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Tag: Suresh Khanna

  • Cetma appeals for quick roll-out of CAS

    Cetma appeals for quick roll-out of CAS

    NEW DELHI: Consumer Electronics and TV Manufacturers Association (Cetma), an apex body of electronics goods makers in the country, today exhorted the government to ensure a quick roll-out of conditional access system (CAS), as it would enable the viewers to pay less for their monthly cable bill.

    “CAS implementation would put India on the world map of digital television – for what may probably be the largest digital roll-out in the world,” Catma secretary general Suresh Khanna said in a press release issued here.

    Cetma has also appealed to the state and central governments to lessen the burden on consumers by waiving service and entertainment taxes for those who opt only for basic tier at Rs 72 (excluding local taxes) per month.

    Further making a case for CAS rollout, Khanna was quoted in the statement as saying, “In the end, consumers get what they want at a reasonable rate. It is a transparent system, where by all the stakeholders – that is, the broadcasters, multi-system operators (MSOs) and cable operators get their fair share.”

    Cetma had strongly lobbied for CAS when the issue was being debated last year and had also assured the then information and broadcasting minister Sushma Swaraj that once addressability became common and demand for set-top boxes picked up, local manufacturers would be able to supply the boxes at cheap rates. The rates could be as low as Rs 1,500, they had stated.

    Cetma had also given a working paper to Swaraj, who had used the data very effectively to have the necessary amendments related to CAS steam-rolled through the Parliament, last year.

    Many Cetma members, notably Thomson Electronics India, have been on various panels set up for CAS and also on a panel of the Bureau of Indian Standards where the technical specifications and standards for boxes for CAS and KU-band direct-to-home (DTH) television service were discussed.

    However, contrary to Cetma’s assertions, very few companies operating in India have come out with plans to manufacture the boxes locally. All of them had cited reasons of uncertainty over CAS for deferring their plans, if any.

  • STB duties: finance ministry won’t budge

    STB duties: finance ministry won’t budge

    MUMBAI / NEW DELHI: After a “disappointing” budget, the Consumer Electronics Traders and Manufacturers Association (CETMA), the apex body of electronics goods manufacturers in India, had to listen to more bad news today

    A meeting among CETMA, information & broadcasting ministry officials and finance ministry officials ended today with it being firmly conveyed that there would be no reduction in duties on set top boxes, as was being sought by the electronics manufacturers.

    “At the moment it looks that STBs will have to be imported with 51 per cent duty (25 per cent basic customs duty, 15 per cent countervailing duty and 4 per cent additional taxes), CETMA’s Suresh Khanna told indiantelevision this evening, sounding dejected.

    According to Khanna in the initial phase of conditional access rollout, the whole set top box would have to be imported. It would only be later when demand picked up that semi-knock down kits and finally completely knocked down kits could be manufactured, Khanna said.

    Khanna had said immediately after finance minister Jaswant Singh presented his budget that CETMA would be petitioning the I&B ministry as also the finance ministry “at the first available opportunity” to push for review of the government (in)decision on STBs, especially at a time when the government is pushing aggressively the implementation of conditional access system.

    The manufacturers had been hoping that the budget would see basic customs duty on set top boxes being reduced to 10 per cent but that was not to be.

    CETMA had also asked for zero per cent excise duty on finished goods and components like RF modulators and the Network Interface Module.

    They had also demanded that sales tax be kept at four per cent, preventing fly by night operators and gray market from affecting legitimate sales of the Indian manufacturer. The association also wants a lead time of 90 days from the date of commercially clear purchase order for the delivery of the STBs.