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The controversial set top box (STB) control that the government now wants in STBs for digital terrestrial television for South Africa when the country moves to digital terrestrial television (DTT) will be video scrambling of TV signals.
The South African government now also claims that it wants STB Control to protect the local STB manufacturing industry. This means that the South African government places manufacturers' ''rights'' higher than the rights of free access to information of ordinary South African citizens.
''The encryption is [what is known as] STB Control. It's one and the same,'' Richard Waghorn, the SABC's chief technology officer explained to parliament today, after the shocking relevation yesterday in parliament that the department of communication wants to include STB Control, or encryption in the decoders to control access to the free-to-air TV signals.
''The SABC was written to by the department of communications at the beginning of March, asking the SABC as well as the other free-to-air broadcaster to start the process of procuring a vendor for the STB Control system. As a result of STB Control, the TV signal will then be video scrambled,'' said Richard Waghorn.
Richard Waghorn told parliament that ''the rationale for STB Control is to protect and to encourage the STB manufacturing industry in South Africa''.
''By having that technology in the box, it means that the STB's can't be taken out of South Africa or across the borders. STB Control is the encryption system. There's different kinds of encryption, and that's where we currently are. This is something that was discussed at the minister's governance board a the end of August and something we need to have further discussions about.''
ALSO READ: South African government wants digital TV control with DTT; M-Net objects to the set top box control system.
