Crisis over Kenya switch-off
October 31, 2013
By Chris Forrester
The planned December 13th switch-off of Kenya’s Nairobi analogue TV transmissions is very much in doubt. The government’s Information Secretary Ezekiel Mutua said the nation’s Media Owners Association presented a strong petition against the December 13th switch-off in Nairobi which they said is unfeasible. “We expect to have another meeting November 1st where a decision on the change will be made but the date will definitely change,” Mutua said.
The Communications Commission of Kenya had set a December 13th deadline for Nairobi to make the switch. The ITU plan requires all member states to migrate by June 17th 2015. It had been expected that once the Nairobi transmitter had been switched to digital only MPEG4 broadcasts the other key regions including Mombasa, Malindi, Nyeri, Meru, Kisumu, Webuye, Kisii, Nakuru and Eldoret would make the switch on March 30th next year.
Local reports suggest the MOA is pushing for a June 2013 date when the switch could be initiated in Nairobi, before it is rolled out to other parts of the country.