Interested parties have only three weeks to submit applications for mobile TV licences to South African broadcasting and telecoms regulator Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) in time for the FIFA World Cup which starts on 11 June.
According to Robert Nkuna, an ICASA councillor, two multiplexes have been set aside for mobile TV. One multiplex can carry up to 12 TV channels, depending on the technology used. No company will be allowed to occupy more than 60% of a multiplex.
Nkuna said mobile TV licences would be offered on a technology-neutral basis. The second multiplex will be available after the regulator has opened the market for the second round of pay-TV licences.
For the past three years MultiChoice, has been testing the streaming of some of its content for mobile pay-TV. It will apply for a licence and according to its holding company, Naspers, it has set aside $13.4 million for mobile TV services, which it have already been launched in Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana and Namibia.
