ITV

Category: Multi System Operators

  • HVL receives NCLT nod for GIL’s HITS to de-merge into Indusind Media

    HVL receives NCLT nod for GIL’s HITS to de-merge into Indusind Media

    BENGALURU: Hinduja Ventures Limited (HVL) has informed the stock exchanges that the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has sanctioned the Scheme of Arrangement for the vesting of its subsidiary Grant Investrade Limited’s (GIL) Head-end-in-the-sky (HITS) business undertaking to its subsidiary company Indusind Media & Communications Limited. The company said that the arrangement is expected to strengthen HVL’s investment in the media business, which will in turn unlock the value of its shareholders.

    HVL says that the certified copy of NCLT’s approval has been filed with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) Mumbai on 21 August 2017. Accordingly, pursuant to the aforesaid arrangement, the Headend-in-the- Sky (HITS) business undertaking of GIL vested in to IMCL with effect from 01 October 2016, being the appointed date.

    GIL had received the HITS licence in March 2014. Last year in September, the Hinduja Group had received shareholders’ approval to restructure its media business, which includes cable TV business under IndusInd Media and headend-in-the-sky (HITS) under GIL.

  • Den receives Law Tribunal nod for restructuring

    Den receives Law Tribunal nod for restructuring

    BENGALURU: Indian multi system operator (MSO) Den Network Limited (Den) and wired broadband internet services provider has informed the bourses today (Friday) that the National Company Law Tribunal has approved a composite a composite scheme of arrangement for merger of 23 subsidiaries and demerger of one subsidiary.

    On 16 February 2017, the board of directors of Den had informed the stock exchanges that its board had mooted merger of 23 of its subsidiaries in the cable business into one wholly owned subsidiary. The merger would lead to the strengthening of the single brand leading to a stronger market presence, providing customers with a seamless on-board experience and remove any other brand perceptions/distinctions in the consumers’ minds. The merger would also result in economics of scale and reduce administrative and regulatory compliances; would help in more focused operational efforts, realizing synergies in terms of compliance, governance, administrative and cost synergies explained the company.

    Den said that the broadband demerger would enable a focused attention on the ISP business and achieve structural and operational efficiency, enhanced competitiveness and greater accountability besides accelerating value creation for shareholders. The company felt that the separation would allow the company to aggressively focus on significant growth potential for high speed data and related services in India; and that Den intended in taking the lead in driving wireline broadband penetration in India.

    This was followed up with further details about the merger / demerger that were submitted to the stock exchanges on 5 September 2016.

  • Arasu seeks more time to go digital as it waits for STBs

    NEW DELHI: Even as the deadline for it to go digital concludes tomorrow, the Tamil Nadu Arasu Cable TV Corporation has sought more time from the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.

    The Ministry had given the state-owned multi-system operator three months to switch off analogue and later extended this till 17 August 2017.

    TACTV sources told indiantelevision.com that orders had been placed for an adequate number of digital set top boxes but these had still not been received.

    Simultaneously, the sources said they had sought time from the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister for launch of digital signals.

    The Principal Secretary to the state Government had sought thee months extension from 17 July but the centre agreed to give only one more month in a letter sent to TACTV dated 21 June 2017.

    Consequently, TACTV had been asked to complete the digitization process by 17 August 2017 failing which the provisional ‘registration may be suspended/revoked.’

    Copies of the letter were sent to the Principal Secretary of the Tamil Nadu IT Department, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, and the Commissioner/Superintendent of Police in Chennai.  

    Meanwhile, TRAI Chairman R S Sharma had said that as the Authority’s recommendations for not permitting state governments, political parties or religious groups into broadcasting or its distribution was still ‘under consideration’, it could only wait and watch.

    Meanwhile while the Punjab government has also expressed a desire to enter distribution, the Telengana government wants satellite transpoders for TV channels it wants to launch.

    Also read:

    TRAI’s final recommendations on net neutrality likely by September

    TRAI keeping watch over Arasu, TN MSO extends digital hardware bids deadline

  • Restructuring brings Hathway to black in first quarter

    BENGALURU: Restructuring at Indian multi system operator (MSO) Hathway Cable and Datacom Limited (Hathway) has brought for it a positive bottomline. The pared company reported a profit of Rs 27.16 million (including an exceptional item –gain from the sale of shares of Rs 17.13 million) or 21 per cent of total income for the quarter ended 30 June 2017 (Q1-18, current quarter).  Even if one were to neglect the exceptional income during the quarter, profit of Rs 101.3 million works out to about eight per cent of total income. The numbers above basically represent the numbers that Hathway has reported from its broadband business.

    The Hathway group structure can be divided into three – Broadband business, CATV business which includes joint ventures, associates and subsidiaries and GTPL Hathway in which it has 37 per cent shareholding. The broadband business is managed by the parent company while the CATV business is managed by wholly owned subsidiary Hathway Digital Private Limited (HDPL).

    Hathway has reported higher y-o-y average revenue per broadband user (ARPU) at Rs 730 as compared to Rs 724 in Q1-17, but lower than the Rs 740 reported for the immediate trailing quarter (Q4-17). The company says that it has added 30,000 broadband subscribers in Q1-17, bringing its broadband subscriber base to 0.66 million.

    For its CATV business, the company says that it has seeded about 0.25 million set top boxes (STB) in Q1-18, bringing its digital CATV subscriber base to 7.2 million, or approximately 96 per cent of its overall subscriber base. It says that it has seeded 1.6 million, 2.3 million and 3.3 million in DAS phases I, II and III & IV respectively. ARPUs’ in Q1-18 were Rs 105, Rs 95 and Rs 55 for DAS phases I, II and III, respectively.

    Broadband business

    Hathway has reported standalone total income of Rs 1,295.7 million for Q1-18 (from its broadband business). Total expenditure in Q1-18 was Rs 1,195.4 million or 92.3 per cent of total income. Employee benefits expense for the quarter was Rs 89 million (6.9 per cent of total income), other operating expenses was Rs 307.9 million (23.8 per cent of total income) and other expenses was Rs 401.7 million (31 per cent of total income). EBIDTA for broadband business was Rs 497.1 million (38.4 per cent of total income).

    CATV business excluding GTPL Hathway business

    For HDPL, Hathway has mentioned total income of Rs 2,365 million for Q1-18 in investor presentation. The breakup of total income is Rs 1,325 million from cable TV subscription, Rs 702 million from placement, Rs 242 million from activation and other operating income of Rs 96 million. Total expenditure in Q1-18 has been reported at Rs 2,093 million (88.5 per cent of DHPL total revenue). Major expense heads include pay channel cost (57.2 percent of HDPL total revenue), employee cost Rs 214 million (9 per cent of HDPL total revenue), other expense Rs 527 million (22.3 per cent of HDPL total revenue). Finance costs for Q1-18 for HDPL was Rs 162 million (6.8 per cent of HDPL total revenue). The company has reported HDPL EBIDTA of Rs 272 million (11.5 per cent of HDPL total revenue).

  • Punjab govt proposes law on outdoor advertising, decision to tax cable, DTH subs pending

    NEW DELHI: Not content with exploring additional local taxes on cable and DTH connections in the state of Punjab, minister Navjot Singh Sidhu now wants to bring in a policy to increase the state government’s revenue from outdoor advertising.

    Sidhu, a cricketer-turned-TV personality-turned politician who’s a minister in the Congress Party-run local government in Punjab, wants to bring a new and “potent” policy to increase the state government’s annual revenue from outdoor advertising to at least Rs 3,000 million, according to a report filed by PTI, which added that the local bodies minister blamed the previous SAD- BJP government for causing “revenue leakage” by framing a “toothless” law in this regard.

    Punjab is earning a meager amount of Rs 250 million annually from outdoor advertising and hoardings in 164 cities of the state as compared to Rs 2,000 million being earned by neighboring Haryana from its municipal areas, Sidhu told PTI.

    The flamboyant Sidhu, who also spends time on the sets of a comedy show when he’s not proposing to bring in new legislations in Punjab, told PTI that the state had suffered a loss of Rs 2,00,00 million from the cable business.

    Sidhu has proposed to levy a token amount of entertainment tax to keep a check on the “cable mafia”, which, he alleged, had “proliferated under the previous (political) dispensation”.

    He also hit out at the previous government for allegedly “looting” the state by facilitating individuals in the outdoor advertising and the cable businesses, and framing laws that benefitted “vested interests”.

    “After an inquiry, following a complaint, I came to know that the government cannot levy a penalty despite the violation of the advertisement law. They (the previous government) made toothless laws which facilitated only individuals,” PTI quoted the local minister as saying who also added that the present regime’s aim was to raise an annual revenue between Rs 250 million to Rs 3000 million from advertisements in municipal areas.

    Laws are being drafted on outdoor advertising and cable businesses in consultation with experts in order to increase the state’s revenue by 10 times, Sidhu said, adding that his department has submitted a proposal to chief minister Amrinder Singh in which a token tax of Rs 2 to Rs 3 (per cable and DTH connection) could be levied (as entertainment tax) to check malpractices in the cable TV distribution business.

    However, sources in the Punjab government told indiantelevision.com that the chief minister has not taken any decision on the proposed entertainment tax on cable and DTH connections as the levying of an additional tax over and above the recently rolled out federal government-mandated GST (goods and services tax) may complicate the tax structure. India’s finance minister Arun Jaitley, though, has clarified earlier that states can levy entertainment tax if they so wish.

    ALSO READ:

    Probe Punjab ‘cable mafia,’ demands minister, Fastway refutes charges

    Punjab govt. studying Arasu & other regulatory models on distribution 

    Retransmission law contravened: Sidhu, Fastway refutes ‘monopoly’ charge

  • Siti Networks’ operating profit more than doubles in first quarter

    BENGALURU:  The Subhash Chandra led Essel group’s television cable network company Siti Networks Limited (Siti) reported EBIDTA including other income or operating profit of Rs 1,071.65 million (28.9 percent of Total Income) for the quarter ended 30 June 2017 (Q1-18, current quarter). The company’s operating profit for the current quarter was more than double (up 2.26 times) the Rs 474.09 million (16.5 percent of Total Income) the company had reported for the corresponding year ago quarter (y-o-y) and 54.2 percent higher than the Rs 694.88 million (20.6 percent of Total Income) reported for the immediate trailing quarter Q4-17 (q-o-q).

    Consequently, the company reported a lower total comprehensible loss in the current quarter at Rs 151.32 million, which was a little less than one third (1/2.87 times) the total comprehensible loss of Rs 435.26 million in Q1-17 and less than a fourth (1/4.26 times) the total comprehensible loss of Rs 647.16 million in Q4-17.

    Siti’s total income for Q1-18 was 29.4 percent higher y-o-y at Rs 3,711.13 million as compared to Rs 2,868.82 and 10.1 percent higher q-o-q as compared to Rs 3,370.46 million. Revenue from operations increased 29.4 percent y-o-y to Rs 3,649.57 million from Rs 2,819.67 million and increased 12.1 percent q-o-q from Rs 3,255.18 million.

    Breakup of revenue

    Siti’s subscription revenue in the current quarter increased 34.6 percent y-o-y to Rs 1,700 million from Rs 1,263 million and increased 6.3 percent q-o-q from Rs 1,600 million. Carriage revenue in the current quarter increased 6.3 percent y-o-y to Rs 765 million from Rs 720 million, but declined 4.1 percent q-o-q from Rs 798 million. Activation revenue in Q1-18 more than doubled (increased 2.32 times) y-o-y to Rs 849 million from Rs 366 million and was 75.4 percent more q-o-q than Rs 484 million. Broadband internet revenue for Q1-18 increased 32.3 percent y-o-y to Rs 258 million from Rs 195 million, but declined 3 percent q-o-q from Rs 266 million.

    Subscription numbers

    The company says that it deployed more than 1.6 million set top boxes during the quarter in West Bengal, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh and Telengana, primarily in Phase 4 areas. It says that its digital video base was about 11.6 million at the exit of June 2017 and that prepaid migration is on track with 1.16 million subscribers across 134 locations brought under its ambit by August 2017. Siti says that during the year 0.05 million of its customers adopted HD services taking the total HD customer base to 0.22 million by exit Q1-18.

    Siti’s broadband internet subscriber base increased by approximately 12,000 to 0.24 million in Q1-18 from 0.228 million in the immediate trailing quarter. The company says that as a strategy it increased focus on higher ‘Lock-in’ broadband internet plans in Q1-18. About 40 percent of its acquisitions are now coming on longer duration plans. Siti says that it is targeting to take this figure to over 50 percent in Q2-18.

    Company speak

    Siti executive director Sidharth Balakrishna said, ““SITI continues to hold a strong position in the market with record customer additions.We are well positioned to monetize this base from Q2 onwards and maintain a strong growth trajectory. In Broadband, we will selectively expand our offerings and drive increased customer focus. We are also making significant efforts to strengthen processes and optimise costs going forward, while also enhancing customer offerings. This along with a focus on certain revenue streams could potentially provide upsides going forward”

    Let us look at the other numbers reported by Siti

    Consolidated Total Expenditure increased 14.1 percent y-o-y to Rs 3,696.52 million (99.6 percent of Total Income) in Q1-16 from Rs 3,238.75 million (112.9 percent of Total Income) in Q1-18 and increased 0.4 percent q-o-q from Rs 3.680.87 million (109.2 percent of Total Income).

    Consolidated Employee Benefit Expense increased 22.6 percent y-o-y to Rs 234.46 million (6.3 percent of Total Income) in the current quarter from Rs 191.22 million (6.7 percent of Total Income) million but declined 3.9 percent q-o-q from Rs 243.97 million (7.2 percent of Total Income).

    Consolidated Carriage sharing, pay channel and related costs in Q1-18 increased 5.1 percent y-o-y to Rs 1,560.55 million (42.1 percent of Total Income) from Rs 1,484.36.36 million (51.7 percent of Total Income) but declined 3 percent q-o-q from Rs 1,608/94 million (47.7 percent of Total Income).

    Consolidated Finance costs in the current quarter increased 11.6 percent y-o-y to Rs 331.03 million (8.9 percent of Total Income) from Rs 296.71 million (10.3 percent of Total Income), but declined 2.1 percent q-o-q from Rs 338..02 million (10 percent of Total Income).

    Consolidated Other expenses increased 30.7 percent y-o-y to Rs 841.78 million (22.7 percent of Total Income) in Q1-18 from Rs 643.83 million (22.4 percent of Total Income) and increased 11.2 percent q-o-q from Rs 757.12 million (22.5 percent of Total Income).

    Also Read :

    Rajesh Sethi re-designated chief  biz transformation officer of Siti Networks

    Rajesh Sethi succeeds Wadhwa as ED & CEO of SITI Networks

    SPN India-SITI Networks dispute: TDSAT directs SITI to sign SPN RIO agreement (updated)

  • Hinduja Ventures PAT rises marginally Q1FY18, Nxt Digital HITS 640 districts

    NEW DELHI: Hinduja Ventures Ltd (HVL)  on Thursday announced  standalone net profit after tax of Rs. 255 million for three months ended 30 June 2017 as against Rs. 242.1 million during the same period a period ago.. The net PAT for the period ended grew by 5.33 per cent.

    The total income for the period under review stood at Rs. 506.6 million as against Rs. 619.1 million for the same period a year ago.

    The board of HVL at its meeting held on 10 August 2017 approved un-audited standalone financial results for the quarter ended 30 June 2017.

    HVL is the holding company of big Indian integrated media entities comprising MSO IndusInd Media & Communications Limited (IMCL) and Grant Investrade Limited (GIL) that has launched the HITS digital platform under brand name NXT Digital.

    The company in a statement claimed the HITS platform is making good progress in its expansion plans in the rural markets. The services, being now provided in all the states of the country and 640 districts, are available in more than 1,000 locations. The company claimed that GIL has also been successful in getting more than 97 per cent of its operators/customers on a pre-paid payment mode.

    According to HVL, IMCL is continuing to consolidate its position in phase I and II markets on its own, while its joint ventures too were progressing well. As part of cost rationalisation and improvement in efficiency, IMCL has outsourced the management of its extensive fibre network so that it gets optimized in a focused way.

    ALSO READ :

    Hinduja’s NXT Digital enters Fastway-dominated Punjab

    NXT Digital-InCable merger gets shareholder nod; D’Silva bemoans lack of ecosystem support

  • GTPL Hathway reports higher numbers and flat q-o-q ARPUs

    BENGALURU: After declaring a maiden 10 percent dividend for the previous fiscal, Indian Multi-System Operator (MSO) and Broadband Internet Services (broadband) provider GTPL Hathway Limited has reported a year-over-year growth in standalone CATV total income of 25 percent for the quarter ended 30 June 2017 (Q1-18, current quarter). Quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q), standalone CATV total income however declined 5 percent on lower other income. The company’s Average Revenue per User (ARPU, net of taxes) was almost flat q-o-q across all the four DAS phases I, II, III and IV at Rs 100, 95, 54 and 40 respectively, except that in Q4-17, DAS phase IV ARPU reported by the company was slightly higher at Rs 41. GTPL Hathway reported CATV total income of Rs 1,782 million, Rs 1,884 million and Rs 1,423 million for Q1-18, Q4-17 and Q1-17 respectively.

    The company’s has two subsidiaries – GTPL Broadband Private Limited a 100 percent subsidiary of GTPL Hathway and GTPL Kolkata      Cable and Broadband Pariseva Limited (KCBPL) in which GTPL Hathway has a 51 percent stake.

    Both the subsidiaries along with GTPL Hathway (standalone)     contributed approximately 90 percent of revenue in consolidated accounts of financial year 2016-2017. The two subsidiaries also reported a healthy growth in numbers.

    GTPL Hathway managing director Anirudhasinhji Jadeja said, “After posting 33 percent growth in CATV subscription revenue and 77 percent growth in broadband subscription revenue, GTPL Hathway continued the growth momentum well into the first quarter of fiscal 2018. The monetisation of phase III and phase IV kicked off. Further, at GTPL we are continuously upgrading our technology to offer the best in class output to our subscribers. We have deployed the next generation video headend system Harmonic Inc., USA which will enable us to offer up to 650 cable TV channels and 50 OTT channels.”

    GTPL standalone EBIDTA for the current quarter increased 29 percent y-o-y to Rs 570 million (32 percent margin) from Rs 443 million (31 percent margin), but declined 10 percent q-o-q from Rs 637 million (34 percent margin). Standalone profit after tax (PAT) increased 86 percent y-o-y to Rs 148 million from Rs 79,4 million, but declined 26 percent q-o-q from Rs 201 million.

    GTPL standalone subscription revenue increased 19 percent y-o-y in Q1-18 to Rs 903 million from Rs 757 million and increased 7 percent q-o-q from Rs 842 million. Standalone placement revenue in the current quarter increased 17 percent y-o-y to Rs 578 million from Rs 493 million and increased 2 percent q-o-q from Rs 567 million. Activation revenue in Q1-18 increased 34 percent y-o-y to Rs 176 million from Rs 136 million and increased 3 percent q-o-q from Rs 171 million. Other income in the current quarter almost tripled (2.98 times) y-o-y to Rs 125 million from Rs 42 million, but was less than half (declined 59 percent) q-o-q as compared to Rs 304 million in Q4-17.

    GTPL standalone total expenditure increased 24 percent y-o-y in Q1-18 to Rs 1,211 million from Rs 980 million, but declined 3 percent q-o-q from Rs 1,247 million. Pay channel cost in Q1-18 increased 28 percent y-o-y to Rs 798 million from Rs 622 million, but declined 2 percent q-o-q from Rs 815 million.

    GTPL standalone employee cost in the current quarter increased 15 percent y-o-y to Rs 116 million from Rs 101 million and declined 11 percent q-o-q from Rs 130 million.  Standalone administrative expense in Q1-18 increased 17 percent y-o-y to Rs 174 million from Rs 149 million but declined 2 percent q-o-q from Rs 177 million. Standalone other operating expense in the current quarter increased 14 percent y-o-y to Rs 123 million from Rs 108 million and was almost flat q-o-q as compared to Rs 124 million.

    The company says that it has seeded 0.86 million set top boxes in the current quarter and increased its active digital subscribers by 0.71 million. So far until 30 June it has seeded 7.76 million STBs’ and it has 6.69 million active STBs’. Phase-wise, GTPL Hathway says that it has completed seeding of 0.72 million, 2.23 million, 2.53 million and 2.28 million STBs’ in DAS phases I, II, III and IV respectively until 30 June 2017.

    KCBPL total income in the current quarter increased 12 percent y-o-y to Rs 325 million from Rs 290 million and increased 5 percent q-o-q from Rs 310 million. KCBPL EBIDTA in Q1-18 declined 23 percent y-o-y to Rs 63 million from Rs 81 million and increased 7 percent q-o-q from Rs 59 million. KCBPL reported loss of Rs 13 million as compared to a profit of Rs 8 million in the corresponding year ago quarter and a lower loss of Rs 7 million in the immediate trailing quarter Q4-17.

    GTPL Broadband total income increased 25 percent y-o-y to Rs 318 million from Rs 254 million and increased 4 percent q-o-q from Rs 304 million. GTPL Broadband EBITDA in Q1-18 increased 65 percent y-o-y to Rs 84 million from Rs 51 million and increased 9 percent q-o-q from Rs 77 million. GTPL Broadband PAT almost doubled (went up by 95 percent) to Rs 37 million from Rs 19 million and increased 10 percent q-o-q from Rs 34 million.

    GTPL Broadband subscriber base increased to 0.25 million in Q1-18 as compared to 0.19 million in Q1-17 and 0.24 million in Q4-17. Broadband ARPU increased to Rs 486 in Q1-18 as compared to Rs 455 in the corresponding year ago quarter Rs 480 in the immediate trailing quarter.

    Also Read:

    GTPL Hathway declares maiden dividend on higher numbers for FY-17

    GTPL boosts channels & OTT with Harmonic, can deliver to 8 mn homes

    GTPL Hathway allots Rs. 1450 mn to anchor investors, IPO opens today

  • Godfather, Kal, Digi Cable & Intermedia licence cancellation stayed, 50 ‘pan-India’ MSOs’ op area changed

    NEW DELHI: After a spurt till mid-June, the rise in the number of multi-system operators has shown a mild increase of 34 registrations taking the total of registered MSOs to 1455. Early this year, the government had said all provisional multi-system operators will be deemed as having regular licence.

    A separate list has been issued mentioning the Tamil Nadu Arasu TV Corporation whose area will be confined to Tamil Nadu, and Godfather Communication where it states the areas of operation is Punjab, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Rajasthan, Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh. However, the registration shall be subject to the final court order in a writ filed in Punjab and Haryana High Court against the ministry’s order of 29 September 2013.

    There is a third list of 63 MSOs licences of which were cancelled or cases closed. This includes Godfather and Kal Cable of Chennai, Digi Cable Network (India) and Intermedia Cable Communication of Delhi where cancellation of registration was stayed by respective high courts.

    The area of operation of around 50 MSOs has been changed despite an order earlier this year that all MSOs were free to operate pan-India  to speed up digital addressable system.

    Faced with just less than a month before total switch-off of analogue signals, the government had, on 6 March 2017, decided to treat all MSOs as permanent but with the condition that the period of 10 years commences from the date they got registered as provisional MSOs.

    However, if the continuation of registration of any MSO at any time is found to be or considered detrimental to the security of the state, then the registration so granted is liable to be cancelled/suspended, the order placed on the ministry’s website specified. All other terms and conditions shown in the provisional registration letters will continue to apply.

    Earlier, on 27 January 2017, it had been decided that all registered MSOs are free to operate in any part of the country, irrespective of registration for specified DAS notified areas granted by this ministry. However, they have to submit the details of the headend, SMS, subscribers’ list and a self-certificate that they are carrying all the mandatory TV channels, within six months from the date of issuance of MSO registration, to the ministry, failing which the MSO registration is liable to cancelled/suspended.

    Hence, all deemed regular registered MSOs also are required to submit the details to the ministry within six months.

    The Tamil Nadu-Government-run TACTV was granted provisional licence on 18 April 2017 to operate as an MSO in the state on the condition that it switches off analogue signals in the entire state within three months, which has now been extended to 17 August 2017.

    The Ministry had then told indiantelevision.com that it had been made clear that the provisional licence was subject to the Centre taking a final decision on the recommendation of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India that no government owned body should be permitted in the field of running or distributing television channels.  TRAI had in 2008, 2012 and 2014 held that state governments and political parties should not be permitted to own TV channels or distribution channels.

    In Tamil Nadu where there is a court stay in operation since Phase I, TACTV had warned MSOs and LCOs against switching off analogue signals anywhere in the state after 31 March 2017.

    Sources said that Arasu had been granted provisional licence in 2006 at the time of the Conditional Access System on certain conditions based on the TRAI report but this had not been renewed when Digital Addressable System came into force.

    Also read:

    37 new MSOs in 45 days takes total to 1421, seven among 59 cases sub-judice

    Arasu gets provisional MSO licence subject to analogue switch-off in three months

    Including Arasu, total number of MSOs goes up to 1376, to ensure DAS implementation

    Punjab govt. studying Arasu & other regulatory models on distribution 

  • Retransmission law contravened: Sidhu, Fastway refutes ‘monopoly’ charge

    MUMBAI Punjab minister Navjot Singh Sidhu intends to bring an ordinance for auditing the tax the previous government collected from cable operators. Putting the chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh in a fix, Sidhu has asked him to decide on recovering the ‘tax evaded’ by the MSO — Fastway Cable Network.

    The Punjab Government, he said, was committed to break the monopoly situation and to have a level playing field in cable TV industry.

    In the Indian states where there is competition among MSOs, Sidhu said, rates being charged from LCOs (local cable operators) are Rs 75 in Rajasthan, Rs 60 in UP, and a whopping Rs 130 in Punjab. It was being done without any legal agreement and without raising any invoices, whereby LCOs had no option but deposit the same — which is in contravention of the law of retransmission of cable TV signals. By creating the monopoly, Sidhu said, MSOs have an unequal bargaining power with the broadcasters but extracting huge carriage/placement revenue from the broadcasters.

    Sidhu said that he would procure a GPR (ground penetrating radar) to assess where cabled had been laid and whether the operator had paid due taxes. Since the subject related to excise and taxation is under the CM, he said, the matter would have to be taken to Singh and the cabinet.

    In 1995, Sidhu said, the entertainment tax in Punjab was Rs 50 per television set. But, the Badal government amended the provisions to keep Fastway out of tax net and imposed a tiny tax of Rs 15,000 per annum. A Fastway release later stated that the Supreme Court lawyer Vineet Bhagat (Sidhu’s advisor) was defeated by Fastway in several cases, and hence he had twisted the facts and presented figures to show the MSO in a poor light.

    Calculating the impact of the loss to the state exchequer by taking into account a conservative figure of 40 lakh Fastway connections (as stated in 2012 Competition Commission of India report, it would come to (40 lakh x 50 x 12 x 6) Rs 14.4 billion, the minister alleged. Sidhu said the actual figure could go up to Rs 200 billion. Despite having over 80 lakh connections today, Sidhu said, Fastway had grossly under-declared its connections at around 24 lakh to TRAI, continuing to short-change the regulator and the government.

    Refuting, Fastway CEO Peeush Mahajan said his company had no monopoly as Godfather Cable, Hinduja and MC Transmissions were operating in the state. Punjab had six DTH companies as well, he said.  Fastway, he said, had a tamper-proof system and it has been audited by broadcasters and the central government agency BECL (Broadcasting Engineering Corporation of India Limited).

    ALSO READ :

    Probe Punjab ‘cable mafia,’ demands minister, Fastway refutes charges

    Punjab Govt falters in first leg of breaking cable monopoly

    Punjab govt. vows to break cable monopoly, rules out blocking MSO Fastway

    Hinduja’s NXT Digital enters Fastway-dominated Punjab