Reflections On The Digital Broadcasting Switchover Forum In The Caribbean

摘要

The Digital Broadcasting Switchover Forum for the Caribbean, held in St. John's Antigua in August 2012, brought together broadcasters, media companies, government regulators, and other interested parties throughout the Caribbean region to examine the state of, and plan for, analogue to digital terrestrial TV switchovers. The conference was organized by the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organizations (CTO), Commonwealth Broadcasting Association (CBA) and the Caribbean Broadcasting Union (CBU). Many aspects of a digital switchover were examined including technical and regulatory aspects. But perhaps the topic that held the greatest interest to attendees was that of how the region will pay for these transitions. The topic was explored in three parts of the two-day conference: in a key note address on financing the digital infrastructure; a discussion panel on 'Show Me the Money highlighted by a brief presentation from Gary Allen of RJF Communications Group and a collaborative session where participating delegates pooled their collective experiences to offer business model recommendations that may help jump start over the air (OTA) digital terrestrial TV (DTT) activity in the Caribbean.