TV signals to go digital by June 2015

Ghanaians who do not have a digital terrestrial box by May/June 2015 will not be able to enjoy their television since they may not get signals that transmit to their TV set.

Speaking on JoyNews Interactive on JoyNews Multi TV, Head of Technical at MultiTV, Edwin Annan, he, explained that the migration has been in the system for three years now. “Hitherto, we were doing digital video broadcasting”, he said.

Television broadcast which has become indispensable to some people is set to see a major change in the country by the mid-2015. Analogue TV is changing to digital TV to enable viewers access more channels using the same frequency.

According to him, the broadcast industry has been looking for a technology that can enhance the use of a frequency that we have all around.

The digital migration will enhance the number of channels that can go on one transmitting line with digital video broadcasting visual generation terrestrial

He explained that normal analogue might be running concurrently with the digital for a while and will later be faded out.

“Definitely, definitely, all the free to air channels will disappear. You will need a digital box to view a channel”, he emphasised.

However, those with the normal TV set will definitely have to buy set top boxes that is terrestrial in order to access television.

“When Ghana goes digital fully, those TV sets will not work. You definitely have to get a set-top box to connect to the TV before you can watch your favourite programs.

Analogue TV or the normal TV owners, will have to buy a set-top box or what we call the hybrid box set top box because without it you cannot watch TV”, he added.

He explained that all TVs that are digital or setup boxes must be upgraded to the terrestrial or hybrid to enable TV viewing pleasant for all. When the current frequency that is called free-to-air is taken away, all TV channels will be on the same platform and there is no need for someone to buy a new TV set.

Some advantages that come with the digital migration is: it opens up businesses. Your handheld and mobile phones can equally receive services, Digital gives sharper pictures since signals can be processed (High Definition).

What you see on one channel can be replicated on another channel. You don’t need to change the settings of channels when you switch from one channel to another.