While government is debating whether to use the Japanese or the European standard when the country moves over to digital television, the debate could cost the country dearly in lost opportunities and wasted investment.
In April, the department decided to review SA's decision to implement the European DVB standard, introducing a Brazilian adaptation of the Japanese ISDB standard as a possible alternative.
Two of the country's largest set-top box manufacturers have warned that the delays will set back the manufacturing process by at least a year, and small manufacturers could miss out on an opportunity to sell their wares to an African market.
SA is in the midst of a changeover period from analogue broadcasting and has been testing digital broadcast systems in preparation for turning off the old analogue signal. The original go-live date was set for next November, in anticipation of global switchover in November 2015.
However, that date was cast aside, apparently because industry was not ready, and no new date has yet been set.
There are several aspects surrounding the move to a digital signal, with the biggest one being that every one of the 10 million television viewing households will need a set-top box to convert the signal so it is viewable on televisions that do not have digital tuners.
Tiyani Rikhotso, department of communications spokesman, says the “review of the standard is currently under way”, but did not provide any timeframes as to when the country's manufacturers can expect clarity.
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