Archive for March, 2010
NGO fights for DTH portability
New Delhi: The non-portability of DTH set-top boxes (STBs) has led to a situation of over 2-million ‘dead’ or deactivated DTH boxes—around 10% of the current DTH subscriber base—lying with households, causing the government to lose over Rs 500 crore in foreign exchange. Based on these findings, a Chennai-based NGO, Tamil Nadu Progressive Consumer Centre, has made a plea for DTH portability on behalf of millions of DTH consumers. It has sought the intervention of appellate tribunal TDSAT. The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal has admitted the matter and has asked the six »»»
Star withdraws proposal to hike stake in Tata Sky
New Delhi, Mar 29 (PTI) The government today said Star India has withdrawn a Rs 325-crore proposal to hike stake in DTH joint venture with Tatas, Tata Sky. According to the Foreign Investment Promotion Board FIPB), Star India and its affiliates had proposed to acquire 49 per cent stake in investment vehicle TS Investments, which would then buy further stake in DTH firm Tata Sky for a total consideration of Rs 324.59 crore. “The proposal has been withdrawn by the applicant,” a FIPB statement said. When contacted, Star India spokesperson declined to comment. Currently, Star — »»»
Get set for high-definition thrill on your TV
Mumbai, March 28: Rajesh D. (35), a manpower consultant, spends his evenings alone these days closeted in a Mumbai service apartment. Like many of his pals, Rajesh chooses to watch the IPL matches at home rather than spend a convivial evening at a favourite nightspot. The only difference between the young entrepreneur, who shuttles between Calcutta and Mumbai, and his friends is that Rajesh loves crowing about the fact that he can see the six rows of stitches on the cricket ball, the sharply-defined spikes in Shane Warne’s hair, and the cracks on the pitch when the ball lands at the good length »»»
Suvidhaa ties up with DTH players to assist in subscriptions
MUMBAI: Suvidhaa Infoserve has tied up with major DTH service providers to offer customers the facility of recharging their subscriptions from any of Suvidhaa’s 20,000 outlets across over 500 cities and over 20 states in India. The tie-up at the initial stage is with Videocon, Sun Direct, Reliance Big TV, Tata Sky and Dish TV. Suvidhaa founder MD and CEO Paresh Rajde says, “The DTH market has a huge potential growth. However, the current number of DTH subscribers is only a small proportion of the total number of TV households, indicating vast growth in the future. Suvidhaa will help the DTH »»»
TV makers, DTH operators score off IPL
The IPL wave has led to a significant jump in sales for television makers and DTH (direct-to-home) operators. Companies such as LG and Samsung have almost doubled their sales in the past few weeks. LG Electronics India sold over 80,000 television sets in February-March this year as against 41,267 in the corresponding period last year. In March, the company has sold till date some 43,000 units as against 21,132 units last March. “The season looks promising. We expect to sustain our growth momentum going forward” said an LG Official. LG recently roped in Bollywood star Akshay Kumar to promote »»»
Radio players sing to the tunes of IPL
Channels expect 30 per cent higher revenue compared to earnings otherwise Radio companies are targeting a 20-30 per cent increase in advertising and sponsorship revenues on the back of a successful Indian Premier League (IPL) season. Industry analysts and sources in radio companies say they expect IPL sponsorship revenues of around Rs 50 lakh a month per radio company during the current 45-day season. Apart from on-air campaigns, most FM stations are working on on-ground activities to promote the teams they have associated with. Neeraj Chaturvedi, national marketing head of Fever FM, says: “We »»»
The music of ‘Kites’ takes flight on Radio Mirchi!
MUMBAI: As the sun rose on Wednesday morning, Mumbai’s No. 1 Radio station, Radio Mirchi premiered the music of ‘Kites’ with Hrithik and Rajesh Roshan on the breakfast show with RJ Jeeturaaj. The Mirchi studio wore a completely different look for the special occasion. The entire studio was decked with colourful kites of various sizes, each with a message for the country’s hottest star. Hrithik made the morning special for thousands of Mumbaikars, when he greeted them with a special hello and interacted with them on air. Duggu, as he is fondly called, revealed how he reminded Chacha Rajesh »»»
