Startimes launches DVB-T2 service
StarTimes has launched DVB-T2 technology in Nigeria and other African countries. Eric Liu, Marketing Director for NTA-Star TV Network, said StarTimes decided to upgrade to DVB-T2 technology to provide a wider range of channels and sharper images. Nigeria has signed an agreement with the International Telecoms Union (ITU) to transit from analogue to digital broadcasting by 17 June 2015 and Liu said StarTimes is making efforts to ensure that its customers remain connected and enjoy the best digital terrestrial TV content available in the world today. StarTimes' mission of ensuring every home in the country enjoys affordable digital entertainment is backed by its collaboration with the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA).
Source: Telecompaper
17 Jan. 2013
GOTv hits Lagos airwave with DVB-T2 technology
Plans have been advanced for the official launch of the GOtv, a pay television service on the latest Digital Video Broadcast (DVB-T2) technology as the Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) service on Saturday, June 16, 2012 in Lagos, the commercial nerves centre of the nation.
Confirming this, the General Manager at GOtv Nigeria, Mr. Mayo Okunola, says the new pay-TV service provides is a low cost product that utilizes the latest DVB-T2 standard technology which leapfrogs the outdated T1 system that is still being utilized by some pay television operators to launch digital services -thus providing Nigerians with only the latest and best digital technology available worldwide.
Source: IT Realms.com
2 July 2012
Four out of six commercial cities have DVB-T
In Nigeria, four out of the country's six commercial cities now have digital TV transmission, according to Abayomi Olaiya Bolarinwa, Nigeria's director of communications. However, he said acquiring set top boxes to convert analogue signals to digital ones remains difficult.
"We are not looking forward to any subsidy. What we are doing is public and private sector cooperation to drive this migration," explained Bolarinwa.
He made the comments during the Digital Migration and Spectrum Policy Summit in Nairobi which ended on the 1st December.
Source: Rapid TV News
Item added: 5th December 2011
Nigeria Enjoys DVB-T2 Services
On the 15th October, African broadcaster Multichoice launched GOtv, its Pay-TV service, in Ibadan, Nigeria. Using the latest DVB-T2 technology, the new digital service is dedicated to offering television viewers affordable family entertainment. Featuring 21 TV channels, GOtv is billed as an exciting service delivering great television at an affordable price. Last month, Multichoice and Kenya Broadcasting Corporation launched GOtv in Kenya. Multichoice has also launched GOtv in Uganda and Zambia.
DVB-Scene Enews source: GOtv
Item added: 29th October 2011
GOtv - DVB-T2 Goes Africa
Multichoice Africa is rolling-out a full Pan-African DVB-T2 network with a total bouquet of more than 50 different channels in various languages over 15 countries. The GOtv Africa DVB-T2 pay-TV service is already on the air in Zambia, Kenya, and Uganda and more countries such as Nigeria are expected to follow soon.
In Kenya the service went live in Nairobi on 14 September 2011 and should reach national coverage by the end of the year.
DVB Members Pace and ENENSYS are providing the set-top box and network solutions, which also include advanced DVB-T2 features such as Multiple-PLP, SFN and local content integration.
Source: DVB
Item added: 3rd October 2011
Commercial DVB-T services available
Star TV Network a collaboration between NTA and its Chinese partners StarTimes of China has launched a new pay TV service in Nigeria with over 30 channels.
“Startimes uses Digital Video Broadcast on Terrestrial (DVB-T), a new technology which does not require a dish. It comes with just a decoder. The technology guarantees stable signal in bad weather conditions like gusty and rainy days. It also eliminates the usual cost of installation as it does not require a satellite dish and only needs a TV antenna”.
NTA Star TV Network plans to deploy StarTimes throughout Nigeria within five years of launch. For now NTA say that StarTimes coverage is in Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt. NTA Startimes coverage is planned to expand to more cities soon.
Sources: Nigeria technology Guide PM News Nigeria
Item added: 11th October 2010
DVB-H update for Nigeria
Mobile TV services using DVB-H are well underway in Nigeria. The rollout is already complete in Abuja, Lagos, Port Harcourt and Ibadan. The next phase will expand the coverage to Onitsha, Asaba, Aba Benin City, Enugu and Kaduna.with a further phase planned to cover Kano, Jos and Katsina.
The current service was launched by MTN in September 2007 and will be free-to-air until March 2011. It provides 12 channels, which include NTA, CNN and African Magic.
Phones from three manufacturers are currently being used to receive the network, these are the Samsung P910, Nokia N96 and ZTE P912.
The transmission parameters being used are QPSK modulation, FEC 2/3, GI ¼ and MPE-FEC 7/8 all in an 8MHz bandwidth. The data payload is 4.95 Mbps.
Source: DStv Mobile: MultiChoice South Africa
Item added: 12th October 2009
DMTV enlarges Mobile DVB-H TV in Africa
Nokia Siemens Networks is providing mobile television provider DMTV with a state-of-the-art Digital Video Broadcasting Handheld (DVB-H) solution in Ghana, Kenya, Namibia and Nigeria. The system will allow operators across the region to provide an enhanced TV viewing experience on multiple devices, including the latest Nokia phones, according to a recent press release.
Aleksi Toikkanen, Head of Consulting and Systems Integration for DMTV at Nokia Siemens Networks said, “We are glad to support DMTV to be among the first to launch OMA BCast compliant mobile television broadcasts in Africa. With our open standard solution we help DMTV attract new customer groups with a state of the art Mobile TV service. We are excited with the prospect of DMTV becoming the largest DVB-H broadcaster in the continent. Knowing the specific market in Africa we foresee huge growth potential in connecting people via mobile television and the Internet.”
Source: Nokia Siemens Networks Press release
Item added: 6th July 2009
Nigeria officially launches DVB-H service
Nigerian telecommunications company MTN and Multichoice Nigeria have officially launched Mobile Television. The service using DVB-H technology is transmitted on the MTN network.
Nigeria began testing the DVB-H service in Abuja during September 2007 extending the service to Lagos later. Free-to-air access was allowed in both locations until December 2007 when conditional access was enabled.
A bouquet of 10 channels spanning movies including the immensely popular Africa magic channel, news, sports and children’s programs (cartoons) are available to customers who subscribe to the new service which is called DStv on the MTN network.
The DVB-H service will be extended to other parts of Nigeria later.
Source: allAfrica.com
Item added: 6th May 2008
2015 target for Nigeria’s Digitisation
The Federal Government has set 2015 as the year for full digitisation in Nigeria, Mr Frank Nweke Jnr. disclosed on August 22nd at the opening of a workshop on the strategies for migration to digital broadcasting in Africa. He said that the Federal government has mandated all planners to incorporate digitalisation of broadcasting in the nations development agenda for the next 10 years.
In his paper ‘Establishing a Viable Broadcasting Policy for Africa: What are the Stakes and Options?’ The Kenyan assistant Minister for Information and Communication, Hon. Koigi wa Wamwere, noted that Africa has no option than to digitise radio and TV broadcasting in line with the worlds change to digital technology or perish as a continent. He said that Africans were already starved of information about their own societies, countries, other African countries and the world.
’Our thirst for information is big and it must be quenched quickly’ He went on to say that for the people to have more information more radio and TV stations were required and because the spectrum was already crowded the only way to obtain the additional space required was through digitisation.
Source: Thisdayonline
Item added: 4th September 2006
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Last page update: 5th December 2011, Barry Tew
