Competition in Kenya’s broadcasting space has intensified after the communications regulator issued 26 new licences to TV and radio broadcasters in the three-month period to March.
This brings the total number of licensees to 616, a 4.4 percent rise from the 590 in December.
The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA)’s third-quarter sector statistics show that of the 26 licences, 12 were issued to commercial free-to-air television stations, 10 to commercial FM radio stations and four to community FM radio operators.
During the review period, the CA says it assigned a total of 14 FM sound broadcasting frequencies to broadcasters, translating to a two-fold addition to the seven assigned in the October-December period last year.
“During the period under review, the Authority assigned frequencies to various operators for deployment of 81 microwave links and processed the decommissioning of 23 fixed links. Further, the Authority assigned 14 FM sound broadcasting frequencies to broadcasters.”
The CA has embarked on an undertaking to roll out a new digital radio standard before December next year in efforts geared towards addressing the shortage of analogue frequencies which it says are close to saturation.
The piloting of Digital Sound Broadcasting (DSB) will feature Nairobi and its environs, enabling broadcasters to use their current spectrum to transmit signals.
The technology offers wider coverage, new business opportunities for operators, and suppression of entry barriers. It also promises improved audio quality and content diversity and more revenue for the government.
During the quarter to March, total subscriptions to broadcasting services grew by 0.2 percent to 6.21 million from 6.19 million. GOtv leads the pay-TV services with 2.67 million subscribers.
