The Impact of Digital Migration on Socio-Economic Factors in Namibia

The technological innovations in information and communications technology have hastened the arrival and reality of digital data and picture transmission. They have made us dependent on media. The digital signal is a transmission technology that carries more information than the previous analogue network. In addition, the digital signal has the capacity to transmit bulk information and a constant signal strength, irrespective of the distance from the transmitter within a given coverage area (New Zealand Ministry of Culture and Heritage, 2010). Therefore, all countries are urged to migrate from analogue to digital broadcasting. The lack of research on the effects of digital migration on the socio-economic contingencies led to this study, the aim of which was to establish the impact of digital migration on socio-economic factors in Namibia. A questionnaire and interview survey instrument was distributed to retailers and viewers of the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC). An analysis of the data collected reveals that the majority of the respondents used decoders from Digital Satellite Television (DStv) and GoTV. However, some elements of the findings show that some viewers could be adversely affected by the costs involved in digital migration. The findings show that more is required from the NBC to ensure that the population experiences minimum negative impact of digital migration. Digital migration is presumed to result in socioeconomic benefits to viewers, coupled with additional investment in broadcasting media as well as the production of local content. The current increase in local content popularity gives confidence to local producers, writers and workers in the broadcasting industry. The research recommends, for the purposes of maintaining good socio-economic standards, that the NBC use both the analogue and digital systems concurrently.