Between 25 and 28 January 2015 at its annual strategy meeting or lekgotla, the
African National Congress (ANC) confirmed its support for encrypted set-top boxes
(STBs). Main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), has embraced this
decision and believes it will help speed up the process of digital migration ahead of
the June 2015 deadline. Disputes over whether or not STBs should have controlled
access have been a major contributing factor towards the delay in migration.
Pay-TV operator MultiChoice, as well as a number of community TV stations and
the National Association of Manufacturers in Electronic Components (Namec), has
opposed the encryption of STB’s, stating that it would burden consumers with
additional costs and force them to have an STB forever.
Encryption means that an STB, which is required to allow analogue TV sets to
receive transmissions when broadcast signals are switched to digital, could be
switched off by the broadcaster. The pay-TV business model is reliant on this ability
to switch off subscribers who are unable to pay for the service. Implementing
control systems would mean that a free-to-air broadcaster would also have this
ability, allowing them to introduce or convert to a pay-TV model without any risk.
Controlled access STB’s would have to be manufactured locally, which according to
government would encourage job creation and prevent low-cost, poor quality
imports from saturating the market. To alleviate consumer concerns relating to the
expense of purchasing an STB, which will be higher should they be encrypted, the
government has agreed to subsidise five million STBs for low or no-income
households.
