All Entries Tagged With: "TRAI"
Is this the end of cable mafia?
Since the cable TV industry’s stunningly chaotic beginning in India in the mid-90s, those in this vast and unregulated trade have had a free run. In the absence of government regulation and its accessory, red-tape — the Indian cable industry has managed to climb to number three position in the world. But the coming summer, things are in for a shake-up. The centre has approved the Cable TV Networks (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2011, which proposes to make it mandatory for every household in the metro cities (in phase one) — Mumbai, Chennai, Delhi and Kolkata — to have a set-top »»»
Interoperability of STBs for DTH still a distant dream
NEW DELHI: None of the six private direct-to-home operators are providing interoperable set top boxes, despite license conditions at Articles 7.1 and 7.2 of the Guidelines are clear that these should be based on open architecture (non-proprietory). Information and Broadcasting Ministry sources said that the Guidelines wanted inter-operability to ensure technical compatibility and effective interoperability among different DTH service providers and conformity to the specifications as laid down by the Government from time to time. The STBs were not interoperable because all the DTH operators were »»»
Digitization: Need for a regulator
The stage has been set for the dawn of the digital era in Indian broadcasting. Earlier this month, Parliament cleared a Bill to amend the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act for ushering in digitization. Cable digitization will be implemented in phases and will be completed by December 2014. This is certainly a moment of triumph for broadcasters who had been lobbying with the government to allow the cable industry to convert from analog to digital. In the digital addressable systems (DAS), service providers can offer more options to consumers, who will be able to select the channels of their »»»
Cisco to Enter Cable Digitization in India
Bangalore: Cable Digitization will soon be the mantra of all cable operators to maintain competence with DTH services provided. It is going to be a bright future for India to have Digitized TV experience by users that shifts the entire scenario to completely new world of viewing. Digitization is to optimize the quality of videos that people watch and to make the service more flexible. This is one the most promising markets for companies who are involved in the development of technologies that will optimize broadcasting. However the digitization of cable for India is an extremely important task »»»
Across-the-board FDI limit enhancement for broadcast carriage services mooted
Terming as a positive steps, the Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) on Tuesday lauded the move by the Indian Government to enhance the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) limit for media broadcasting companies to 74 per cent in some sector but demanded that this limit should be increased across the board rather than classifying them in different categories. Experts and panellists attending the CASBAA conference being held here lauded the Indian Government’s move but felt that rather than bringing in caps in various sectors, the limit should be enhanced across the board »»»
TDSAT gives no relief to Dish TV on interconnect rates
The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) today refused interim relief to DTH operator Dish TV, which had requested for direction to sports broadcaster ESPN to raise bills in accordance with the reference interconnect offer (RIO) of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai). The TDSAT Bench headed by its Chairman, Justice SB Sinha, said in an interim order that keeping in view of the matter at the current stage, it would not give any interim relief to Direct-to-Home player Dish TV. The TDSAT said however that it would expedite the hearing over Dish TV’s main prayer »»»
Hathway Cable eyes huge subscriber growth post digitisation
Reports suggest that the government is planning an ordinance to scale up digitisation of the cable and satellite television industry. The move will speed up pay-TV revenues for broadcasters and curtail carriage costs. G Subramanium, chief finance officer of Hathway Cable and Datacom , in an interview to CNBC-TV18, said that in a bid to meet March deadline, government is contemplating an ordinance to expedite digitisation. Subramanium expects to see huge growth in subscribers post digitisation. “Carriage fees will go down for broadcasters post digitisation, but subscription revenue will make up »»»
