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While the internet and broadband usage is rapidly growing in South Africa, the internet is not killing television and not posing a massive threat to broadcasting services in South Africa - and won't be for years to come.
That's the opinion of The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa), with the regulator saying that South African broadcasters have, and will have, ample time to adapt and actually work with South African telecom providers in a more integrated fashion to deliver entertainment content to South African TV viewers and consumers.
Close to 88% of all internet usage in South Africa is expected to be video related by 2015 - an astronomical number given that South African internet bandwidth is pretty dire. But this huge video usage of the available internet capacity won't impact on South African television broadcasters says Icasa. broadcasters.
''It's forecast by Cisco Systems that 87% of consumer fixed-line utilization of broadband will be for video-related services by 2015, but keep in mind that that equates to just about 2 million households. That also means that there's a vast market out there who require and depend on traditional broadcasters,''said Pieter Grootes, the general manager for markets and competition at Icasa.
''In terms of South Africa, yes. The so-called 'threat' from cross-platform competition from the internet is there, but it's a long term impact on the broadcasting sector as far as South Africa is concerned,'' he said as part of a panel discussion in Johannesburg for a CNBC Africa Special Report on the changing media landscape in South Africa.
''The South African broadcasters have a lot of time to get used to the broadcasting switch from analogue to digital. They have a lot of time to digest the things that's going to be happening in international markets to effectively not counter-act, but work with the telecom providers in a more integrated fashion to provide content to satisfy that entertainment need that South African consumers want,'' Pieter Grootes said.
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