Close Menu
TechCentralTechCentral

    Subscribe to the newsletter

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube LinkedIn
    WhatsApp Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentralTechCentral
    • News

      MultiChoice may unbundle SuperSport from DStv

      12 June 2025

      MVNO boom is reshaping South Africa’s mobile market

      12 June 2025

      South African law is failing gig-economy workers

      12 June 2025

      MultiChoice’s TV empire shrinks – but its ‘side hustles’ are holding strong

      12 June 2025

      MultiChoice is bleeding subscribers

      11 June 2025
    • World

      Qualcomm shows off new chip for AI smart glasses

      11 June 2025

      Trump tariffs to dim 2025 smartphone shipments

      4 June 2025

      Shrimp Jesus and the AI ad invasion

      4 June 2025

      Apple slams EU rules as ‘flawed and costly’ in major legal pushback

      2 June 2025

      Mark Zuckerberg has finally found a use for his metaverse

      30 May 2025
    • In-depth

      Grok promised bias-free chat. Then came the edits

      2 June 2025

      Digital fortress: We go inside JB5, Teraco’s giant new AI-ready data centre

      30 May 2025

      Sam Altman and Jony Ive’s big bet to out-Apple Apple

      22 May 2025

      South Africa unveils big state digital reform programme

      12 May 2025

      Is this the end of Google Search as we know it?

      12 May 2025
    • TCS

      TechCentral Nexus S0E1: Starlink, BEE and a new leader at Vodacom

      8 June 2025

      TCS+ | The future of mobile money, with MTN’s Kagiso Mothibi

      6 June 2025

      TCS+ | AI is more than hype: Workday execs unpack real human impact

      4 June 2025

      TCS | Sentiv, and the story behind the buyout of Altron Nexus

      3 June 2025

      TCS | Signal restored: Unpacking the Blue Label and Cell C turnaround

      28 May 2025
    • Opinion

      Beyond the box: why IT distribution depends on real partnerships

      2 June 2025

      South Africa’s next crisis? Being offline in an AI-driven world

      2 June 2025

      Digital giants boost South African news media – and get blamed for it

      29 May 2025

      Solar panic? The truth about SSEG, fines and municipal rules

      14 April 2025

      Data protection must be crypto industry’s top priority

      9 April 2025
    • Company Hubs
      • Africa Data Centres
      • AfriGIS
      • Altron Digital Business
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Altron Group
      • Arctic Wolf
      • AvertITD
      • Braintree
      • CallMiner
      • CYBER1 Solutions
      • Digicloud Africa
      • Digimune
      • Domains.co.za
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • Incredible Business
      • iONLINE
      • Iris Network Systems
      • LSD Open
      • NEC XON
      • Network Platforms
      • Next DLP
      • Ovations
      • Paracon
      • Paratus
      • Q-KON
      • SkyWire
      • Solid8 Technologies
      • Telit Cinterion
      • Tenable
      • Vertiv
      • Videri Digital
      • Wipro
      • Workday
    • Sections
      • AI and machine learning
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud services
      • Contact centres and CX
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Electronics and hardware
      • Energy and sustainability
      • Enterprise software
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Lifestyle
      • Motoring
      • Public sector
      • Retail and e-commerce
      • Science
      • SMEs and start-ups
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Events
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home » Craig Wilson » Invest in desktops, not set-tops

    Invest in desktops, not set-tops

    By Editor12 September 2011
    Twitter LinkedIn Facebook WhatsApp Email Telegram Copy Link
    News Alerts
    WhatsApp

    [By Craig Wilson]

    The Universal Service and Access Fund was established to bankroll projects that ensure universal access to communications technology for all SA citizens. Instead, a large part of it — if not all of it — is being earmarked for keeping the public watching television when the country switches to digital broadcasts.

    Over the next two years, government intends to phase out analogue broadcasts in favour of digital terrestrial television, freeing up valuable spectrum in the process that is ideally suited to providing connectivity to rural and other outlying and underserviced areas.

    However, government also realises many South Africans won’t be able to afford the set-top boxes that will be needed to view the new television signals. Its proposed solution is to use the access fund to subsidise the set-top boxes. But is this the best use of the R1bn-plus sitting in the fund?

    The bulk of the contributions to the fund have come from the telecommunications industry — not from broadcasters — so it seems bizarre that the money is going to be spent on keeping people watching television.

    Television preaches, it doesn’t engage, and although it may inform, it doesn’t encourage participation. Internet access, meanwhile, does all of the above and more. It’s no secret that connectivity in rural areas stinks, but it’s also true that just because an area has connectivity doesn’t mean people have the ability to harness it.

    One of the stated objectives of the fund is “financing the construction or extension of electronic communications networks in underserviced areas”. A crucial part of that is getting both the connectivity and the necessary hardware to those areas.

    There’s no doubt that Internet access does greater good for a community than the ability to watch soap operas, but there’s also the argument that the Internet provides an even greater array of entertainment than television.

    Yes, most people would rather watch Isidingo on TV than, say, video podcasts of TED conferences on a computer. But Internet access can serve both groups equally well, and provide people with something TV doesn’t: choice.

    The access fund should be used to set up computer centres and establish Internet access in needy communities. The Internet empowers people and boosts economic activity in ways television never will.

    Spend the money on extending the Internet and computing to underserviced areas. It will serve the country better.

    • Subscribe to our free daily newsletter
    • Follow us on Twitter or on Facebook


    Craig Wilson SABC Usaasa
    Subscribe to TechCentral Subscribe to TechCentral
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email Copy Link
    Previous ArticleVodacom takes aim at BlackBerry ‘abuse’
    Next Article Vodacom defends BlackBerry throttling

    Related Posts

    Hiking TV licence fees won’t solve the SABC’s funding crisis

    29 May 2025

    SABC Plus tops a million registered users

    8 May 2025

    Outdated and costly: why South Africa should rethink digital migration

    2 April 2025
    Company News

    Building a cyber-resilient culture from the boardroom to the front lines

    12 June 2025

    How South Africa’s municipalities are finally getting smart

    12 June 2025

    Ransomware roulette: pay up or power through?

    11 June 2025
    Opinion

    Beyond the box: why IT distribution depends on real partnerships

    2 June 2025

    South Africa’s next crisis? Being offline in an AI-driven world

    2 June 2025

    Digital giants boost South African news media – and get blamed for it

    29 May 2025

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2025 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.