Broadband India

19/04/2018

Don't miss

17/01/2018

Dilip k Mahendra with Pawan Gupta
at advertiser meet

29/03/2017

Cable Blackout in the wings?

March 31st 2017 will see the analog switch off in DAS Phase III and IV areas with the centre already issuing warning for seizure of equipment for defaulters. The STB seeding per MIB figures show 50% seeding in the country which means post 31st March - 50% households in India will face Cable TV blackout. I am not sure if you can call this a success in terms of digital pe*******on by any means. Plus the 50% seeding numbers are based on 2011 census date of number of households in India - we are mid-way in 2017 now and even with a modest 10% rise p.a. in the number of TV watching households in India - the 50% does not hold good at all. The cable operators who have been waiting for the govt to resolve their concerns now face a bigger dilemma in case a blackout happens, They are the face of cable tv to the consumers and will surely receive back lash despite no fault of theirs

Meanwhile , the govt has simplified the policy guidelines for uplinking/downlinking of channels from the hitherto complex regulations. The renewal process has also been simplified. You will find in a feature this month per survey results the world will see 53000 plus channels by 2026. The entertainment industry will see growth by leaps and bounds. The only catch will be how can our world leaders and govts make entertainment reasonably priced and easily accessible to all in the society?

29/03/2017

Historically, Cable TV industry has been operating as cash economy. With the thrust now towards Digital India - the need for operating in digital cash should also be a priority. Cable Operators mostly accepts payment in cash and issues bills to their consumers. A lot of time is spent in sending collection agents to each consumer and collecting cash which can be easily saved by accepting digital payments through Apps and wallets. Bheem app can be a great way to accept payments with no additional cost incurred. Cable Operators should switch over to digital means sooner than later to reduce costs and be safe and secure.

18/01/2017

13/09/2016

22/01/2016

DAS Phase III deadline is past but not the work. Going by reports from various sources, the seeding completeion ratio is anywhere between 50-75%. Despite a major push to achieve the targets operators could not complete 100% seeding due to many difficulties. I would request all LCOs to keep at it and push for 100% seeding in coming months. The analogue signals are not switched off yet , but you never know when it will be. It is better to be prepared , rather than relax and go slow until a major drive is undertaken.
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