Pinnacle Communications Limited, the single largest investor in Nigeria’s Digital Switch Over (DSO) from analogue to digital broadcasts, is set to move the industry to the next level with the launch of the first ever push video-on-demand service in the country from its digital signal distribution platforms.
This was disclosed by the Director General of the National Broadcasting Commission(NBC), Malam Ishaq Modibbo Kawu, at a press briefing in Abuja yesterday. He enumerated Pinnacle Communications Limited’s record of compliance and pace-setting in the implementation of the Federal Government approved White Paper on DSO, from 2014 when it emerged successful bidder and paid for the only private signal distributorship license.
The push video-on-demand service, he explained, which will effectively cut out the menace of piracy and enable Nollywood and other content developers to get full value for their work, is initially to be available through 10,000 special set-top boxes and launched on the Pinnacle signal distribution platforms in Abuja and Kaduna that have been on air continuously since 2016 and 2017 respectively when they were commissioned. Pinnacle Communications is on the verge of completing its third broadcast centre in Gombe.
The NBC DG said the Bank of Industry (BOI) was in partnership with Nollywood to support the launch of the push video-on-demand service that would link subscribers to a bouquet of new Nigerian videos which they could watch for 72 hours before it lapses, emphasizing that such videos would not be available anywhere else thereby eliminating opportunities for illegal dubbing and other acts of piracy.
Also under discussions are the development of a rate card and audience measurement mechanism under the DSO for the huge number of content developers expected to join the digital signal distribution system as implementation progresses.
