MANILA -- The government is calling on the public to shift to digital television service for better TV experience, more programming, and early warning broadcast during times of emergencies and disasters.

“Sa atin pong mga televiewers right now, we encourage you, or hinihikayat po namin kayo na mag-shift na rin po sa ating digital TV service. Mas maganda po ang experience sa digital television kapag nag-digital TV po kayo. Mas maraming programs na mapapanood, mas maraming programa and then mas maganda ang signal,” National Telecommunication (NTC) Deputy Commissioner Alvin Blanco said in a television interview over PTV.

“Mas klaro and of course mas marami kayong programs na makikita. Other than that, meron din po tayong early warning broadcast na makakatulong din po sa ating mamamayan pagdating sa mga emergencies and disasters. So, we encourage everyone to please let us prepare for our full digital television service,” he said.

Launched during the Ceremonial Digital Switch On (DSO) at the Digital TV Summit 2017, the plan enjoins broadcasters, manufacturers, content producers, including televiewers, in a comprehensive nationwide implementation strategy for the expedient migration from analog to digital broadcasting come the Analog Switch Off (ASO) target at the end of 2023.

Engr. Erwin Galang, director of the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP), also called on the public to transition to digital TV and see the difference.

“Tulad po ng nasabi ni DepCom Alvin, hinihikayat po namin lahat ng manonood ng digital TV. Makikita n’yo po ang diperensya, mas maganda, mas malinaw. Yung mga paborito mong artista, mas makikita mo ang itsura. Life changing po ‘yun,” he said.

Galang also said that the plan of the NTC, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) is to adopt the emergency warning broadcast system feature of the digital TV.

This is similar to the emergency warning in Japan when the country was struck by a powerful earthquake on New Year’s Day, Galang pointed out.

“Ang experience po na nakita po sa Japan ay prior po na dumating sa ibang lugar nakita na po nila at nawarningan na po sila. So, inaasahan po natin na magagawa rin po natin ‘yun dito sa Pilipinas,” the KBP official said.

The government is implementing measures to make it easier for the public, especially in the rural areas, to shift to digital from analog broadcast.

Blanco said that the NTC required the networks for simulcast broadcast of their analog and digital signals to continue serving households using analog television while the preparations are being done for the transition to digital.

“And we also have to make sure na itong mga households na ito that are still relying on analog reception ay makapag-access po ng digital TV before po natin ipatigil ang analog TV service,” he said.

“Pinag-aaralan rin po ng pamahalaan ang pag-provide ng subsidy for some of the households na kailangan po nating i-transition. Pinag-aaralan rin po ito to make sure na maili-limit ang mga inconvenience,” he stated.

Blanco said that the NTC has not changed the timeline for the ASO and at this point in the country’s transition, the agency started to prepare for the ASO until the full adoption of the digital system.

Outside of Mega Manila, the transition from analog to digital is ongoing, Blanco said, noting that there are digital TV services being provided in other areas of the country like Cebu, Davao and many other key cities.

Based on the latest data for Metro Manila, 82 to 83 percent of households could now receive digital TV signal or reception, with less than a million households relying purely on analog TV.

“So, mangilan-ngilan na lang na household or maybe about mga 17 percent, 18 percent. Based on the data that we had, very recently, ‘yung mga households that are, that’s for the Mega Manila area,” Blanco said.

“Ito po yung ating hinihikayat na mga households na as much as possible, tangkilikin na po nila ‘yung ating digital TV service na pino-provide na po ng ating mga television networks, ” he noted. (PND)