Introduction:

There are numerous other broadcasters supplying Tv channels in Africa and South-Africa. I will give you a simple breakdown of these services that you can use to get either alternative languages or free to air (FTA) channels. It is just as easy as installing DStv. The same procedures for installing the dish can be found elsewhere on this site, to be done D.I.Y. without an expensive field strength meter.

Here are the options:

• Decide what type of service on the list you would be interested in.
• What will your language option be?
• Will you be prepared to pay a monthly premium for the service?
• Do you want only FTA without any monthly subscription fees.
• Will you be prepared to pay for a larger dish to get foreign language channels only broadcast on C-band?

1) Alternative pay tv channel: Deukom:

• The first on the list is Deukom. This is a service to the large German community in South Africa, via the broadcaster “SATELIO”. They have a large variety of German channels in both SD (standard definition) as well HD (high definition). Their subscription in very much in line with DStv, with many satisfied customers.
• Their channel list and other details can be found on deukom.co.za.
• Once your contract with them is in place, they will send you your decoder and a list of installers, should you wish to use one.
• The decoder also has a PVR (Personal video recorder) function when connected to an appropriate external hard-drive.
• D.I.Y installation is possible with the use of an 80cm dish with a Universal single LNB, deriving signal from the Astra 4A satellite positioned at 5degrees East. ( Skew = 7 o’clock.)
• Your Phone App “Satfinder” will give you all the details.
• Deukom also has a comprehensive instruction manual for D.I.Y installation on their website.

2. Pay Tv Channel: STARSAT:

• This is a popular Satellite Tv service with many Channels groups to choose from. It used to be Toptv, and now has been branded by the new owners as Starsat. The latest channels and language groupings can be found on starsat.com.
• They have mixed channel packages, plus Indian, French and Shembe channels. A dedicated Afrikaans channel is also featured and the rest is a well balanced bouquet of sport, news, politics, nature, fashion, religion and educational programming.
• They broadcast from the SES5 satellite that is co-located to Astra 4A.
• When you buy a package from them, installation is included. For people living off-grid, the traveling cost might be too high and you can opt for a D.I.Y. installation if required.

3. Pay Tv channel. ZUKU:

• This broadcaster caters for many languages from English, to Indian, Far East and many other African country programs.
• They broadcast from the SES5 satellite, which makes D.I.Y. installation very easy using an 80cm dish with a Universal twin LNB.
• The decoder can be obtained from Zuku in Kenia.
• Their website is: https://zuku.co.ke

4. French Pay Tv: Parabole & Canal Reunion:

• For the many French speaking people in Eastern Africa this is a welcome way to receive high quality French channels.
• They broadcast from the Eutelsat 16A satellite at 16 degrees East with a footprint that reaches into a part of South Africa. Because we are on the edge of their footprint, we need a larger dish to receive this service. A 90cm to 1,2meter dish is usually sufficient. I do not know how far the signal can be received into the south-western part of South-Africa, but I have been very successful in Gauteng Province. The signal can only be stronger as you move North and East towards Zimbabwe and Mozambique.
• With the signal being marginal, I would not recommend doing this installation without a sensitive high quality satellite meter. If you happen to have access to one, D.I Y. is surely possible.
• The HD decoder used by them is also fully PVR capable and can be imported directly from Reunion. www,canalplus-reunion.com

5. Portuguese Pay Tv: Zap:

• They have a large bouquet of channels for this specific market, and are very popular.
• Their broadcast is done from the Eutelsat W7 satellite at 36 degrees East, same as DStv Africa. An 80cm dish with universal LNB will work well and one should have no problems aligning your dish by using the Satfinder App.
• Decoders can be ordered on line from their shop in Johannesburg. The address is: https://www. zapshop.co.za

6. Free to air channels: OVHD:

• This is currently the most popular FTA service in South Africa, because of the fact that there are no monthly subscription fees involved.
• They broadcast from the IS20 satellite (same as DStv). The dish installation is also the same and you can easily switch between a standard HD DStv decoder and the OVHD decoder. It will just not work on a Smart LNB.
• The HD decoder is very affordable and is PVR capable if you use the correct USB memory stick.
• Like most modern DStv decoders, it does not have a modulator to send signal to a second Tv in the house. In any case, it is impractical to have two television sets playing the same channel. You might as well get a twin LNB for two decoders, or a Quad (4 output) LNB for 4 such decoders in the same house, so they can watch independent channels.
• There are no vouchered installations with these decoders, so it is worthwhile if one can install, repair and maintain the dish installation your self.

7. FTA Channels from various satellites:

There are numerous free to air (view) channels being broadcast on a permanent basis. These channels are on the air for various reasons, among others for diplomats and expatriates to keep up to date with news in their home countries. It is therefor not possible for me to name them all, but one can always search for possible channels on the www.Lyngsat.com website. This is a bit of a daunting site for beginners, but with a little perseverance you can find your way. (Mostly designed for satellite experts). It also has to be kept in mind that these signals are in control of the broadcaster and the they do sometimes decide to move it to another satellite, or to terminate it.

* Following are the ones that I have found most in demand by South-Africans:

BVN:

• A channel from the Netherlands that has very high quality programming in Dutch and Flemish, on a 24h basis.
• It broadcasts free on the SES5 Satellite at 5degrees East. The signal is fairly strong, so a D.I.Y installation is more than possible, using the above methods and an 80 -90cm dish with universal LNB.
• The Satellite receiver is a general FTA model with Dvb S2 (digital video broadcast) and HD capability. Make sure when you buy to get a model that is S2 capable, because more broadcasters are currently switching from the standard DVB-S to DVB-S2 for it’s HD ability.

France 24 Fench & English:

This channel is comparable to BBC or CNN.

RT News. Russian news in English:

Many people describe this channel as unbiased world news.

Deutche Welle in English:

This is a documentary and news channel about all things German.

NHK word Japan in English:

A general news and documentary channels about all things Japanese.

Tv5 Monde Afrique in English:

A very general and documentary channel about France and Africa.

• All of these are also broadcast from the SES5 Satellite and can be installed by any D.I.Y. enthusiast.

Premium free TV: (On the DStv satellite).

This is a new satellite service that is purposed for Africa with various channels. We have an article on this website on it under Free to air.

Intelsat 20 FTA channels:

• On this satellite also used by DStv, we have mainly the Botswana group of channels and then a myriad of religious channels from all over the world, South-Africa and central Africa.
• Once again an 80cm dish with universal LNB will work well, together with a FTA – S2 receiver.

SABC on the Intelsat 20 satellite:

• Here we have about 10 FTA channels from Sentech (SABC):
• SABC1, 2, & 3 in HD, plus Etv, Parlement, Twane Tv, SABC Encore, SABC news, SABC sport, and a Health channel.
• Decoders/receivers (called Freevision) can be obtained from: ABT in Pretoria.

8. There are many channels on C-Band:

• Because this system broadcasts over a much bigger area of the globe, the signal that reaches the ground is extremely weak and that is why larger dishes of 2.4meters to 3.5meters are used.
• The channels cater for mostly foreign languages like Russian, Indian, Arabic, Nigerian, Pakistani, Portuguese, Thai, Korean and Brazilian.
• Because of the uncomfortable size of the dish, that does make it more difficult to install and align. But I have seen D.I.Y enthusiasts beat this installation with great success. A good signal meter is most definitely a must.

9. One decoder with multi satellites:

• With one FTA decoder you can draw in signals from 2 or more satellites, using a Diseqc switch. The decoder will then give a different pulse to ask for a signal from any specific dish/LNB. This function is programmed into the receiver when you enter the frequencies.

10. Channels via I.P:

• With broadband and Fiber now becoming much cheaper than in the past, a lot of broadcasters have started putting their channels an the internet. We have to always weigh up the cost of the dish installation with the IP service provider costs to see which is best. If you have the need for only a few channels, or even a special channel for your hotel or guesthouse, this could be the better option.
• A lot of these channels are found on the Lyngsat website.

11. SABC DTT. T2:

• Although these channels are not broadcast via satellite, but terrestrially, I feel it worthwhile mentioning them here.
• The service is FTA and all hardware needed is a UHF antenna, mast, bracket, some cable, plus a DTT decoder.
• Antenna elements is to be Vertically polarized and signal strength can be optimized with the decoders on board meter.
• It is absolutely a DIY possible installation with minor tools required. Many homes might even still have a mast on it that was used for the analogue service in the past.
• The following basic channels can be received: SABC 1, 2, 3, sport and news, all in HD plus Parliament and SABC Encore. Also many Radio channels are included.
• Decoders/Set-top boxes are available from the SABC distributers, with many Tv brands now having a T2 tuner already built in.

12. GO-tv. A DTT.T2 service from Multichoice:

• They use the same Digital transmitters as the SABC, making the installation exactly the same, with a UHF antenna installed with it’s elements in a vertical orientation.
• DTT is a very nifty technology where all the transmitters in your area emit signals on the same frequency. This happens without the one transmitter interfering with the other, as was the case when we had analogue transmitters in the past.
• The antenna is installed by mounting the three leg bracket against a wall in such a way that once the antenna is on the highest point of the aluminum mast,that it will have line – of – sight of the transmitter. Remember that with terrestrial antennae the signal comes horizontally to you and there should be nothing in the way to obstruct it’s path.
• Your job will thus be to rotate your antenna through 360 degrees in order to find the one that is the strongest,with someone inside the house to report to you. If you can see the transmitter, then the antenna direction will be obvious. Do a little fine tuning, then lock the bolts in position.
• The instructions to pay and activate the decoder is available on their website: Gotvafrica.com.
• They have a few packages available for you to choose from.
• If you happen to live in an area where there is no Terrestrial reception, you can opt for the satellite version available.