It's the End of an Era of Analog TV in Indonesian Cities

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - The Communications and Information Ministry officially ended the analog terrestrial television broadcast for Greater Jakarta and other Indonesian cities starting from Wednesday evening, Nov. 2.

"We expect that by entering the digital broadcast era, there will be a variety of content with better quality that promote culture," Communications and Information Minister Johnny G. Plate said during the analog broadcast termination countdown event.

Broadcast digitalization is necessary for the survival of the national broadcast industry amid the emergence of alternative broadcasts through new media, he said on Thursday, Nov. 3.

The analog switch-off (ASO) or analog television broadcast termination was applied in the Greater Jakarta area on Nov. 2.

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The ministry symbolically held an ASO countdown event at the ministry's complex in Central Jakarta from 9:30 pm local time on Wednesday until Thursday.

With the ASO, 14 districts and cities in Greater Jakarta officially entered the digital television broadcast era. In addition to Greater Jakarta, ASO was also implemented in about 43 districts and cities in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, 173 districts and cities that never received analog television broadcasts (non-terrestrial) throughout this time will immediately transition to digital broadcasts.

The ministry and broadcasting institution, as the digital broadcast multiplexing organizer, have provided subsidies in the form of set-top boxes for poor households that have analog television hardware.

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