ITV

Category: Local Cable Operators

  • India, China to propel Asia- Pacific broadband revenue to $55 billion by 2011; study

    India, China to propel Asia- Pacific broadband revenue to $55 billion by 2011; study

    MUMBAI: India and China seem to be the key countries, that are likely to propel the growth and increase of broadband revenues in the Asia-Pacific region and double from 20.7 billion US dollars last year to 55.1 billion US dollars in 2011, as indicated by the Arizona based In-Stat research agency.

    The research indicates that the broadband future hinges on developing countries. Thus, Asia’s broadband future depends on countries like Thailand, India, China, Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia.

    These findings highlight that the broadband user base stood at 86.6 million in 2005 and the number will set to increase nearly threefold to 235.7 million users in five years.

    “In less developed markets like China and India, broadband access services are expected to demonstrate impressive growth through 2011, and constitute the bulk of Asia Pacific’s broadband subscriber expansion,” says In-Stat analyst Bryan Wang.

    He added, “Wide availability of low prices in cyber cafes in these markets is allowing people to experience broadband services without a fixed charge, which will stimulate potential new subscriptions.”

    Countries such as Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore have been the key drivers of the growth broadband space in the past.

    Tier-1 markets Japan and South Korea contributed more than 60 per cent of total revenue in 2005, followed by Tier-2 markets Hong Kong, Taiwan, Australia, and Singapore contributing around 15 per cent, the research firm says.

    The findings also highlighted that the next-generation broadband services strategy in markets like Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong is to promote value-added broadband services, driven by the launch of compelling broadband content (i.e. IPTV and VoIP) and innovative broadband pricing plans.

    Various connection technologies will be competing through 2011, with the current dominating technology, DSL, facing price competition from cable modem and satellite. In the long run, compelling content or ‘killer broadband applications’, will be the key to success.

    This research is part of In-Stat’s Asia Consumer Convergence Service, which takes an in-depth look at digital home networking related products by country as well as applications markets. This makes it an unique service for anyone interested in consumer markets, in extremely dynamic Asian markets such as China, India, Japan, Korea and Taiwan.

  • Cable operators black out Star chnls in Kolkata

    Cable operators black out Star chnls in Kolkata

    MUMBAI: A majority of cable networks in Kolkata have blacked out the Star group of channels, protesting against a seven per cent rate hike. Another contention is the forcing of the second bouquet which includes channels like Star One.

    The Star channels including Star Plus are not available to most viewers in the city since Saturday midnight. The decision was taken by the last mile operators (LMOs) who also blamed Tata Sky, in which Star is a 20 per cent joint venture partner, for approaching housing societies with the offer of a central dish antenna through which individual installations could be provided for direct-to-home (DTH) service.

    Indian Cable Net (which was bought out by Siticable) and Manthan Cable Network, the two big multi-system operators (MSOs) in the city, are not having the Star channels on their cable systems. “We were asked by the last mile operators not to carry the Star channels,” says an executive in Indian Cable Net.

    Earlier, Star had switched off signals to Manthan after claiming outstandings of over Rs 20 million. “Manthan owed us money and we switched off signals on 15 March after giving a month’s notice. There is no reason for the other cable operators blacking us out as the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has allowed a seven per cent hike,” says a Star India spokesperson.

    Manthan director Gurmeet Singh admits Star was off the network from 15 March, but says the case regarding dues is pending in the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT).

    The protest against carriage of the Star channels was led by the Forum of Cable Operators and Cable Operators Sanjukta, two association bodies of the last mile operators in the city. “Star was asking for a hike, which we couldn’t have passed on to the consumers. Besides, Tata Sky, where Star is a partner, is wanting to grab subscribers by offering housing societies free cabling from a single central antenna,” says Cable Operators Sanjukta spokesperson Papi Banerjee.

    Star channels are, however, available on Cablecom and Purvalaya Communications. “Star is also supporting some operators by issuing decoder boxes,” says a last mile operator in Kolkata.

  • In the brave new digital world, content could really be king

    In the brave new digital world, content could really be king

    “If content is King and distribution is God, then God save the King!” That was Prasar Bharati CEO KS Sarma speaking at a recent industry seminar.

    In these times of increasing channel influx onto already overloaded analogue cable systems, the distribution God is certainly making the content king do the merry carriage dance. Reminds one of the ever-worsening infrastructural mess that is Mumbai actually, where people are paying more and more for less and worse but with a big difference. Mumbai’s is a story that is looking more hopeless by the day, while in this case there is much optimism about the future.

    True, for the short to medium term, it will be the distribution God in whose hands will lie the fate of the content King. But once the dust has settled on all of this and the new platforms like digital cable, DTH, IPTV and mobile TV have reached critical mass, then it will be content that will hold sway, and how.

    True, for the short to medium term, it will be the distribution God in whose hands will lie the fate of the content King
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    Disney’s ABC network is already pointing one of the ways forward with its new online service of free programming. As part of a two-month-long experiment, Disney-ABC Television Group will be offering ad-supported, full-length episodes of four ABC primetime series online at www.abc.go.com.

    What’s the logic working here? Is ABC getting Get ‘Desperate’ and ‘Lost’ as regards its online strategy. Not at all. It all makes sense if we keep in mind that if there is one place where the dominant culture is to access content for free, it is the Web.

    So if ABC is trying to transpose the “traditional advertising driven network model” onto the Web there is already an inbuilt advantage over television. It is that while the whole TiVo, time-shifting, DVR mentality is now carrying over to the Web, the consumer cannot zap out the ads. And since many of the ads will be interactive, advertisers will be guaranteed even greater value.

    The content creators that stay ahead of the curve and the distribution platform providers most alive to the challenges and opportunities that the digital world offers will be the ones who will reap the benefits
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    Closer to home, companies like Reliance and Airtel expect to start IPTV services by the end of this year. And for a basic package they are promising rates as cheap as your current cable TV charges. No one is trying to say there won’t be teething problems (and knowing the ground realities here, these would probably be pretty severe). In India the biggest problem is going to be unbundling of the so called last mile, which basically means that incumbent operators like BSNL or MTNL should allow other operators to use their copper wires.

    With the imminent arrival of Tata-Sky DTH, Zee’s Dish TV ramping up and the big telecom players aggressively pushing ahead with IPTV and mobile TV, the value of quality content can only go up. We see some sort of shakeout — both on the content as well as the technology side by 2008.

    In the meanwhile, the content creators that stay ahead of the curve and the distribution platform providers most alive to the challenges and opportunities that the digital world offers will be the ones who will reap the benefits.

    There could well be a lesson in this for the cable fraternity too. Market forces could soon make the whole CAS debate irrelevant and the MSOs may well end up “missing the addressability bus”.

    Maybe MSOs should instead be focussing their efforts on attractively packaging and marketing CAS to their direct points to begin with and concurrently convincing their franchisees of the need to get CAS going, government or no government.

    The cable fraternity has a huge first mover advantage vis-?-vis pushing addressability because they own the last mile. Maybe they should as aggressively be chasing market-driven addressability as they are the mandating of CAS. A twin strategy would better cover their bases one would think.

    As for the content game, to quote John Hendricks, chairman of Discovery Communications Inc, from a recent report: “Newly empowered TV consumers will drive networks to improve their offerings, putting a ‘great squeeze’ on ‘marginal quality content’. They’re in control now.”

    Not in India, they’re not. But they will be. Of that nobody need have any doubt.

  • Hathway expands in north, acquires 51% in a Kanpur cable network

    Hathway expands in north, acquires 51% in a Kanpur cable network

    MUMBAI: Hathway Cable & Datacom is expanding its cable TV network in the northern region through the acquisition route. After buying a controlling stake in two local cable TV networks in Chandigarh and Mohali, the multi-system operator (MSO) is expanding its footprint in Kanpur.

    Hathway has acquired 51 per cent equity in JMD Sherawali Network, a leading cable operator in Kanpur, for an undisclosed amount.
    “By reaching out to Kanpur, it will be an important start for us into the core Uttar Pradesh market. JMD Sherawali Network has a 60 per cent market share in Kanpur. We have bought 51 per cent stake in the network,” said Hathway Cable & Datacom CEO and MD K Jayaraman.
    The MSOs are selectively expanding their cable networks. Last year, rival MSO Siticable bought out Indian Cable Net from the RPG Group to become the dominant MSO in Kolkata. Hathway has swung into action this year with the first acquisition made in February.

    With this acquisition, Hathway will be operating its cable TV services in 14 cities. Hathway’s cable TV is already available in cities across the nation including Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai, Pune, Nashik, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ludhiana, Vijaywada, Jalandhar and Mysore. The MSO is currently offering digital cable services in New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

    Besides the analogue business, Hathway is also making efforts to rolout its digital services. The MSO will be launching gaming on its digital cable TV services by April-end. For the gaming technology, Hathway has selected NDS. Though available free, the commercial launch is likely to take about a month.

    “The gaming feature will be available to all our digital customers initially on a free of cost basis from end of April. Many more games will be added in the course of the year,” said Jayaraman.