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From: Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), [email protected] [2]

Zimbabwe Alert
May 10, 2002
Broadcasting licensing procedure raises eyebrows

The licensing of a wholly owned government signal carrier company,
Transmedia,
to offer satellite broadcasting services in partnership with the DStv
Network
represented by MultiChoice-Zimbabwe, has sparked an uproar among other
applicants.

The "Zimbabwe Independent" reported on May 3, 2002, that the Department of
Information and Publicity had licensed Transmedia, a licensed signal carrier
to
run broadcasting services in partnership with MultiChoice. MultiChoice
Zimbabwe
has not been licensed though it is providing satellite broadcasting services
from its base in South Africa. The Broadcasting Services Act Section 19 (2)
prohibits a signal carrier from being licensed to provide broadcasting
services.
In other words, no company can have a broadcasting licence as well as one
for
signal transmission. Transmedia which is the new company formed by the
government from the split Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation has however been
given the two licences. This is "illegal" in the words of legal experts
quoted
by the paper.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Broadcasting Services Authority (BAZ),
Thomas
Mandigora confirmed that only Transmedia has so far been licensed to
provide
Satellite broadcasting. He also said that MultiChoice has not been
licensed.
However it was reported that Transmedia and MultiChoice have entered into a
deal
that would result in the ZBC being featured on DStv, which is the
broadcasting
arm of MultiChoice. This would amount to the "licensing" of MultiChoice to
continue its operations in Zimbabwe. Mandigora also told the paper that BAZ
had
finished processing licences for satellite broadcasting and had already
submitted its recommendations to the Department of Information and
Publicity.
Aspiring satellite broadcaster, Oscar Kubara, who is the Chief Executive
Officer
of Munhumatapa African Broadcasting Corporation said that the secrecy
surrounding the licensing procedure was a major source of worry for aspiring
broadcasters. "There has not been official communication with us as
applicants,"
said Kubara.

However in a story that appeared in the state owned "The Herald", on
Saturday
May 4, the Minister of Information and Publicity Professor Jonathan Moyo
castigated the Zimbabwe Independent for deliberately falsifying information.
Moyo said that section 9 (3) of the Broadcasting Services Act 2001 provides
that: "With the exception of a public broadcaster, a broadcasting licence
and a
signal carrier licence shall not be issued to the same person." As a public
institution established after the split of the ZBC under the Zimbabwe
Broadcasting Corporation Commercialisation Act, Transmedia can have that
licence
said Moyo. Also in terms of section 4 (1) (d) of the Broadcasting Services
Act
one of the listed functions of Transmedia is to provide
satellite-broadcasting
services.

Moyo went on to castigate the paper for "peddling" falsehoods and as yet
another
example of growing unacceptable instances of deliberate falsification of
information by media houses according to him.

Although as indicated above, Transmedia has been granted a broadcasting
licence
for both signal transmission and satellite broadcasting, no other applicants
has
been granted that licence. Transmedia to date has a "monopoly" in the signal
carrier business as provided for in the Broadcasting Services Act. The Act
provides for only one other signaltransmitter to be licensed apart from
Transmedia. No call for applications for this licence have however been made
to
date.

The Zimbabwe chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa
(MISA-Zimbabwe)
has criticized this legislation, as a way of controlling would be
broadcaster,
as they have to get signal transmission service from a state controlled
company.
No justifiable reason has been given as to why there must be two signal
carrier
companies only.

Ends

--------------------------

Information distributed by:
Zoe Titus
MISA Researcher & Information Officer
Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA)
Private Bag 13386
Windhoek, Namibia
Tel. +264 61 232975, Fax. 248016
e-mail: [email protected] [2]
web: http://www.misa.org [3]

MEDIA INSTITUTE OF SOUTHERN AFRICA
PROMOTING MEDIA DIVERSITY, PLURALISM, SELF-SUFFICIENCY AND INDEPENDENCE