Archive for December, 2008
Go national, think regional
Source: Business Standard As Sun Direct spreads out, it is banking on pricing aimed at consumers who prefer regional language channels. Earlier this month, at a press conference in Mumbai, Sun Direct announced its entry into the city and the rest of the country. “To begin with, we expect to have 35 to 40 per cent share of the market in Mumbai,” said chief operating officer Tony D’Silva at the launch. It has similar targets for the rest of the country. For instance, in another press conference in Kolkata a few days later, the company said it was looking to corner 40 per cent of the market. Sun »»»
DTH firms losses may cross Rs 2,000 crore in 2008-09
Source: Business Standard Gloomy outlook is projected for the direct-to-home (DTH) market in India, catering to over 11 million subscribers. The combined operating losses for 2008-09 may cross the Rs 2,000-crore mark, double of what they were in 2007-08 when the market was serviced by only two players — Dish TV and Tata Sky. Currently, five private DTH players are offering their services — Dish TV, Tata Sky, Sun Direct, Big TV and Digital TV. According to the latest projections by Hong Kong-based international media research agency Media Partners Asia (MPA), over $450 million in operating losses »»»
Prasar Bharti defies TDSAT’s order to restore Zee channels on its DTH platform
Source: TVNext.in Prasar Bharti failed to comply with the directions dated December 15,2008 passed by the Hon’ble TDSAT to restore the carriage of two of Zee Turner channels namely Zee Jagaran and Zee Smile. This deliberate non-compliance by Prasar Bharti has lead Zee Turner to file a contempt petition against Prasar Bharti and one of its senior officer Mr. F. Saharyar (DDG). Taking a serious note of this, the Hon’ble TDSAT on 23.12.2008 issued show cause notices to Prasar Bharti and its officer and has once again directed them to comply forthwith with the directions to restore carriage »»»
NDS in Deals with Tata Sky, Bharti Airtel
Source: Interactive TV Today Interactive TV and conditional access technology provider, NDS, says that Indian satellite TV operator, Tata Sky, has selected its XTV PVR solution to power a new PVR service, dubbed Tata Sky+. The service features MPEG-4 technology, the ability to store up to 45 hours of programming, and such standard PVR features as the ability to pause and rewind live TV. Tata Sky–which launched its national satellite TV service in August, 2006 and now claims to have over 2.7 million subscribers (it projects that it will have 8 million by 2012)–is an existing NDS customer: in »»»
’74% FDI in DTH raises security concerns’
Source: Business Standard Jawahar Goel, the managing director of Dish TV, is unequivocally opposed to increasing the limit of foreign investment in direct-to-home (DTH) sector in India from the current 49 per cent to 74 per cent. In conversation with Shuchi Bansal, Goel focuses on security as a major concern in case the government raises the FDI bar. Why are you against increasing the FDI limit for DTH? There is a clause in the DTH Policy which states that “all foreign personnel likely to be deployed by way of appointment, contract or consultancy etc. by the licensee for installation, maintenance »»»
TDSAT: Prasar Bharati put Zee Turner back on DD Direct
Source: Televisionpoint.com The Telecom Dispute Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) has directed Prasar Bharati to put Zee Turner and Total TV channels back on its direct-to-home (DTH) service DD Direct within two days. The Court has been informed that money, which was to be deposited by Zee Turner and Total TV, had been lying with Prasar Bharati much before passing of the said order. Justice Arun Kumar, chairman, TDSAT, said, “TDSAT has directed Prasar Bharati to forthwith comply with the said order so as to restore the signals both Total TV and Zee Turner channels on its DTH platform »»»
DTH players told to work together, pool resources
Source: The Hindu Business Line New Delhi, Dec. 24 The DTH industry is wasting spectrum on the Ku Band, and can work together and pool resources, said Dr G. Madhavan Nair, ISRO Chairman and Secretary, Department of Space. Direct-to-Home operators have been queuing up at ISRO for transponders to accommodate the country’s many television channels. The satellite agency can give them space on its own satellites, or lease transponders on international satellite for DTH operators. But at the rate at which DTH players are expanding, and new channels are being launched, ISRO fears it will be hard to »»»
