Chile has become the latest country in Latin America to adopt the Japanese ISDB digital television standard. The decision, announced by President Michelle Bachelet on Monday, ends years of indecision and postponements.
The move follows a similar decision taken by Argentina in August; Peru and Brazil have also adopted ISDB in favour of the European DVB and US ATSC standards.
Pablo Bello, the head of the Chilean telecommunications regulator Subtel, was quoted as saying the decision was made on both technical and economic grounds. He added that prices for ISDB reception equipment, which had been higher than its US and European counterparts, had now begun to fall.
Chile has set a transition period of eight years to move entirely to digital broadcasts. Japan has offered technical assistance for the move.
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