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Category: DAS

  • MIB to not press for DAS Phase III execution till High Courts rule on pending cases

    MIB to not press for DAS Phase III execution till High Courts rule on pending cases

    NEW DELHI: Faced by various High Courts extending the deadline of implementation of Phase III of Digital Addressable System (DAS), the Information and Broadcasting Ministry has told the Punjab and Haryana High Court that “it will not press for requirement of having a set top box (STB) as of now.”

     

    In view of this, Justice Rakesh Kumar Jain dismissed as infructuous a petition by cable operator Parbobh Rattan seeking extension the ground that there was shortage of STBs.

     

    Counsel Vivek Singla told the Court that “the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India has decided not to press the requirement of having a STB as for now till the decision of the cases, which are pending before various other Honourable High Courts.”

     

    Earlier, Assistant Solicitor General Chetan Mittal was informed through a letter by an under secretary, Anil Kumar, that legal opinion was clear that the interpretation of the Bombay High Court was clear that the earlier orders of the Hyderabad High Court relating to Andhra Pradesh and Telangana applied to the entire country.

     

    This was stated in the letter asking Mittal to defend the petition before the Punjab and Haryana High Court and telling him that there was very little time for filing a counter-affidavit on the issue.

     

    The Ministry also sent Mittal a detailed note on the issue, apart from orders by the Hyderabad and Bombay High Courts.

     

    The Bombay High Court had relied on the Supreme Court order in the Kusum Ingots and Allous Ltd case where the apex Court had said that a High Court could give an order similar to that given by other High Courts if the circumstances were similar.

     

    In this case, all the cases relate to shortage in seeding of STBs.

     

    However, Ministry Secretary Sunil Arora had told Indiantelevision.com earlier that the Centre would be moving the Supreme Court shortly. Ministry sources said that the petition in the apex Court was likely to be an appeal against one High Court with an application that all other matters may also be heard simultaneously.

     

    The matter has already been stayed by other High Courts including Sikkim, Odisha, Chhattisgarh for the entire state, and for individual local cable operators in Karnataka and Kerala.

  • AP & Telangana MSO VSML opts for Nagra’s OpenTV content protection

    AP & Telangana MSO VSML opts for Nagra’s OpenTV content protection

    MUMBAI: As the Indian cable television landscape gears up to get fully digitised by the end of this year with the Digital Addressable System (DAS) in place, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana based multi system operator (MSO) Venkata Sai Media Private Limited (VSMPL) has taken a step forward and opted for Kudelski Group’s Nagra anyCAST and OpenTV solutions for the launch of its digital cable and high-speed broadband offering.

    Nagra is an independent provider of content protection and multiscreen television solutions. The launch marks the first commercial deployment of OpenTV middleware and the first user interface to support Telugu language with a cable operator in India. Nagra’s anyCAST content protection and OpenTV middleware technologies were selected by the operator in the context of the government-mandated transition to digital, to provide local cable operators in the state of Andhra Pradesh with access to a variety of digital TV services under the brand name ‘Media Vision.’ These will include 276 SD and 24 HD services with plans to introduce value added services (VAS) like video-on-demand (VOD), home shopping and more. “We are excited to deliver these new digital services to local operators as part of the ongoing digitisation efforts in India. Nagra was the vendor of choice in this effort providing pre-integrated conditional access and set-top box software solutions across multiple chipsets. This was a key factor in helping us deliver the services quickly and efficiently,” said VSMPL. “VSMPL has acted quickly to meet the digitisation timeline set forth by the Indian government and is now able to reach more local operators with our pre-integrated, scalable and fast time-to-market solutions. We are pleased to have been able to support them in this effort helping them deliver advanced functionalities and robust content protection to whole new cable market. We wish them much success with their new platform,” added Nagra SVP sales – Asia-Pacific Jean-Luc Jezouin. VSMPL’s new service will enable a new generation of digital TV services for local cable operators. It boasts built-in features powered by OpenTV middleware such as PVR and targeted advertising and a user interface adapted to the region’s multi-lingual landscape. Robust content protection is provided by the Nagra anyCAST Security Services Platform, which supports a range of services from basic free-to-view to enhanced content like 4K Ultra HD. VSMPL claims to have close to one million subscribers in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

     

  • MIB grants permanent license to Uttar Pradesh MSO

    MIB grants permanent license to Uttar Pradesh MSO

    NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has granted a permanent (ten-year) license to the Uttar Pradesh based multi system operator (MSO) Eminent Cable Network. With this the number of MSOs, who have got permanent licences has gone up to 231.

     

    This also takes the total number of MSOs to get a license to 655 including 424, who have got provisional registration in all urban areas in the country.

     

    The MIB by 12 January cancelled the licences of 26 MSOs and closed their cases. It had initially cancelled the licences of 30, but restored those of four of whom one – Tanuku Communication Network from Andhra Pradesh – was given a provisional registration and another – Eminent Cable Network from UP – is the latest entrant to the permanent licensees.  

     

    As was reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com, of the provisional licensees, a total of 12 MSOs were given provisional licences on 12 January and another 30 on 1 January, 2016.

     

    The other two licensees whose permanent licences had been cancelled but have been restored are Skynet Digital Services and Silverline Entertainment, both for most parts of Uttar Pradesh.

     

    An earlier list had put the figure at 382 provisional licensees on 31 December, 2015 the day the analogue signals were to be switched off, showing 45 new MSOs had been added in the last fortnight of 2015.

      

    With the Home Ministry directive about doing away with security clearances for MSOs not being communicated in writing to the MIB, the pace remains slow.

     

    The new licensees covering 11 states include one MSOs in the northeast for Tripura, but it also includes two MSOs in Tamil Nadu and one in Chhattisgarh where DAS Phase III remains stayed.

     

    The other states covered include Haryana, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Padesh, and Kerala.

     

    The permanent licence issued to Kal Cable of Chennai had been cancelled on 20 August, 2014 but this cancellation was set aside by Madras High Court on 5 September the same year. However, Kal Cable’s name continues to be in the Cancelled List – presumably because the cases are still pending.

     

    The number of MSOs was 612 on 31 December, 567 in mid-December, 553 by 24 November and 470 earlier in November, but this increase was merely in those who have provisional licences.

     

    Sources said many MSOs holding provisional licences had not completed certain formalities relating to shareholders and so on.

  • DAS Phase III: Fifth updated list of urban areas shows 100 changes in Karnataka

    DAS Phase III: Fifth updated list of urban areas shows 100 changes in Karnataka

    NEW DELHI: The Government, which had last month issued an updated list of urban areas to be covered during Phase III of the Digital Addressable System (DAS) in West Bengal, today issued a fifth list relating to West Bengal.

     

    Earlier, the list issued on 3 November was related to the urban areas to be covered in seven states and one union territory. That was in addition to the 16 states for which upgradation had been announced on 16 October.

     

    Around 80 towns have been deleted from Karnataka but around 20 have been added or upgraded. This leaves a total of 2,044,940 TV households to be covered in DAS Phase III.

     

    The third updated list had referred to changes in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jammu & Kashmir, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur and Telangana, and the Union Territory of Daman & Diu.

     

    Earlier in October, the states and union territories where changes were made were: Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Rajasthan, Punjab, Tripura, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar, and Puducherry.

     

    The updated list attached on the Information and Broadcasting Ministry’s website with regard to these states and UTs also indicates areas that have been deleted and those which have been added, apart from the number of television households to be covered in each case.

     

    The changes have been made on the basis of the list of Urban local Bodies received from Karnataka government.

     

    The list does not contain areas covered in the first two phases.

     

    The list of areas to be covered in Phase III had been issued on 30 April last year. 

  • I&B Ministry awaits Law Ministry’s opinion on DAS Phase III stay orders

    I&B Ministry awaits Law Ministry’s opinion on DAS Phase III stay orders

    NEW DELHI: Even as High Courts across different Indian states continue to issue extension of the Digital Addressable System (DAS) Phase III deadline beyond 31 December, 2015, the Information and Broadcasting Ministry is still waiting for the Law Ministry to respond to the file on the issue.

     

    However, as was first reported by Indiantelevision.com, I&B Secretary Sunil Arora had confirmed that the Ministry will move the Supreme Court and file an application for clubbing the various orders in different High Courts, which ordered an extension of the deadline.

     

    That said, it was not immediately clear whether this would be a fresh appeal, or would be in the form of an appeal against one of the High Court orders with an additional request that since other matters are similar, they could also be heard at the same time.

     

    This decision came as a disappointment to many multi system operators (MSOs) in other states who said that they would find it very difficult to come to Delhi to fight the case or pay the high fee charges by Supreme Court advocates for this purpose.

     

    Several rounds of discussions have been held internally as well as with officials of the Law Ministry and legal experts over the past few days before coming to this decision, to thwart the snowballing effect of the orders that commenced from Hyderabad and found a boost in the arguments in the Bombay High Court based on the Kusum Ingots case of 2004, which encouraged MSOs and local cable operators (LCOs) in other states.

     

    While the Kerala and Karnataka High Courts are to hear petitions early next week, the implementation remains stayed for varying periods in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Sikkim, and Telangana, apart from Tamil Nadu where prolonged legal cases have been pending since Phase I.

     

    Adding to its woes, I&B Minister Arun Jaitley has received a letter from the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu seeking a six-month extension for the 800+ MSOs and 9000+ LCOs across 13 districts serving 1.3 million households in the state. 

     

    Reacting to this, an official of the I&B Ministry said that these High Courts orders would have no effect on the Government decision to stick to its date of 31 December, 2015 and it had asked broadcasters and MSOs to switch off analogue signals in all areas covered under Phase III, which was aimed at the remaining urban areas except where certain states sought exemption.

     

    The official also said that the Courts were generally following the logic given before the Bombay High Court whereby the Supreme Court had said in the Kusum Ingots case that if one High Court gives an order, others can give similar orders if the circumstances are similar. In this case, the petitioners had sought to say in all the cases that there was a shortage of set top boxes (STBs), which belied the figures received by the Government, the official added.

     

    There was also general consensus in the Ministry that this was the right course as the apex court had on an earlier occasion relating to the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995 and orders issued thereunder that High Courts have to be cautious when giving orders on matters relating to policy.  

       

    While the Ministry would prepare to file its counters in all the High Courts, the Ministry official also said it was working on how plans to thwart the implementation of Phase III could be prevented – if necessary through legislative processes.

     

    The Government feels that the cases would in fact work against the last mile operator (LMO) and benefit the direct to home (DTH) and Headend In the Sky (HITS) players.

     

    Sources said that they had evidence to show seeding of STBs to the extent of 76 per cent as revealed in the 13th Task Force meeting on 30 December. 

     

    Broadcasters and channel distributors feel any extension would only lead to delays in all fields of digitisation including a further delay in not just the Phase III and Phase IV (slated for December 2016) but also pockets of Phase I and Phase II, which have still not implemented digital addressable systems.

     

    At the same time, stakeholders agree that there is a shortage of STBs and just one or two players are making local boxes despite the ‘Make in India’ campaign, and the government had to be make some relaxations in the budget in this regard.

  • Andhra Pradesh CM writes to Arun Jaitley seeking 6-month extension on DAS Phase III

    Andhra Pradesh CM writes to Arun Jaitley seeking 6-month extension on DAS Phase III

    MUMBAI: With an aim to address the concerns of 800+ multi system operators (MSOs) and 9000+ local cable operators (LCOs) across 13 districts serving 1.3 million households in Andhra Pradesh, the state’s chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has written to the Information and Broadcasting minster Arun Jaitley seeking a six-month extension to the Digital Addressable System (DAS) Phase III deadline, which expired on 31 December, 2015.

     

    The signed letter, a copy of which is with Indiantelevision.com, says, “Only a few MSOs have got Digital License, mainly due to to non-affordability of digital headends and lack of technical know-how. As a part of AP Fiber Grid AP Government envisages to support there MSOs/LCOs by setting up a multi-tenanted digital cable headend that can be utilised as, ‘Infrastructure as a Service & Platform as a service’ facilitating the operations to apply for digital MSO license and sustain their areas of operation. This will help a large number of operators/employees who are surviving on this industry directly and indirectly.”

     

    The letter further adds, “In view of the initiative and the special situation in Andhra Pradesh, the commissioning of AP Fiber Grid is required to enable MSOs/LCOs to utilise this network infrastructure ad to partner with this project. As this model is going to be uniform among all operators interested in associating with Fiber Grid, the cable operators may not be willing/able to invest for STBs in advance to meet the present deadline. Hence, it is requested to consider extending the phase III Digitisation target date by six months beyond 31 December, 2015.

     

    Highlighting the status of the AP Fiber Grid Project, Naidu further informed that: 

     

    .   AP Government has initiated Fiber Grid project to digitise the households in Andhra Pradhesh through both aerial and underground optical fiber cable network.

     

    .   Work is in progress to lay 24 core ADSS optical fiber cable for a length of around 22000 kms over electrical poles. It is planned to complete this work by June 2016 under phase 1 of Fiber Grid.  2449 PoPs (Points of Presence) will be set up at identified electrical substantiations to house the electronics.

     

    .   Laying of underground Fiber for a length of around 60000 Kms will be taken up under Phase II in association with government of India.

     

    .   Dedicated Network Operations Center (NOC) equipped with all digital Headends providing Video (TV Channels, Data (Internet) and Voice (telephone) services also be commissioned by June 2016 facilitating all service providers to utilise the fiber grid with the model of infrastructure as a service & Platform as a Service.

     

    .   It is planned to enrol the LCOs as Last Mile Operators (LMOs) to provide services to households connecting to Fiber Grid PoPs (points of presence) through their existing network.

     

    .   The MSOs can be enrolled as ‘multi service providers,’ offering Internet and TV services by connecting to NOC of Fiber Grid and delivering through last mile operators. 

     

    At the time of filing this story, the AP CM’s office was yet to receive a reply to the letter from Jaitley.

  • DAS Phase III: Chhattisgarh gets two-month extension by Court

    DAS Phase III: Chhattisgarh gets two-month extension by Court

    MUMBAI: Chhattisgarh has become the newest addition to the list of stayed states allowed extension by the judiciary for the Phase III deadline of Digital Addressable System (DAS).

     

    The Chhattisgarh High Court, hearing the petition filed by Gentle Entertainment Private Limited, announced a two-month extension to complete the seeding process. The court ordered stakeholders to complete the proceedings in two months and ordered that during the process cable connections should not be discontinued.

     

    “The court’s main concern was shortage of set top boxes and the discomfort of common people. And that is why the honourable court decided to allow the extension,” a source present in the court tells Indiantelevision.com.

     

    The petition filed by Gentle Entertainment said, “Due to the shortage of STBs in the global market, and high demand here in India it is becoming impossible to have the adequate supply. To meet the necessary demand it will take at least two months more and hence we request the esteemed court to allow an extension of two months.” 

     

    “The question that one should ask now is, when the deadline was announced a year back why the process started so late. Are we trying to say that twelve months was not enough and we need fourteen? This leaves a bad impression on those who followed the deadline. Will the government compensate those who followed the deadline and executed things on time?” asked a senior executive from the cable fraternity.   

     

    As was reported earlier by this website, at present, the implementation remains stayed for varying periods in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Maharashtra, Orissa, Sikkim, and Telangana, apart from Tamil Nadu where prolonged legal cases have been pending since Phase I. The original deadline for DAS Phase III deadline was that of 31 December, 2015.

     

    Moreover, the Information and Broadcasting Ministry is now planning to move the Supreme Court to club the various orders in different High Courts, which ordered extension of DAS Phase III.

  • DTH to benefit, Reliance Jio to intensify competition in DAS Phase III: Edelweiss

    DTH to benefit, Reliance Jio to intensify competition in DAS Phase III: Edelweiss

    NEW DELHI: Broadcasters are obviously clear winners, but the direct to home (DTH) platforms may ultimately become the greatest beneficiaries of Phase III of digital addressable system (DAS) by garnering incremental market share of more than 50 per cent.

     
    According to Edelweiss Securities Ltd, broadcasters will be one of the safest and most attractive plays on the digitisation theme, irrespective of higher subscriber additions by DTH or MSOs. “We expect a one-year lag for subscription revenue to flow (starting FY18) from the newly digitised subscribers,” Edelweiss said in its analysis of DAS Phase III.   

     
    “In our view, analogue signals will gradually switch off and substantial roll out of Phase III digitisation will take at least three to four quarters driven by mass media ads and proactive steps by DTH players, national MSOs & the regulator,” the firm said.

     

    However, this view is contrary to the Chrome Data Analytics’ claim of 70 per cent digitisation in Phase III. 

     
    With six states (Assam, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha and Tamil Nadu) stalling Phase III digitisation by eight weeks or more with High Court orders, Edelweiss says, “Uncertainty persists; we expect many more states to follow suit.” In Tamil Nadu, the stand-off between Arasu and the Information & Broadcasting Ministry will delay digitisation, as was the case with Chennai earlier. 

     
    Moreover, Edelweiss believes Reliance Jio’s entry in cable TV will intensify competition in the space. “Overall, we expect Zee, Sun TV, TV18 and Dish TV to be bigger beneficiaries of Phase III digitisation over the long term.”   

     
    In Phase I and II cities, MSOs were able to retain around 75 per cent of incremental market share, while DTH players managed to garner only 25 per cent.

     
    However in Phase III markets, Edelweiss says regional MSOs will have to incur substantial capex to make the cable infrastructure digital ready. “We believe DTH players will enjoy natural advantage over regional MSOs in Phase III markets.”

    Further, voluntary digitisation by national MSOs in Phase III markets, learnings from Phase I & II digitisation and parts of Phase III areas being contiguous with Phase I & II markets put national MSOs in better position than regional MSOs. 

     
    With the rollout of Reliance Jio, Edelweiss expects “competition to intensify in cable TV business. Cashing in on its strong balance sheet, RJio will fuel further competition in cable TV (free STBs, bundled services) in Phase I and II markets. We expect RJio’s entry to change the industry dynamics led by introduction of packaging and prepaid billing.”

  • I&B Ministry to move Supreme Court to club all DAS cases into one

    I&B Ministry to move Supreme Court to club all DAS cases into one

    NEW DELHI: The Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry will be moving the Supreme Court to club the various orders in different High Courts, which ordered extension of Phase III of the Digital Addressable System (DAS) beyond 31 December, 2015.

     

    I&B Ministry Secretary Sunil Arora confirmed to Indiantelevision.com that the apex court would be moved in this connection within the next few days.

     

    However, it was not immediately clear whether this would be a fresh appeal, or – as was reported by this website on 7 January – it would be in the form of an appeal against one of the High Court orders with an additional request that since other matters are similar they also be heard at the same time.

     

    This decision came as a disappointment to many multi system operators (MSOs) in other states who said they would find it very difficult to come to Delhi to fight the case or pay the high fee charges by Supreme Court advocates for this purpose.

     

    Several rounds of discussions have been held internally as well as with the officials of the Law Ministry and legal experts over the past few days before coming to this decision, to thwart the snowballing effect of the orders that commenced from Hyderabad and found a boost in the arguments in the Bombay High Court based on the Kusum Ingots case of 2004, which encouraged MSOs and local cable operators (LCOs) in other states.

     

    At present, the implementation remains stayed for varying periods in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Maharashtra, Orissa, Sikkim, and Telangana, apart from Tamil Nadu where prolonged legal cases have been pending since Phase I.

      

    There was also general consensus that this was the right course as the apex court had on an earlier occasion relating to the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995 and orders issued thereunder that High Courts have to be cautious when giving orders on matters relating to policy.  

      

    At the same time, Ministry officials said that while obeying the directives of the various High Courts, which had extended the DAS deadline by various periods ranging between eight to 12 weeks, it would prepare to oppose the decisions.

     

    A senior Ministry official also said it was working on how plans to thwart the implementation of Phase III could be prevented – if necessary through legislative processes.

     

    The official also expressed the view that the cases would in fact work against the last mile operator and benefit the direct to home (DTH) and Headend In the Sky (HITS) players.

     

    Sources said they had evidence to show seeding of set top boxes (STBs) to the extent of 76 per cent as revealed in the 13th Task Force meeting on 30 December. 

     

    Meanwhile as earlier reported, legal opinion is divided on whether the Kusum Ingots case, which was referred to in the Bombay High Court could be used by a High Court to direct a pan-India stay.

     

    The broadcasters and channel distributors feel any extension would only lead to delays in all fields of digitisation including a further delay in not just the Phase III and Phase IV (slated for December 2016) but also pockets of Phase I and II, which have still not implemented digital addressable systems.

     

    At the same time, the stakeholders agree that there is a shortage of STBs and just one or two players are making local boxes despite the ‘Make in India’ campaign, and the government had to be make some relaxations in the budget in this regard.

     

    With the I&B Ministry now taking the matter to the Supreme Court, the developments ahead will be keenly watched by all stakeholders.

  • DAS Phase III: MSO Alliance heading towards Caveat route in multiple states

    DAS Phase III: MSO Alliance heading towards Caveat route in multiple states

    MUMBAI: The Digital Addressable System (DAS) Phase III deadline came and went and what it’s left behind is chaos and carnage. The analogue signals, which went off for a day or two in some territories, are all back now. Last mile operators (LMOs) who faced the set-top-box shortage crisis have taken the judicial route to challenge the deadline given by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB). In six states so far the High Court has permitted an extension where as in Assam’s Kamrup district, the District Magistrate after reviewing the petition allowed an extension.

     
     
    Now multi system operators (MSOs) are also exploring various legal routes and if sources are to be believed, then the MSO Alliance is moving the Uttaranchal and Jharkhand High Courts to file a Caveat. “We sense that the LMOs will go to the honorable court in the two states and hence before they reach out in order to aware the court about the scenario, we are filing a caveat,” a source close to the development tells Indiantelevision.com. 
     
    The DAS Phase III dilemma has also opened the piracy floodgates says a senior cable operator in Assam. “We have migrated from analogue to digital and therefore did not have the infrastructure to provide analogue signals, which we were ordered to be discontinued. But others continued with their analogue signals. ACC in Assam had the analogue signals running all throughout, which is piracy. Now the district magistrate has also ordered the extension in a particular territory, but the analogue signals are running all across Assam. Is it not piracy?” he questions. 
     
    The path ahead will be watched keenly as various stakeholders pull rabbits out of their hats in the coming days.