Kenya’s Media Blackout is About Power, Broken Promises & Profits

Thousands of Kenyans in the capital are getting used to their TV’s not showing anything at all,but this won’t take long anyway. The Media blackout experienced is in protest of dismissal of the three media houses petition to have digital transmission delayed.

The media houses participating in the blackout are therefore voluntarily ding so and have not been blocked by the government or any govt agency.

Power

Just some history, there are two signal distributors licensed by the Communications Commission of Kenya include Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC TV) through its subsidiary SIGNET is currently rolling out the signal countrywide starting in Nairobi and Pan Africa Network Group’s DVB-T2 signal is also up and running in Nairobi and hopes to have countrywide coverage soon.

Tanzania did move to digital transmission nearly two years ago plus Somalia among others, the move to digital transmission follows an ITU deadline set for June 2015.

The three local media firms want to show power. They own their content and want to distribute it on their own not via the government-run read (KBC) Signet or via PANG hwich they alleged bribed the government with 5% shareholding.

Broken promises

They needed CCK to license a third signal distributor, probably owned by the media owners camp. With this third signal operator, the media houses will have power over not only their content or who shows it and for how much. CCK said no to a third digital signal operator.The government had promised to issue them a license.

In a meeting held at the Hilton Hotel on June 6 by Dr. Fred Matiang’i, Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Information and Communications, Dr. Bitange Ndemo, then PS Ministry of Information and Communications. Mr. Ben N. Gituku, Chairman of the CCK Board of Directors,  Directors of the CCK Board, Mr. Francis Wangusi, Director General, CCK, CEOs of broadcasting firms and Senior management of the Ministry and CCK. The Government promised to issue a third broadcast signal distribution licence through a competitive process. The licence  was to be ring-fenced to restrict it to local investors only. This was said by the Cabinet Secretary,Information and Communications Dr. Fred Matiang’í during a  breakfast meeting  which was convened by CCK to introduce  him to the broadcasting industry players and to provide a platform for addressing pertinent issues in the sector.

This promise was broken, then all hell broke loose.

Hell broke loose

The media houses went to court to petition the timelines, saying they weren’t consulted. In real sense, they worked with the government on digital migration so well until they realized late that some digital TV firms like Zuku will be making money out of their content in terms of monthly subscription fees.

Being on digital transmission also means the government has more power to switch a station off if its not law abiding, than the old days the stations used to use masts in major areas analogue transmission. Analogue to digital is a regime change and a shift of power from the individual stations to the regulators, government and signal distributors. We will not discuss the PANG Chinese story here but the media firms say the government was given a 5% stake in order for them to be licensed.

Business

That seemed to kill their business, for someone to just sell a dish, and charge users for content they didn’t produce hit the media companies in the wound.The media firms instead should have told their viewers to buy set top boxes early. Though K24 is royal owned, it has been on because it understands the implications of migration. Who sells the set top boxes gets the money, and this stations would have loved to form an alliance to do so. This goes back to the third signal distributor that was not licensed by the government.
However, in real sense, advertisement will still make the media firms money, as they retain the viewers even if their viewers are still paying another guy a monthly fee.

Dennis Itumbi, Director Digital,New Media &Diaspora. Executive Office of the President assures Kenyans that,”Government has not effected the Digital Switch – what you are experiencing is a protest by media houses, trying to dilute court orders.”

And so true, the switch-off by the 3 stations is a move to sabotage Kenya’s digital migration. The three are denying Kenyans who have paid subscription fees the right to watch. They just think its not ok for a third party to use their content as a selling point of their decoders. It also opens doors to international competition.

Competition

“There are free to air boxes. Even in the US they pay for cable. So I don’t think users are being forced to subscribe to pay plans,” Vince Matinde, a tech correspondent for ITWebAfrica told TechMoran. “When broadcasters turned from VHF to UHF the consumers had to buy new TV sets or ariels. I didnt hear hullabaloo then. I think the media houses have misunderstood the shitch off. What they are fighting is competition from other international channels.”

Zuku, one of Kenya’s pay TV channels airs both local channels  and other interesting international channels but once once your subscription is over you cant access the FTA. StarTimes, another pay TV provider has both FTA set top boxes and premium ones.

Kenya’s top mobile service provider also recently announced move into digital TV space, and as a telco Safaricom has a leeway to get a license from CCK for both 4G and as a content distributor, the local TV broadcasters therefore they are in for a ride, hence the move to frustrate digital TV transmission.

Set top box

Otherwise, as a responsible citizen, go buy yourself a set top box of your choice and get set for this shift. Digital migration is here to stay. A set top box, when connected to an analogue television set, converts digital signals thereby giving viewers ability to watch these programmes on their ordinary TV sets. Some set top boxes may also provide viewers with datacasting services and video, audio and data enhancements like Zuku’s and later Safaricom’s. Set top boxes capable of receiving and displaying a HDTV signal may not be available initially. Set top boxes can provide a picture output to either analogue or digital screen displays.

Control for improved security

As a viewer, digital migration means a wide range of new and different content part from the bogus local programming. There is also a promise of better quality picture and sound information; much improved reception capability even when it rains or from wherever you are. Promise of  HD and standard definition channels, mobile TV and digital audio, control for improved security to prevent unauthorized persons from receiving services among others.

Below is a list of verified digital set top boxes, unless your TV has an internal set top box or digital receiver go out buy a decoder and don’t be fooled that you have a digital TV just because its a plasma-LCD or LED flat screen!

List of Type Approved DVB-T2 Set Top Boxes and Authorised Vendors

Home List of Type Approved DVB-T2 Set Top Boxes and Authorised Vendors

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FREE TO AIR SET TOP BOXES

Free to air set top boxes (FTA) describes set top boxes (decoders) that do not require subscriptions. Allowing any person with the appropriate receiving equipment to receive the digital signal and view or listen to the content without requiring other ongoing cost or one-off fee.

INTEGRATED TELEVISIONS TV’s

With an inbuilt DVB-T2 tuner thus they don’t require a set top box

PAY TV SET TOP BOXES

Pay TV set top boxes give you access to television content after payment of subscription or a monthly fee