The government has proposed a uniform Foreign Direct Investment cap of 74% across the digital cable TV sector.

“We are definitely looking at having a uniform FDI cap of 74% for the digital cable TV sector which at present has different caps. The cap for non-digital cable TV would continue at 49%,” Uday Kumar Varma, secretary, information and broadcasting ministry, told HT.

Explaining the rationale behind the move, Varma said: “Digitalisation would require huge investment. With raised FDI limits we are looking at greater capital flows into the sector.”

India is targeting complete digitalisation by 31 December, 2014 with the plan aiming at a transition from the prevalent analog system to a digital one is being seen as a game-changer.

Cable TV industry stakeholders had expressed apprehension over switching over to digital technologies because of the huge costs involved.

The enhanced cap would apply to the distribution and various carriage platforms like DTH, IPTV, mobile TV, HITS and cable companies.

The government ‘s proposal is now in the final process by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP).

Sources said that 49% of the proposed 74% will be put under automatic route with the remaining to be routed through the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).

At present, the current caps for FDI differ across platforms. FDI limit for mobile TV, HITS and IPTV is 74% while for cable distribution companies it is 49%.

Digitalisation, aiming at a transition from the prevalent analog system to a digital one, is being seen as a veritable game-changer. Broadcasters will increase their subscription revenues besides ushering in a regime of clearer subscription figures.

Consumers will also be able to select channels of their choice with digital broadcasts having sharper pictures, better sound quality and a much bigger number of channels.

MUMBAI: Airtel Digital TV’s net loss widened in the fiscal third quarter but subscriber additions stayed competitively strong in a slowing environment.

The DTH arm of telecom major Bharti Airtel posted a net loss of Rs 1.96 billion for the quarter ended December compared to Rs 1.8 billion in the trailing quarter.

The net loss in the third quarter of the previous fiscal was Rs 1.2 billion, while the total loss from Airtel’s DTH business for the financial year ended March 2011 stood at Rs 5.18 billion on a revenue of Rs 7.7 billion. For the first nine months of this fiscal, net loss was higher at Rs 5.25 billion.

Airtel Digital TV’s total revenue for the quarter went up to Rs 3.33 billion as opposed to Rs 2.38 billion in the preceding quarter. Revenue for nine-month period stood at Rs 9.40 billion.

The DTH operator’s Ebitda for the quarter was at Rs 90 million as against Rs 116 million in the revious quarter. Operating margins stood at 2.7 per cent, narrowing from 3.7 per cent in the fiscal’s second quarter.

Airtel Digital TV added 455,000 net subscribers during the quarter, seven per cent more from the trailing quarter. A late entrant, it has speeded up its subscriber base to 7.1 million compared to market leader Dish TV’s 9.5 million, according to data available till 31 December 2011.

ARPU (average revenue per user) marginally fell to Rs 160, from Rs 161 in the earlier quarter.

At the end of the quarter, the company had its Digital TV operations in 587 districts.

Airtel Digital TV’s cumulative investment stood at Rs 32.59 billion.

Source: Indiantelevision.com

Chennai, Feb. 6: Though the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting says that metro cities (Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai) will become digital by June 30, 2012, it does not seem possible.

“We may miss the deadline as it calls for an investment to the tune of Rs 300 crore to procure set-top boxes, set up head-ends and control rooms,” said Mr D. Vivekanandan, Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Arasu Cable TV Corporation Ltd.

According to him, though the State Government is not against the digitisation, the delay may be indispensible. The Government, in fact, is yet to make a policy decision on this, he said. As far as the optical fibre cable networking is concerned, “We can hire cable bandwidth from the telecom operators in the city who already have established cable network here. But procuring set-top boxes could be an issue.” He said there are a little over 25 lakh C&S (cable and satellite) homes in Chennai. Of this, 2.5 lakh homes have DTH connections, and another 2.5 lakh homes have cable connections with set-top boxes. “This leaves a whopping 20 lakh homes to be provided with set-top boxes in the next five months, which seems not workable,” he said.

Arasu Cable recently took a decision to foray into the city, following which close to 2,000 LCOs (local cable operators) with a subscriber base of 8.75 lakh, have registered with the corporation. Overall, in the State, 1.13 crore subscribers have registered with the corporation. Of this, 35 lakh homes are already connected, “and we are adding a few thousands every day. Before the end of next month, the number will double,” he said.

With the Raj TV bouquet, which came on board very recently, it carries a total of 97 pay channels and over 50 free-to-air channels. “The talks with Sun TV is still on, and we hope to get them on board too,” said Mr Vivekanandan.

Source: The Hindu Business Line

With the official deadline for phasing out analog cable TV services fast approaching, digital cable and direct-to-home (DTH) companies are worried because customers are not adequately aware about the mandatory need to switch over to digital services, which will lead to a last minute scramble for settop boxes.

Senior industry executives told Mail Today that although digital customers have been growing, there seems to be lack of awareness about the government’s decision to phase out cable TV networks from Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai by June 31, 2012. Noida and Gurgaon are next in line and compulsory digitisation will be enforced by March 31, 2013.

“There should have been a surge in numbers for the digital services after the government decision in November, 2011, but this has not happened,” a senior executive said.

These companies fear that consumers will probably rush for the change in the last month, when it would become difficult for them to install such a large number of connections in a short time-frame.

The distribution companies had stepped up imports of set-top boxes since they are not manufactured in India but are now seeing the inventory piling up.

The government is keen on the switch over as there is largescale under-invoicing by the local cable operators, who provide the last-mile connection to households and this leads to an erosions in service tax revenues.

According to industry estimates, these neighbourhood cable operators report only 20 per cent of the total subscribers from whom they actually collect money each month.

As a result the government ends up losing around Rs.5,000 crore each year in service tax.

The large digital distributors, such as Hathway, DEN and Digicable, also end up losing big money as they get a revenue share from a meager 18 to 25 per cent of the actual number of subscribers.

According to an industry estimate, the local cable operators retain 80 per cent or Rs.13,600 crore of the entire collection of Rs.17,000 crore collected from viewers as subscription.

The television broadcasters, who invest heavily to provide entertainment and news content, are also getting shortchanged because of this under reporting of subscribers. The digital switch will ensure that the actual number of subscribers get recorded through the set top boxes, which contain cash card with the details of the accounts of the user.

The technology ensures that the broadcasters, distributors and the government get a fix on the actual number of subscribers, plugging the revenue leak. Most advanced countries have phase out analog cable TV. While the US completes the digitisation of its cable sector in 2009, other countries like China are also following suit.

Tata Sky chief marketing officer Vikram Mehra told Mail Today that the company had geared up to provide set-top boxes in the four metros keeping in mind the June 30 deadline. “However, consumer awareness is still low and we plan to launch an advertising campaign to apprise potential customers,” he added.

Mehra said it was important for consumers to choose the right kind of set-top box as this would affect the quality of viewing.

Industry officials are of the view that apart from the number of set-top boxes, the problem of installing the connections had to be tackled.

Installation requires technical expertise and skilled manpower have to be made available in adequate numbers. Thus, any last minute surge in volumes would also make it difficult for company’s engineers to cater to the customers within a deadline.

Mehra said Tata Sky was also putting its billing systems in place to cater to wider customer base as with the entry of set-top boxes consumers would be choosing channels on a la carte basis, which would require different bills for diverse viewers.

A digital platform offers a wider choice of TV channels, better quality of transmission and allows consumers to pay for what they view. For the industry, it will bring in greater consolidation, reduced dependence on viewership ratings and drop in carriage fees.

Source: India Today

New Delhi: Creating yet another benchmark in technological innovation in the DTH industry, Dish TV India, the country’s largest direct-to-home service provider, announced the launch of Dish truHD+ with an unlimited recording capacity, at an unmatched price of Rs. 2690 for the consumers. The unique feature of Dish truHD+ is its compatibility with any USB device enabling consumers to simply plug and play an existing USB stick/ HDD, and build an entire library of their favorite programmes.

Dish truHD+ will have dual advantage of all HD and DVR features, at the price of existing HD box only! The price of 2690 includes the new Dish truHD+ box along with one month Dish truHD Royale Pack. Further, as a promotional offer Dish TV is providing a 4 GB USB drive free to get the user accustomed to the concept of plugging an external device to use the recording features. The DVR features include Record, rewind, forward, pause live TV etc. What’s more, subscribers can also enable time based and event based recording on the box.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. R.C Venkateish, Chief Executive Officer, D ish TV India said “Carrying forward the spirit of innovation that is integral to the Dish TV DNA, Dish truHD+ is the answer to the consumer need for enjoying recording functionality at an affordable price. Whilst most DVR’s charge a premium, our idea is to expand the DVR market by making it accessible at the price of a normal HD box. Furthermore, this box lends a huge advantage over other DVR’s in the market by offering “unlimited recording capacity”. This is possible due to a breakthrough technology that enables any external storage device to be plugged into the USB port of the Dish truHD+ box.

Mr. Salil Kapoor, Chief Operating Officer, Dish TV India, said emphasizing on the products and services, “We are committed to provide the best of technology in the industry and Dish TV brings unique innovation introducing the concept of Unlimited Recording through Dish TV truHD+. The benefits of latest technology truHD+ provide the flexibility in terms of choice to decide on Recording Capacity. Dish truHD+ will enable our consumer to store, save and watch their favorite programmes whenever they want. Also this demonstrate customer centric approach by Dish TV as new as well as old HD customers will get this technological upgrade at no extra cost. Dish truHD+ also introduces the concept of build your own library (Genre based).”

Ms. Anjali Malhotra, Executive Vice President, Marketing, Dish TV India, said that, “Coming at an unmatched price of only Rs 2690, Dish truHD+ will be the only HD box in the market that will offer a Recording facility, at NO EXTRA COST, whilst HD features have become tablestakes. If one were to compare this box with other DVR’s in the market, the Dish truHD+ box would stand a huge price advantage at an unmatched price of Rs.2690/- against the usual cost 5k to 6k, whilst it matches them feature for feature”!

Dish truHD+’ offers dual advantage of HD and DVR where consumer can enjoy stunning picture quality of 1080i, 16:9 picture format with 5.1 surround sound that is far richer than standard definition viewing and comes equipped with the latest MPEG4 technology. In addition to this the same box is used as DVR as well by a simple “plug-n-play” through an external USB device. This enables all benefits of a traditional DVR like recording and playing back programs, Pausing or Rewinding live TV, different play-back positions, event based recording (EBR), time based recording (TBR) and so on.

About Dish TV India
Dish TV is India’s largest direct-to-home company and part of the biggest media conglomerate – Zee Group. Dish TV has on its platform 330+ channels and services including 21 audio channels with 12.5 million subscribers, which is growing. The company has a vast distribution network of about 1400 distributors and 55,000 dealers that spans around 6600 towns across the country. Dish TV has 24*7 call centres with 1600 seats in 11 different languages to take care of subscriber requirements at any point of time. For more information on Dish TV, visit www.dishtv.in

NEW DELHI: Direct to home (DTH) service provider Dish TV India Ltd is focusing on new customer acquisition, high definition technology and digitisation to strengthen its position in the highly competitive DTH market.

“In the next one year, our agenda for growth is to acquire new customers and take the benefit of digitisation,” Dish TV Managing Director Jawahar Goel told PTI.

On the product and services side, the focus will be on high definition, he added.

In 2010-2011, the company added 3.5 million new subscribers.

“In the current fiscal the number of new subscribers will be less as there were no major sports events and even the overall consumer sentiment is not too positive. However, once digitisation kicks off, the rate of growth will be really fast,” Goel said.

In December last year a bill has been passed that mandates complete digitisation of cable TV across the country by December 2014.

As a part of its product portfolio expansion, the company today launched a new high definition (HD) digital video recorder — The Dish truHD+ — that will be sold to consumers at Rs 2,690.

Dish TV is also offering a free upgrade to its consumers who already own an HD set-to-box.

“Out of the total number of 12.5 million subscribers, around 2 per cent are on HD. We expect all of them to upgrade to the newly launched HD DVR,” Dish TV Chief Executive Officer R C Venkateish said.

The idea of this launch is to expand the (digital video recorder) DVR market by making it accessible at price of a normal HD box, he said.

“It will give us dominance in the HD domain,” he added. In an attempt to reach out to on-the-go customers Dish TV has also installed connection on Shatabdi Express Trains.

“We have already done one train on a trial basis. By June this year, Dish TV will be available on nine Shatabdi Express trains,” Goel added.

The company has recently launched a new advertising and marketing campaign featuring Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan, who is Dish TV’s brand ambassador.

“We are spending Rs 25 crore on the new ‘Dish Sawaar Hai’ campaign,” Dish TV COO Salil Kapoor said.

As per government estimates, the total number of DTH subscribers in India is around 45 million split between players like Dish TV, Tata Sky, Sun TV, airtel digital TV, Videocon DTH and Reliance Big TV.

Source: The Economic Times

SITI Cable organized business partners meets to set the pace of cable TV digitization, with the Government recently passing the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Amendment Bill requiring the four metros Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai to shift to digital cable by June 2012 and the rest of the country to be digitized in phased wise manner by December 2014.

With this bill, the onus shifts now on cable service providers to gear up for shifting to digital cable TV infrastructure from analogue.

To speed up this transition, SITI cable organized the series of meets for Delhi Cable Operator in groups of hundred. These meetings were aimed at orienting the local cable operators (LCO’s) towards digital addressable systems (DAS) and its benefits.

In a scenario where consumers have access to newer technologies such as DTH, IPTV which are bringing in superior quality and service & changing the rules of media distribution, the digital addressable systems can offer more TV channels to the consumers with better quality picture and sound, attractive channel package offerings, HD Channels and TV signals that remain uninterrupted even in bad weather.

DAS will also enable cable operators to tap additional business opportunities in the form of value-added and interactive services. It has the provision of broadband and triple-play services through the network which will help in boosting up the revenue of the Cable Operators.

The issues related to the up gradation of existing networks, technical support and training in implementing the system, commercials involved etc were discussed during the meeting.

Team SITI Cable has also explained the Subscriber management system which gives full independence to the business partners in managing their set of subscribers and allows them to addresses activation, deactivation, package change request, complaints etc of the subscribers. The most advanced IP based digital head end set up by SITI Cable will deliver 400 channels along with 30 HD channels in the initial phase. This head end is equipped to deliver up to 1000 channels apart from providing VAS like gaming, movie on demand etc too.

Addressing the gatherings Mr. Anil Malhotra, COO of WWIL said that, “The objective behind developing such Subscriber management system (SMS) is to empower the business partners, the most critical stakeholder in the value chain. The developed system is the replica of the present model of analog business with improved services on digital platform.”

He further added, “Digitization doesn’t mean just putting set top boxes in every cable television home. Lot of work needs to happen in terms of back-end, technology, systems, processes etc. He explained this is precisely what SITI cable have been doing for last few quarters building on infrastructure and backend system & processes. In our areas, we will ensure 360 degree process for migrating to digitization. We are in a very good shape to take off.”

During the meet Business partners of Delhi have also visited SITI cable most advanced IP based digital head end & other infrastructure.

In a nutshell digitization is the lifetime opportunity for cable service providers to increase revenue by offering more channels and VAS, to compete with alternate technologies and build the long term relationship with the end consumers.

SITI Cable will organize more such business partner’s meets in various other cities as well, to build the awareness about digitization.

MUMBAI: Direct-to-home (DTH) services provider Tata Sky has added English comedy channel, Comedy Central, on its platform.

Comedy Central, the latest channel from the Viacom18 stable, will be available on channel no 218 on Tata Sky platform in its English Entertainment pack.

Priced at Rs 50 per month, the English Entertainment pack has nine more channels- AXN, BBC Entertainment, Discovery Turbo, Fox Crime, FX, NDTV Good Times, Star World, TLC and Zee Café.

Comedy Central, has a mix of various comedy genres such as sitcoms, stand-up and gags, British comedy, sketch comedy, etc.

The channel’s programming line-up includes shows such as The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and South Park along with other global hits such as Saturday Night Live, 30 Rock, The Office, Seinfeld, The Wonder Years and That 70s Show.

Tata Sky claims a subscriber base of over 8 million connections.

Source: Indiantelevision.com

MUMBAI: Airtel Digital TV, the DTH service from Bharti Airtel, has launched a new interactive educational service for kids, iKidsworld.

The service expands the interactive bouquet offering of Airtel Digital TV and engages kids at every step.

The user interface is designed to make learning enjoyable for the kids, the company said.

The video content of iKidsworld offers activities like stories, hobbies, songs, rhymes, math puzzles, science facts and quizzes.

Powered by Fundoodaa, the content of iKidsworld is designed to enhance a child’s knowledge, pique their curiosity, challenge their thinking and at the same time have an entertainment quotient.

Bharti Airtel CEO DTH/Media Shashi Arora said, “Our objective was to blend the best of television with interactivity and engagement that children seek from the internet. In line with this, we are delighted to launch –iKidsworld, an interactive educational service. We aim to enhance the learning experience of the kids by converting passive television viewing experience to a more active and participative viewing. The interactive user interface has been specifically designed to appeal to today’s kids – who are exposed to multiple cartoon channels content.”

Existing Airtel digital TV subscribers can subscribe for iKidsworld at Rs 30 per month + taxes.

With iKidsworld, Airtel Digital TV now has seven interactive applications as part of its interactive services portfolio- iRadio, iLearn, iDarshan, iGoodlife, iAstro and Parsifal.

Source: Indiantelevision.com

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI: Five months before time runs out for homes across India’s top four metros to switch to digital transmission to continue watching cable television, operators are battling short supply of set-top boxes as well as ignorance among consumers.

More than 60,000 set-top boxes need to be installed every day to enable an estimated 10 million homes across Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata to meet the deadline mandated by the government.

But with India going digital at the same time as Brazil, Russia, China and South Korea, among other countries, set-top box makers are finding it difficult to meet delivery deadlines. This is the case even as most leading manufacturers, based in China, have ramped up production manifold.

“Most consumers don’t even know that they won’t be able to watch TV with the same cable after the June 30 deadline and that a digital set-top box is a must,” says Anthony Brian D’Souza, a Mumbai-based cable operator.

Direct-to-home or DTH operators, who use satellite and dish antennae, are therefore well placed to grab the business from cable operators. Nearly 80% of the 70,000 odd cable operators are believed to be independent players, who are also finding it difficult to absorb the rise in the cost of imported set-top boxes due to rupee depreciation.

“This is a great opportunity and we are well poised to make the most of cable digitalisation,” says Dish TV’s managing director Jawahar Goel, “The DTH industry will be able to grab 30%-70% of the analog cable homes across various phases depending on the locations.”

Tata Sky has also geared up to cash in on the opportunity. “Our billing and CRM systems handle millions of customers. These have been further scaled up to ensure error free service to many more millions of new subscribers who will join us in next few months,” says chief executive officer and managing director Harit Nagpal. The company can install fresh connections within a day of receiving the order, he says.

Big multi-system operators like Den Networks and Hathaway Cable & Datacom, which have too much on their plate upgrading their subscribers, might find it difficult to add too many new subscribers.

Den Networks has hired Ernst & Young to conduct seminars and train its partners and affiliate local cable operators. “Local cable operators will help us upgrade our existing consumer base on the ground and will play an important part in the process,” says Sameer Manchanda, CMD of Den Networks. He says the company will focus on upgrading its current subscribers in the four metros.

While the industry expects a majority of independent operators to align with the bigger players, many of them may find the switch hard to survive. “The large investments expected from cable operators for setting up the infrastructure in such a short span of time and competition from DTH players could create unemployment among smaller cable operators,” says Roop Sharma, president Cable Operators Federation of India, the largest association of independent cable operators in the country.

Sharma, however, says even the bigger players might find it hard to prove equal to the challenge. “Digitalisation is a mammoth task and there are concerns whether the deadline for the four metros will be achieved,” he says.

An independent cable operator says many affiliate partners of the bigger players are showing a huge resistance to digitisation at the moment. “If someone in the cable fraternity keeps holding out till the last moment in the hope that digitalisation will not happen, he will only be making it easier for DTH players to garner incremental market share at the cost of the cable industry,” says K Jayaraman, chief executive officer of Hathway Cable & Datacom.

Source: The Economic Times