It is the wish of every pay-TV subscriber to have signal on the screen immediately the decoder is switched on. It Does not happen. Instead, the television screen turns up with information on the process is going through the decoder to deliver signal. Patience wears thin. You want the signal. And you want it immediately.
Understandable. Watching a decoder booting is not any subscriber’s idea of fun. Can we have it any other way? Yes. A decoder boots faster if the number of channels on the service is fewer. When a pay-TV provider has considerably fewer number of channels, the decoder, as a rule, boot more quickly, provided it is not faulty or there is a problem with the smartcard. However, subscribers to the service with a greater number of channels have to endure a long wait for booting. This is because the greater the number of channels, the longer it takes for the decoder to confirm them and relay the signal to the screen.
It is the way the technology works. Subscribers to the service with, say 10 channels will experience a shorter booting time than those with 30 or more channels.
It is the same for a reboot, when the decoder is taken off the power source. This is either as a result of power outage or disruption to some other sources of power.
Another process that touches the nerves of subscribers is that of account verification. Ideally, it should take two and three minutes. Of course, you have probably seen it take a a long time, leaving you seething with anger, especially when you want to watch something really significant.
Why does it take a long time? Two reasons. It takes a along time if the decoder or smartcard is faulty. If the signal to the decoder is not received, the process goes into repeat mode to your understandable irritation. To resolve this, you need to come over to get accredited check your device. An inappropriately placed smartcard is a smaller challenge. You can fix it by inserting it as directed by the provider.
The other reason for a delay in the account verification process is billing. This occurs when the applicable subscription is not paid.
A subscriber, who uses extra view on DStv, for example, is expected to pay an additional sum for the service. If the subscriber pays only the subscription for the premium bouquet, the account verification process is not only delayed, it won’t come up. This is because the provider’s system recognises the subscriber as an extra user view. In the event that a subscriber wishes to stop using extra view, he or she is advised to notify the provider, who will then do an account reset that will make the system recognise the subscription status.