AEC to select operator for digital TV broadcasting.

The Agency for Electronic Communications (AEC) announced a public call for selection of an operator for the three remaining multiplexes - two for national and one for regional TV stations, thus creating conditions for transfer from analogue to digital terrestrial broadcasting, a process that Macedonia needs to complete by June 2013.

Minister of Information Society and Administration Ivo Ivanovski and AEC director Robert Ordanoski said that the call would be open in the next 45 days.

"After the new broadcaster builds the network, AEC will assess the costs to be collected for national, regional or local TV stations. This means that everything will be regulated, eliminating the possibility for abuse of position", said Minister Ivanovski.

Analogue transmitters will be shut down following the transfer of commercial national, regional and local TV stations to digital broadcasting.

"This is related to the process of the so-called digital dividend for release of frequencies ranging from 790MHz to 862MHz, which are currently used by analogue TV stations, in order to allocate 4G frequencies", said Ordanoski.

According to him, the plan is to cover Macedonia with the fastest broadband internet in the next four years, in order to follow the European digital agenda.

Large portion of the country's territory is already covered with digital signal of public service Macedonian Radio-Television.