Feature: Families in rural Kenya embracing pay TV
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E-mail Xinhua, October 17, 2012
Feature: Families in rural Kenya embracing pay TV
by Bedah Mengo
NAIROBI, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- The satellite dish on a semi- permanent house somewhere in Sisenye, a village in Busia, Western Kenya, looks misplaced.
The grey dish, placed at the edge of the roof of the structure, seemingly stares back at everyone who cares to gaze at it. A black cable stretches from the dish into the house, where a 14-inch television set sits on a tall stool.
The owner of the house, Fred Ajwang, sat on a sofa, with a remote control in his right hand. He intermittently pressed the remote control as he flipped through several channels before settling on an international news channel.
As he watched the channel broadcasting the conflict in Syria, Ajwang smiled from ear-to-ear before saying, "I now have it right here. I no longer need to walk to the shopping center and pay to watch a football match or a Nigerian movie."
Ajwang, 33, was talking about the satellite TV in his house, which he subscribed to about four months ago.
Some years back, Ajwang as many other people in Kenya's rural areas only read about satellite TV in newspapers and heard its advertisement on radio.
The government employee knew they were expensive gadgets that belonged to selected middle-income families and rich people in urban areas. But, a new dawn has come for him and many other families in rural Kenya.
He is among a growing number of families in rural areas in the East African nation, which are acquiring and enjoying pay TV service, thanks to price cuts for subscription and installation.
The drop in costs and a move by service providers to open outlets in various towns and have agents across the East African nation has made pay TV reach many Kenyans, especially those in rural areas.
Kenyans can now acquire pay TV gadgets at a paltry 35 U.S. dollars, down from about 200 dollars some years ago. Similarly, they pay monthly subscription of between 5.8 U.S. dollars and 23 dollars, a feat that was impossible in the recent past.
The low prices, brought about by stiff competition in the sector, have spread the satellite services enabling low-income earners to easily access them.
"I acquired pay TV gadgets for about 70 dollars and I pay 12 dollars every month for subscription. This is affordable considering that the fact that I get the services in the comfort of my house," the government worker told Xinhua in a recent interview.
Through the satellite TV, Ajwang watches music, news, sports, movies and local television channels, among others.
"I went for pay TV, not only because prices had come down, but I was also disturbed by the fact that I could not access local news channel, whose signal is poor in this area," he recounted.
The father of three said he travelled to Busia town, about 40 km away, where the company he subscribes the services from has an agent.
"I called a number I saw in an advert and they directed me to the agent's office where inquired about the services before paying installation fees. They then came to install the dish the following day," he narrated.
And as Ajwang and his family enjoy world-class entertainment, the pay TV bug is spreading in the area and others across the East African nation.
His neighbor in the next village, Peter Musamia, a secondary school teacher, subscribed to the services recently. Musamia, like Ajwang, pays about 12 dollars every month as subscription fees.
"I still believe that the figure is high because I know there are cheaper service providers, but it is only that their signals do not cover this area," he said.
Musamia noted that pay TV has helped him keep abreast with the happenings in Kenya and across the world.
"The good thing with satellite TV is that it presents you with several channels where you can access information on business, politics and sports among others. With such information, there is no difference between you and someone living in urban areas," said the literature teacher.
He observed that with drop in costs, there is no reason why families in rural areas should not acquire pay TV services.
"Rural areas had been neglected in the past by corporate firms because many believed they are weak market for their products. But things are changing as competition stiffens in many sectors and companies target mass market. We have seen it with mobile phone companies and now pay TV firms," said Musamia, who added several of his colleagues at school have subscribed to pay TV.
Kenya has five satellite TV service providers namely StarTimes, DStv, My TV, Star TV and Zuku TV. South Africa's DStv, which has been in Kenya for close to 15 years, is the market leader and enjoys almost a monopoly.
However, the sector has experienced stiff competition in the past months, which has seen the companies lower their installation and subscription rates to attract and retain customers.
The biggest beneficiaries in the battle for market share have been low-income earners, especially in rural areas where the companies are competing to spread services. Enditem
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