Latest on digital broadcasting

The workshop took place in Honeydew on 16 and 17 July.

Among the international delegates were Julie Ackerman, Project Manager at the World DAB Forum and Jeff Astle from Digital One in the UK which operates a national commercial digital radio network.

The workshop gave South African broadcasters the opportunity to get first class input on the technologies, business models and policy and regulatory approaches for digital broadcasting.

This workshop follows a spurt of activity on the subject of digital broadcasting since the appointment by the Minister of Communications of a Digital Broadcasting Advisory Body (DBAB) earlier this year.

In early June, the chairperson of DBAB, Alison Gillwald, addressed the NAB’s technical committee on DBAB’s work programme. She indicated that DBAB would publish a Discussion Document for industry comment in September 2001 and that DBAB’s final report would be made by the end of the current financial year.

In a related activity, the NAB participated in SADIBA’s recent survey of regulatory approaches to digital broadcasting. The survey showed a great deal of consensus among different stakeholders on the kind of regulatory and policy approach South Africa should take. The results of the survey have been presented to DBAB.

For further information from the Digital Broadcasting workshop and the results of SADIBA’s survey, please go to www.sadiba.co.za.