Media Association against 2015 deadline for digital switchover

THE National Steering Committee on Digital Switchover has recommended a 2015 deadline for switch off of the old analogue television transmission signals and the start of a full digital national television infrastructure.

However, the Media Association of Jamaica (MAJ), made it clear yesterday that it was not a party to the deadline set and was not agreement with the timeframe.

The Broadcasting Commission, in a release yesterday, said that under current plans, Jamaica will join several other countries in switching to digital television, while phasing out traditional analogue production, broadcasting and reception systems.

The process, it said, involves eventually switching off of analogue terrestrial transmissions on a planned basis, under arrangements with the television service provider, government and the affected agencies.

Some providers, it added, have already converted to a digital system or are in a position to move more quickly towards this than others, hence the flexibility in the timeframe, the commission said.

But the MAJ, in a press statement yesterday, said it consulted all television licensees and most radio licensees in the country and none of them was a party to a decision to set the timeframe. None of the radio and TV stations, it added, was at the November 2 meeting where that timeframe was apparently set.

Said the MAJ: "We note that the decision is being taken even without the undertaking of an industry study that was being discussed in previous meetings, and must question why a decision would be made without knowing the state of the industry first.

"In other countries discussions are held years in advance on how the new investments will be encouraged, what incentives will be provided to broadcasters and consumers alike, both of whom will have to bear tens of millions of dollars this will cost," said the MAJ.

The association said it was curious as to why a timeframe has been set for Jamaica that is shorter than that for the entire 15 nations of the Caribbean region as well as Mexico, Columbia, Venezuela, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Singapore, India and others, most of whom can better afford an aggressive switchover timetable than Jamaican businesses and consumers .

"Countries have set timetables of 2020, 2030 and even as far as 2042 for the completion of the digital switchover, so we cannot understand the approach being taken," said the MAJ.

The Broadcasting Commission, meanwhile, said the transition from the old to new broadcasting technologies is mandated by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), an agency of the United Nations.

"It is being done in Jamaica as a joint project between government and the private sector media companies in cable and broadcasting," the commission said.

Among the benefits of digital television is sharper and clearer television reception. The new technology will also confer greater system capacity, including a larger number of television channels and services, thereby widening choice in the range of content available, according to the Broadcasting Commission.

It added: "The new digital television system should be interoperable with a wide range of data-bases, thereby allowing access not just to television but also to stored data and audio-visual content and interactive features.

The Digital Switchover Policy, said the commission, also took into account the needs of persons with disabilities by requiring improvements in their access to media services, in line with the principles of equality, non-discrimination and inclusiveness.

The National Steering Committee for Digital Switchover consists of cable TV and other broadcasting industry representatives, consumers, persons with disabilities, industry regulators and the Government.