137 Broadcast Areas Have Migrated Analog TV To Digital, Following Medan And Makassar

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Communication and Information (Kemenkominfo) revealed that as many as 137 broadcast areas in Indonesia had migrated analog tv to digital or analog switch off (ASO) until the beginning of the first week of June 2023.

"Currently, ASO has been carried out in 137 broadcast areas in 265 regencies and cities. That includes big cities," said Director General of Post and Information (Dirjen PPI) of the Ministry of Communication and Information, Wayan Toni Supriyanto in Jakarta, Monday, June 5, as reported by Antara.

This number is being pursued to increase in the near future, such as Medan in North Sumatra and Makassar in South Sulawesi.

According to Wayan, the implementation of ASO as part of service migration to digital TV nationally is not evenly distributed because of the challenge in the form of a commitment to providing a Set-Top-Box (STB) converter for poor households that have not been fulfilled by operators of Private Broadcasting Institutions.

Padahal dari sisi Pemerintah distribusi bantuan STB telah optimal karena dari target awal bantuan STB yang seharusnya diberikan berjumlah satu juta, kini telah melebihi target dengan memberikan sebanyak 1.215.600 STB kepada masyarakat yang membutuhkan.

"The target of providing STB 4.3 million assistance is currently only 248,490 STB or only 5.7 percent of the target," said Wayan.

Therefore, currently the Directorate General of PPI who oversees the ASO program is looking for solutions so that the distribution of STB for poor households can be faster and the public can enjoy digital TV broadcasts optimally.

One of the solutions that are currently being formulated is to revise regulations so that they can regulate sanctions or fines to operators of Private Broadcasting Institutions who have not fulfilled their STB assistance commitments.

"We are still thinking about the revision of this regulation so that the distribution of STB can be realized, whether later it may be sanctioned or a fine, so we are still thinking about this," said Wayan.