Garut Diskominfo Proposes 119 Thousand Free STB Assistance For Underprivileged Communities

Head of the Department of Communication and Information Garut Regency Muksin. ANTARA/HO-Diskominfo Garut (ANTARA)

GARUT - The Department of Communication and Information (Diskominfo) of Garut Regency, West Java proposed assistance to the central government for the procurement of 119 thousand set top boxes (STB) for underprivileged communities ahead of the transition from analog television broadcasting to digital broadcasting.

"It has been proposed to the central government for special STB for assistance to the poor as much as 119 thousand," said Head of the Garut Regency Diskominfo Muksin through a press release in Garut, Antara, Thursday, March 24.

Muksin said that the central government had prepared a program to transfer analog television broadcasts or analog switch off (ASO) to digital broadcasts with clearer broadcasts.

Garut regency government, he said, welcomed the program, for that proposed free STB assistance to the central government so that digital television broadcasts could be felt by the underprivileged in Garut.

"Whether it is realized or not, there is no (further) information," he said.

He explained that the proposed tool is one of the additional devices that can be used by people who currently still use analog TV to access digital signals.

Garut Regency, he said, entered phase 1 for the ASO program along with 11 other regencies and cities in West Java Province.

Garut people, he continued, are ready or not ready to immediately migrate from analog TV to digital, especially digital has many advantages, namely cleaner, more sophisticated, and clearer.

"The benefits are many, especially in frequency resources. Later, the frequency that has been widely used for analog transmission purposes, may later be used by the government for other, more strategic purposes," he said.