitange Ndemo said the plans to go digital in Kenya are on course. He said the ministry is also working on ways of ensuring the digital television is commercialized using local languages.
“We are moving to enforce the 20 percent rule on local content. Once we have created the local content, we will use local languages, several efforts are underway to commercialise our vernacular languages,” he said. Among the 100 broadcasters are radio, television broadcasters, cable television operators, satellite television operators, mobile television and internet protocol and television service providers. The Media Owners Association obtained the restraining orders against the CCK, arguing in court the regulator has gone beyond the boundaries of the new constitution by gazetting the new regulatory framework.
Public notices issued
The CCK issued public notices on Aug. 2 requiring all commercial and community broadcasters to apply for broadcasting services licenses. “Let us endevour to create an efficient broadcasting industry that can service the high demands of the viewers and investors alike,” Wangusi appealed. Meanwhile, the EAC wants the region to urgently develop human and institutional capacities for conformance testing and certification of the ICT equipment. The ministerial meeting approved an EAC roadmap for the Analogue-to-Digital broadcast transition, which was approved by the meeting. It directed the five states, including Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania to monitor execution.
Kenya is gearing for the shift to digital signal broadcasting by June 2012, which would make the country the second in Africa after South Africa. The shift to digital signals means current broadcasters who distribute signals through the analogue system would rely on a single digital signal distributor, which has been designated to a state-controlled firm called Signet. The CCK has warned that broadcasters’ failure to apply for a license will be interpreted to mean the broadcaster is no longer interested in providing the services and repossession of the spectrum resources would therefore take effect.
“We also understand that this new area not only for the commission but equally for the industry and we are bound to have challenges as we begin the journey in the new era. We are encouraged by the response from the industry,” Wangusi said. “CCK would like to call for compliance from in order to help the process move forward in an amicable manner. CCK vows to respect legitimate investments already in place and would protect them accordingly,” he said. (Xinhua)
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