SENTECH, the state-owned broadcasting signal distributor announced today that the Company would rebrand
Vivid as ‘FREEVISION’ – as a Universal Access Direct-To-Home Satellite (DTH-S) platform service
from 30 September 2013.
SENTECH says, “the launch of ‘FREEVISION’ seeks to ensure alignment of the Company’s broader
electronic communications network services with its Public Service Mandate obligations and the changing
media landscape brought about by digital convergence”.
SIGNAL DISTRIBUTION NETWORK ARCHITECTURE
The SENTECH broadcasting signal distribution network architecture is a unique design that will enable all
licensed DTT Broadcasters that uses SENTECH’s broadcasting signal distribution network to distribute
their broadcasting services on the DTH-S Universal Access ‘gap-filler’ platform service without incurring
additional signal distribution operational costs.
The ‘FREEVISION’ platform service is located at 68.5°E on Intelsat 20 - the largest video neighbourhood
in Sub-Saharan Africa, with an estimated 60 million viewers. This means that the majority of viewers in
South Africa would not need to install a second satellite dish or change the position of their existing
satellite dish when joining Freevision.
Dr Setumo Mohapi, Chief Executive Officer of SENTECH says: “We believe that this unique broadcasting
signal distribution network design ensures that Public Funding provided to the SENTECH is efficiently
leveraged to reduce the cost of broadcasting signal distribution services, and most importantly, to make
multichannel broadcasting signal distribution tariffs affordable, thus encouraging the entry of Small,
Medium and Micro Enterprise (SMME) single-channel broadcasters into the mainstream Television
broadcasting sector.”
The ‘FREEVISION’ Set-Top Box retail prize and channel line-up will be made public in due course.