Smaller cable operators in India don’t have anything to worry from the implementation of the new channel pricing order from December 29, broadcasting regulator TRAI said, adding that the new regime will enhance their flexibility and standing. The clarification comes in the wake of worries by some sections of the cable industry that the new […]
Broadcast regulator TRAI said it is examining the issue of broadcasters like Star and Zee supplying some of their channels free of charge to Prasar Bharati’s DTH service Free Dish, while charging money for the same from subscribers of private DTH and cable operators. Several broadcasters had declared their free channels as ‘pay channels’ ahead […]
The telecom and broadcast regulator TRAI today said that it has capped the installation and activation charges for cable and DTH services at Rs 500, comprising an installation charge of up to Rs 350 and an activation charge of up to Rs 150. However, in addition the above charges, these players can levy an upfront […]
Zee Entertainment, one of India’s top three broadcasting companies, has unveiled new channel packs ahead of the TRAI deadline on December 29 to switch to a new tariff scheme. The packs, which include news channels from sister company Zee Media, are designed to push’s Zee’s offerings into maximum households. As such, the company does not […]
The impending December 29 deadline for the introduction of a new set of rules governing the prices of TV channels has set the stage for a mega showdown between broadcasters on the one side and the cable and DTH industry on the other. At the core of the fight is the question of who gets […]
With the December 29 deadline for the implementation of the new TRAI rules drawing near, an analysis of the 332 channels that have already declared their prices indicates that Star India is the most expensive, followed by Zee and Sony. Scroll down to see the full list of pay and FTA channels available on most […]
The December 29 deadline, by which all DTH and cable networks have to bring their tariffs and prices in line with a new TRAI format, is unlikely to have any effect on the operations of DD Free Dish, the country’s only free DTH service. According to industry observers, DD Free Dish is exempted — for […]
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has dismissed the “fabrications and concoctions” being circulated on social media about the new tariff rules that will come into effect on December 29. In a statement, the regulator countered two broad concerns on the upcoming tariff scheme — that consumers will have to pay far more to watch their […]
With the Dec 29 deadline for the introduction of new cable and DTH plans approaching, operators are finalizing their strategy to deal with the regulatory change as smoothly as possible. According to industry sources, the strategy of the DTH and cable operators will be built around offering three primary plans — a basic pack, a […]
Zee Entertainment and Star India, two of India’s biggest broadcasters, have come out with introductory web-pages on the upcoming TRAI tariff change coming into effect on December 29. The prices were already available to DTH and cable companies as part of pro-forma legal agreements. However, the opening of the webpages indicates that these rates are more […]
TRAI’s tariff order for TV channels was supposed to simplify life for cable and DTH operators and their customers. However, given the recent Madras High Court order and prices announced by broadcasters, the implementation of the order from Dec 29 is likely to raise prices for cable and DTH services in the country. The original […]
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India is in the process of enforcing a new tariff scheme for cable and DTH networks in India. The system was supposed to ensure greater consumer choice by making channels available at cheap rates and ridding the networks of junk channels. The new tariff scheme — aimed at dismantling ‘bundling’ […]
Consumers can expect to see a sharp fall in channel prices in days ahead, going by the trend revealed by Discovery Communications, one of the first broadcasters to publish channel prices under TRAI’s new tariff order. TRAI has mandated a new tariff structure for cable and DTH sectors in India under which they have to […]
The National Company Law Tribunal has admitted a petition filed by Sony Pictures Networks India Ltd against cable and broadband operator Ortel Communications. The petition, under Section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code of India, was for initiating insolvency proceedings against the cash-strapped cable and broadband operator. The NCLT also appointed an interim resolution […]
Reliance Jio has pulled its enormously popular Jio Music app and replaced it with JioSaavn, a new app based largely on Saavn, a competitor that the company had acquired in March. Users who have enabled auto-updating of their apps will be upgraded to the new application automatically. With over 100 mln (10 cr) downloads, Jio […]
Hathway, one of India’s top cable feed providers, said it will launch its Smart Hub, a smart set-top-box that will run Google’s Android operating system, in the market next month. This will make it the second big player to come on-board the Android TV platform, a special version of Android OS that is customized to […]
Zee Keralam, the Malayalam channel from India’s second biggest TV broadcasting company, will launch in exactly ten days on Nov 26, the company has revealed. Zee will compete with Malayalam offerings from Star India, Sun Network and local channels like Flowers and Amrita. The group, which entered the adjoining Telugu and Tamil markets over the […]
Zee5, the content app from the Zee Group, has joined the NetRange, an app store found on televisions manufactured by global TV makers such as Philips, Grundig, HiSense, Thomson, Skyworth, Sharp and TCL. With this, the Zee5 app will become instantly available on lakhs of smart TVs across the world. “The ZEE5 app will be […]
Dish TV, India’s largest direct-to-home satellite television service, said it will send out software upgrades to over 4 mln (40 lakh) of its users that will enable them to install apps to watch Internet content on their TV by December. “There are almost 4 million boxes that we have which we can convert into connected […]
Sun Direct, the satellite TV service from Sun TV group, has started offering the cheapest high-definition channel packages in India. The DTH service, which used to offer HD channels only as part of ‘base packs’ that came with a large number of standard-definition channels, has now started offering smaller packs comprising only HD channels. The […]
