ITV

Tag: DD Free Dish

  • VBS 2018: New tariff regime dominates discussion on Day 2

    VBS 2018: New tariff regime dominates discussion on Day 2

    GOA: The second day of the Video and Broadband Summit started with a keynote speech from Times Network MD and CEO MK Anand where the media veteran shared his insights on how to keep playing when the game itself changes.

    “Media Business is primarily about distribution of content to serve consumers needs profitability. If that remains the core purpose, the why to keep playing becomes clear,” Anand said in the beginning. While everyone is talking about disruptive forces, he said coping in the media business is highly dependent on keeping up with changes in distribution technology. He also spoke about how Times Network dealt with such issues.

    Anand’s visionary speech was followed by a fireside chat between Indiantelevision.com founder and CEO Anil Wanvari and Sony Pictures Networks monetization strategy and consumer insights head Saurabh Yagnik. Analytics, big data and content were the focus of the session.

    Doordarshan additional director general Mr.Sunil talked about DD Free Dish, the major force in distribution of satellite television in a presentation. While a huge number of consumers across India use Free Dish, he said its user base is expected to grow by 40 million by 2020. He was also part of a fruitful discussion on the future of pay-TV with Travelxp CEO Prashant Chothani in a session moderated by Anil Wanvari.

    Following that engaging session, Doordarshan director general Supriya Sahu highlighted the evolving role of the public service broadcaster in a fireside chat with Anil Wanvari. She said there should not be comparison between a private broadcaster and pubcaster as the latter’s mandate is totally different.

    While the first evening witnessed a lively discussion on monetization of TV, the second day dealt with the ‘big advertising hangover’. Viacom18 Hindi mass Entertainment Ad Sales head Simran Hoon, TAM India CEO LV Krishnan, Prashant Chothani were part in the panel.

    The second half of the day focused on the new tariff order, the next biggest disruptor in the complex industry, and evolving models in the cable industry. Talking about the disruptors in the distribution industry, KCCL CEO Shaji Mathews said technology has been the enabler, not the driver. In another session, IMCL CEO Vynsley Fernandes said on a positive note that if LCOs, MSOs come together magic can be made.

    More interestingly, TRAI secretary Sunil K Gupta interacted with audience via Skype. Gupta answered questions of local cable operators who seemed to be really concerned about the new regime. He informed the audience of how TRAI is taking initiatives to make consumers aware of the upcoming change.

    BARC India CEO Partho Dasgupta, another media veteran who has witnessed the ups and downs of the industry spoke about the digital matrix measurement in India. “Data protection is of utmost importance in the age of GDPR policy compliance and Srikrishna (SPDI) committee regulations. BARC is keen to ensure the consumer data is protected in our suite of products,” said Dasgupta.

    The last session of the day focused on the e-gaming scene in the country as Nodwin Gaming content head Gautam Virk explored the possibilities about how e-gaming could usher in the next wave of content consumption. Talking about possible potential partners he said, “It is easier to work with OTT platforms because they are more updated with the technology.” He also reaffirmed e-gaming is to stay here and is not a short term trend.
     

  • MIB extends feedback deadline date on mandatory sports feed sharing norms

    MIB extends feedback deadline date on mandatory sports feed sharing norms

    MUMBAI: Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has extended the deadline to give feedback on the draft sports broadcasting signals (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharti) (Amendment) Bill, 2018 till 31 December 2018. In an earlier notification dated 17 October, it said that feedback must be given within a month to enable telecast of “Sporting events of national importance’ on mandatory channels of Doordarshan via cable/DTH/ IPTV operators.

    As per provisions of the Sports Act, the live feed received by Prasar Bharati from the content rights owners or holders is only for the purpose of re-transmission of the said signals on Doordarshan’s own terrestrial and DTH network (DD FreeDish) and not for
    cable operators or other distribution networks. The ad sales is also done by private companies after taking the pubcaster into confidence with the additional ad revenue shared between the rights holding TV channel and DD.

    Viewers, who do not have DD FreeDish [pubcaster Doordarshan’s FTA DTH platform] or Doordarshan’s terrestrial network, are either unable to watch these sporting events of national importance or are compelled to watch these sporting events on highly priced sports channels.

    Additonally, private DTH platforms and MSOs/LCOs were barred from showing DD's non-terrestrial channels that re-transmitted the shared feeds, after the August 2017 Supreme Court ruling, for the duration of that particular event and it was stressed upon also by Prasar Bharati fearing adverse reaction from the apex court.

    The extension notice reads: “Reference this Ministry's earlier notice dated 17.1 0.201 8 seeking feedback / comments on Draft Sports Broadcasting Signals (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati) (Amendment) Bill, 2018, it is informed that the deadline for receiving feedback/comments from General Public/Stakeholders on the said draft Bill, 2018 to enable telecast of 'Sporting events of National importance'on mandatory channels of Doordarshan via Cable /DTH /IPTV Operators has been extended by this Ministry till 31 .12.2018.”

  • DTH subscriber growth down in second quarter

    DTH subscriber growth down in second quarter

    BENGALURU: The carriage industry and more specifically the direct to home or DTH industry had a disappointing fiscal year 2017 (FY-17, year ended 31 March 2017) in terms of subscriber growth. Going by the subscriber numbers data of the six private DTH players in India provided by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in its Indicator Reports of the Indian Telecom Sector. This dismal performance seems to have spilled over to the second quarter of financial year 2017 (FY-18, year commenced on 1 April 2017 until 31 March 2018) as per TRAI data for the quarter ended 30 September 2017 (Q2-18, quarter under consideration). The industry could add just 2.47 million subscribers during the first six months (first 2 quarters, 1 April 2017 to 30 September 2017) as compared to the 3.37 million subscribers it added during the corresponding year six-month period the year before. Active DTH subscribers added in Q2-18 were just 0.78 million as compared to 1.4 million in Q2-17.

    Further, as reported by us earlier, despite the sunset date for DAS IV having passed, the DTH industry had not been able to leverage the opportunity that it was presented with. Earlier, TRAI numbers for the six private players in the DTH industry showed a very poor growth rate of just 0.96 million and 5.08 million during the quarter and year ended 31 March 2017 (Q4-17, FY-17) respectively. This figure is far lower – less than one-third of the 17.38 million active DTH subscribers that were added in fiscal 2016 by the six.

    Please refer to the figure below – The three players whose numbers are available in the public domain and whose combined q-o-q subscriber growth has been represented in the figure are Dish TV, Airtel DTH and Videocon d2h

    public://1_6.jpg

    Let us understand the status of the DTH industry at the end of September 2017. The six private DTH players are – Dish TV, Tata Sky, Airtel Digital Services (Airtel DTH), Videocon DTH, Sun Direct, and the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Big TV (Big TV). It may be noted that Big TV announced closure of its operations since November 2017. The three players – Dish TV, Airtel DTH and Videocon d2h represented approximately 63 to 65 percent of the active pay-TV DTH subscribers at the end of September 2017. Please refer to figure below for subscriber share of the private DTH players as per data in the public domain:

    public://2_1.jpg

    Besides the six private pay DTH players, Doordarshan’s (DD) Free Dish DTH service is a major player in terms of subscribers with an estimated 22 million as per the numbers available in the public domain. It must however be noted that an exact number for registered or active subscribers is not available even with DD, since this is a free DTH service. When the announced Dish TV Videocon d2h merger happens, the merged entity will probably be one of the largest DTH players in the world in terms of subscriber numbers.

    According to an E&Y report titled ‘India’s Free TV’ released in July 2017, among the DTH operators in India, DD Free Dish has grown to become the largest with its estimated 22 million subscribers which E&Y predicted could cross 40 million over the next two to three years.

    A number of reasons can be attributed to this dismal performance – two of the chief ones that are touted over the recent past by most players in media and entertainment industry – demonetisation in November 2016 and the implementation of GST. Another important reason could be that DTH is considered a premium service – by all the stakeholders in the carriage ecosystem with the resulting perception that procurement as well as monthly subscription will be premium and hence a deterrent for the consumer. While some players such as Dish TV have been making attempts to come up with packages that it perceives should attract the masses, but, results as per TRAI data seem to indicate otherwise. Yes, Dish TV is the largest private player in the country that has come up with different pricing models under different brands. Whether unwittingly or not, most of the other players present themselves as premium players and seem to have done little in that direction.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • FreeDish goes for second auction in May

    NEW DELHI: After bagging three new general entertainment channels earlier this month, Doordarshan is all set for the 35th e-auction for its DTH platform FreeDish next week, thus marking the first time when a second e-auction is being held within the same month.

    The e-auction confined to only non-news and current affairs channels is set for 25 May 2017 will have a reserve price of Rs 80 million as in the e-auction held on 9 May when Sony Wah, Zee Anmol Cinema, and 9X Jalwa successfully bid to come on the platform. Each bid came at the reserve price, Rs 80 million. The Parliament was informed earlier last month that Doordarshan’s DTH platform was soon getting approval to increase this capacity to 250 channels over the next two years.

    But, DD got a jolt last month when its 33rd e-auction slated for 11 April could not be held. Although there was no official confirmation, indiantelevision.com learnt that FreeDish auction could not be held because there were no applicants. After final trials of MPEG4 and the success of the 32nd auction in February, the reserve price for the next auction has been raised to Rs 80 million from Rs 48 million per slot.

    Until last year, the reserve price was Rs 43 million but one channel fetched the bid of Rs 70 million in the auction held on 14 February 2017.

    Earlier last year, the price for one channel went up to Rs 53 million and gave DD the confidence to raise the price which had been Rs 37 million till 2015 but was raised to Rs 43 million for the 25th e-auction in January 2016.

    The e-Auction will be conducted by M/s. C1 India Pvt. Ltd., Noida which also conducted the FM Radio Phase III auctions on behalf of Prasar Bharati.   
    The participation amount (EMD) in the e-Auction is Rs.28 million – up from Rs 15 million – which has to be deposited in advance before or by 12 noon on the date of auction along with processing fee of Rs.25,000 (non-refundable, up from Rs 10,000) in favour of PB (BCI) Doordarshan Commercial Service, New Delhi.

    Incremental amount for the auction will be Rs One Million and the time for every slot e-auction will be of fifteen minutes duration. This may be extended by five minutes if a bid is received before the closing time.

    Unsuccessful bidders will get back the participation amount of Rs 28 million within three weeks of the results.

    However, Doordarshan has changed its payment regimen and made it stricter.

    The first installment of 25 per cent of the bid price with the applicable service tax will have to be paid within one month from date of placement of channel.

    The second installment of 25 per cent of the total bid price along with the applicable service tax will have to be paid within four months of placement of channel.

    The third installment of remaining amount after adjusting the participation fee and previous installments but adding the applicable service tax will be deposited within seven months of placement of channel.

    If any of the installments is not paid in time, a penal interest of 14.5 per cent per annum will be levied.

    If there is failure in depositing an installment for two months, the deposited participation amount along with any installment paid will be forfeited and the channel discontinued after a 21-day discontinuation notice.

    Doordarshan had in October last year formally announced that FreeDish was capable of carrying 104 television channels and 24 channels would be added to the existing 80 channels after the launch of MPEG4 technology.

    In line with the ‘Digital India’ and ‘Make in India’, DD has implemented Indian CAS (iCAS) on DD FreeDish Platform. iCAS (which is an initiative of the central government) was introduced in the auction held last month. The introduction of iCAS will provide enhanced viewing experience.

    DD officials said the existing viewers will continue to get 80 SDTV channels and 32 radio channels, but will have to obtain iCAS-enabled authorized set-top boxes for accessing all new channels.

    Although Free Dish will remain free-to-air with no monthly or periodic fee, the viewers will be required to register with DD FreeDish on getting the new STB from Doordarshan authorized STB dealers.

     DD officials said implementation of iCAS and authorisation of STB original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) by Doordarshan will give a major thrust to ‘Make in India’ and ‘Digital India’. At present, a majority of STBs are imported. However, the introduction of iCAS will help in standardization of STBs and encourage quality STB manufacturing in India.

    With analogue having been switched off, Parliament had been told that many stakeholders feel that FreeDish is the best option in Phase IV which covers rural India.

    FreeDish was launched with a modest bouquet of 33 channels in December 2004, and now carries eighty TV channels and 32 radio channels. This includes 22 Doordarshan channels and two parliamentary channels, seven general entertainment channels, 18 movie channels, 13 news channels, seven music channels, three religious channels and eight channels of other genres. The All-India Radio stations also piggy-back on the platform.

    Also read:

    MIB favours switching to DTH if consumers have problems with MSOs or LCOs

    FreeDish aims to reach 150 channels, earned Rs 3 bn in a year

    DD FreeDish auction next week, reserve price is Rs 80 million

  • Bhojpuri Cinema now available on Tata Sky and Den Network

    Bhojpuri Cinema now available on Tata Sky and Den Network

    The No.1 Bhojpuri Movie Channel – Bhojpuri Cinema,hasstrengthened its distribution with India’s leading Direct to air platform – Tata sky. With Tata Sky,Bhojpuri Cinema will now benefit with deep penetration across the regions of the country. This move will gradually fortify the channel’s position in other markets also, making it easily available for discerning viewers throughout the country.

    Bhojpuri Cinema is now available on Tata sky Channel No. 1115.

    Apart from the new DTH entry, the channel is also now available on Den network in the state of UP/Uttarakhand,Bihar & Jharkhand on channel number 827.

    With these associations, Bhojpuri Cinema will mark the beginning of new prospects for the channel in terms of increased viewership, new audience base, robust expansion plan, etc. The channel will engage with viewers and trade partners locally and nationally through a multimedia campaign across multiple platforms.

    Amongst the Bhojpuri regional channel in Bihar & Jharkhand, Bhojpuri cinema derives a 26 percent of market share in 4 plus TG.

    Bhojpuri Cinema is the only Bhojpuri channel that delivers round the clock entertainment with the scheduling of 42 fresh Bhojpuri movies every week including world television premiers. Its library of over 350 Bhojpuri movies is the biggest Bhojpuri movie library of the world.

    Bhojpuri Cinema is available across DTH platforms such as Tata Sky,Airtel, DD Free Dish, Dish TV along with all cable operators of the region.

    Speaking on the occasion, Enter 10 Television Pvt. Ltd, Founder and Managing Director, Mr. Manish Singhal said, “We are happy to announce our availability on Tata Sky and Den Network, which allows the channel to immediately grow its reach across the geography. We are confident that our content will be thoroughly enjoyed by the new audiences, further enhancing our reach and position. Strengthening our distribution is a strategic move which will not only widen our audience base and popularity but will also give better value to our advertisers.”

    Enter 10 Television Pvt. Ltd. (ETPL) is an Indian media and entertainment company based in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India. The company’s founder and managing director is Mr. Manish Singhal. The Company has 4 channels serving Indian content across India. Enter 10 Television Pvt. Ltd. was incorporated 11 March 2004. Enterr10 Television, the flagship channel of Enter10 Television Pvt. Ltd. was launched in October 2006. Then it came out with three channels namely Dangal, which is a General Entertainment channel, Bhojpuri Cinema, which is a 24 hours Bhojpuri Movie channel &Fakt Marathi , which is a 24 hours Marathi Movie channel.

  • Bhojpuri Cinema now available on Tata Sky and Den Network

    Bhojpuri Cinema now available on Tata Sky and Den Network

    The No.1 Bhojpuri Movie Channel – Bhojpuri Cinema,hasstrengthened its distribution with India’s leading Direct to air platform – Tata sky. With Tata Sky,Bhojpuri Cinema will now benefit with deep penetration across the regions of the country. This move will gradually fortify the channel’s position in other markets also, making it easily available for discerning viewers throughout the country.

    Bhojpuri Cinema is now available on Tata sky Channel No. 1115.

    Apart from the new DTH entry, the channel is also now available on Den network in the state of UP/Uttarakhand,Bihar & Jharkhand on channel number 827.

    With these associations, Bhojpuri Cinema will mark the beginning of new prospects for the channel in terms of increased viewership, new audience base, robust expansion plan, etc. The channel will engage with viewers and trade partners locally and nationally through a multimedia campaign across multiple platforms.

    Amongst the Bhojpuri regional channel in Bihar & Jharkhand, Bhojpuri cinema derives a 26 percent of market share in 4 plus TG.

    Bhojpuri Cinema is the only Bhojpuri channel that delivers round the clock entertainment with the scheduling of 42 fresh Bhojpuri movies every week including world television premiers. Its library of over 350 Bhojpuri movies is the biggest Bhojpuri movie library of the world.

    Bhojpuri Cinema is available across DTH platforms such as Tata Sky,Airtel, DD Free Dish, Dish TV along with all cable operators of the region.

    Speaking on the occasion, Enter 10 Television Pvt. Ltd, Founder and Managing Director, Mr. Manish Singhal said, “We are happy to announce our availability on Tata Sky and Den Network, which allows the channel to immediately grow its reach across the geography. We are confident that our content will be thoroughly enjoyed by the new audiences, further enhancing our reach and position. Strengthening our distribution is a strategic move which will not only widen our audience base and popularity but will also give better value to our advertisers.”

    Enter 10 Television Pvt. Ltd. (ETPL) is an Indian media and entertainment company based in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India. The company’s founder and managing director is Mr. Manish Singhal. The Company has 4 channels serving Indian content across India. Enter 10 Television Pvt. Ltd. was incorporated 11 March 2004. Enterr10 Television, the flagship channel of Enter10 Television Pvt. Ltd. was launched in October 2006. Then it came out with three channels namely Dangal, which is a General Entertainment channel, Bhojpuri Cinema, which is a 24 hours Bhojpuri Movie channel &Fakt Marathi , which is a 24 hours Marathi Movie channel.

  • Zee Anmol Cinema to launch on DD Freedish

    Zee Anmol Cinema to launch on DD Freedish

    MUMBAI: Free to air (FTA) is the new buzzword in television, especially considering how well the non-pay TV channels are doing. Adding another one to its channel cluster is Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL). It is to soon launch its new FTA Hindi movie channel, Zee Anmol Cinema on Doordarshan’s free direct-to-home (DTH) platform DD Direct service Free Dish. It is set to replace Zee Premiere which is currently beaming on Channel No. 70 from 1 Septmeber.

    Confirming its launch, ZEEL chief business officer Sunil Buch said, “The current increasing share of viewership in rural India gives us the scope of further expanding Zee’s presence in HSM markets. Launching Zee Anmol Cinema also makes for an interesting challenge as the FTA Hindi movie genre already has several strong players in a dynamic and ever-changing environment. We will share more details soon.”

    Watch this space…

  • Zee Anmol Cinema to launch on DD Freedish

    Zee Anmol Cinema to launch on DD Freedish

    MUMBAI: Free to air (FTA) is the new buzzword in television, especially considering how well the non-pay TV channels are doing. Adding another one to its channel cluster is Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL). It is to soon launch its new FTA Hindi movie channel, Zee Anmol Cinema on Doordarshan’s free direct-to-home (DTH) platform DD Direct service Free Dish. It is set to replace Zee Premiere which is currently beaming on Channel No. 70 from 1 Septmeber.

    Confirming its launch, ZEEL chief business officer Sunil Buch said, “The current increasing share of viewership in rural India gives us the scope of further expanding Zee’s presence in HSM markets. Launching Zee Anmol Cinema also makes for an interesting challenge as the FTA Hindi movie genre already has several strong players in a dynamic and ever-changing environment. We will share more details soon.”

    Watch this space…

  • DD Free Dish looking for tenant?

    DD Free Dish looking for tenant?

    MUMBAI: Pubcaster Doordarshan is looking for a tenant for a vacant slot it has on its Free Dish platform. The condition it has laid out for this is that it should become an occupant only for the month of August. And the cost of doing so: Rs 4.90 crore for the month.

    DD has issued an email circular – a copy of which has reached indiantelevision.com today – wherein it has asked private broadcasters to send in their expression of interest to take up the vacant slot. It, however, has cautioned that the carriage fee needs to be paid in advance along with service tax. It has also stated that the slot will be filled on a first come first serve basis.

    DD Free Dish has a bouquet of 104 video channels and 51 radio channels, according to the updated channel list (till 2 August 2016) on its website.

    DD Free Dish which is beaming DD Direct Plus/Free Dish off GSAT-15 at 93.5 East has a total of six – five in MPEG-2 and one in MPEG-4 – transponder frequencies for its service.

    The DTH provider added Zee News on Free Dish on 1 August after it won the e-auction on 28 July 2016. The Hindi news channel is also available as a FTA on Dish TV.

  • DD Free Dish looking for tenant?

    DD Free Dish looking for tenant?

    MUMBAI: Pubcaster Doordarshan is looking for a tenant for a vacant slot it has on its Free Dish platform. The condition it has laid out for this is that it should become an occupant only for the month of August. And the cost of doing so: Rs 4.90 crore for the month.

    DD has issued an email circular – a copy of which has reached indiantelevision.com today – wherein it has asked private broadcasters to send in their expression of interest to take up the vacant slot. It, however, has cautioned that the carriage fee needs to be paid in advance along with service tax. It has also stated that the slot will be filled on a first come first serve basis.

    DD Free Dish has a bouquet of 104 video channels and 51 radio channels, according to the updated channel list (till 2 August 2016) on its website.

    DD Free Dish which is beaming DD Direct Plus/Free Dish off GSAT-15 at 93.5 East has a total of six – five in MPEG-2 and one in MPEG-4 – transponder frequencies for its service.

    The DTH provider added Zee News on Free Dish on 1 August after it won the e-auction on 28 July 2016. The Hindi news channel is also available as a FTA on Dish TV.