The launch of a new direct-to-home TV offering is set to offer Ethiopian viewers wider variety that is tailored to the nation’s market.
In a collaboration between satellite provider SES, the Association of Ethiopian Broadcasters (AEB) and the Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation, EthioSat will consolidate the majority of Ethiopian broadcasters to offer a free-to-air satellite TV package comprising more than 30 channels, including 12 in HD.
According to SES, more than 4 million households in Ethiopia access TV services via satellite. Up until recently, however, EthioSat content was broadcast to areas in North Africa and the Middle East as well as locally, necessitating a more eclectic mix for the nine channels to accommodate such a diverse audience. Now that EthioSat will be transmitted from a different orbital location, content (local and international) can be customised for an Ethiopian audience.
This move, says AEB chairman Amman Fissehazion, is expected to ‘fuel growth in the Ethiopian media sector, as local networks will now be able to easily expand their audience reach’.
