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Tata Sky launches DTH service; STB price Rs 3999, basic subscription Rs 200

Published

20 years ago

August 8, 2006

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI: Tata Sky Ltd, the $ 500 million joint venture between Tata Sons and the Rupert Murdoch-owned Star Group, today officially announced its arrival as India’s second DTH platform after Dish TV.

Tata Sky is kicking of its service in 300 cities at an “introductory” monthly subscription of Rs 200 for the 55-odd channels it presently has on the platform.

Price: hardware+installation Rs 3,999

Monthly subscription: Rs 200

No. of channels available: 55+

Present area of service: 300 cities

1st year target: 1 million subscribers

Investments made till now: over Rs 25 billion

Most critically, the Tata Sky set top box (supplied by News Corp owned NDS)
has been priced at Rs 3,999 (inclusive of taxes). This includes installation
and hardware cost and a full service warranty for one year.

However, along with the monthly subscription of Rs 200, the Tata Sky offering will be more expensive than rival Dish TV‘s package.

Tata Sky CEO and MD Vikram Kaushik with Tata Sky chairman Ishaat Hussain

Click here for a slideshow

The Subhash Chandra-owned Dish TV is priced at Rs 3,290 (inclusive of taxes). This includes the cost of the STB as well as three months‘ subscription. The monthly subscription for the basic Dish TV service of 75 channels is Rs 180.

Announcing the launch at a glitzy event in Delhi where the likes of cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle rubbed shoulders with Mandira Bedi, Tata Sky MD and CEO Vikram Kaushik grandly proclaimed, “Entertainment will never be the same again.”

Going on to harp on the state-of-the-art technology and finesse of the service, Kaushik added, “It’s a technological innovation that’ll bring the senses alive.”

Apart from the many channels on the Tata Sky platform, a conspicuous absentee is the Zee Turner bouquet of over 20 channels as an agreement between Tata Sky and Zee Turner Ltd has not yet been concluded.

Kaushik admitted that negotiations have not been concluded, but was hopeful that “things would get sorted out soon.”

Another major absentee is the Sun Network, which dominates the South Indian markets. Tata Sky is, however, not alone in this, since Dish TV does not have access to the Sun channels either.

“We are offering 55+ channels at the moment and with the passage of time the number of offerings would grow,” Kaushik said.

The channels presently available on the non-tiered Tata Sky platform include all the channels from the Star (17), Sony Discovery One Alliance (14) bouquets as well as ESPN Star Sports and two channels of NDTV as its key offerings.

It is worth noting here that it was only this morning that the deal for the carriage of the One Alliance channels by Tata Sky was signed and delivered.

Confirming this to Indiantelevision.com, SET Discovery president Anuj Gandhi said the pricing terms was similar to the one signed recently with Dish TV.

One Alliance is being paid around Rs 38 per subscriber by Dish for its channels. The deal is a five-year one that is extendable at the end of it, Gandhi revealed.

Also available on the Tata Sky platform would be some Doordarshan channels as well the likes of Times Now, Aaj Tak, Headlines Today, etc. Some interactive and specially designed movie channels have also been thrown in as a sop.

The Tata Sky service, Kaushik claimed in the presence of his company chairman Ishaat Hussain, has been designed to give subscribers “choice, control and convenience” in the way they want to watch television.

A host of interactive services such as an on-screen programme guide, Actve Sports, Actve Star News, Actve Newsroom and Actve Khabar are also on offer.

To offer maximum convenience to subscribers, Tata Sky has set up a pan-India distribution network of popular consumer electronic stores and mobile phone outlets for retailing its hardware and prepaid recharge vouchers.

The pre-paid vouchers come in various denominations starting off with Rs 260.

The company has also tied up with LG, ITC International Business Division and Indian Oil Corporation as part of its distribution drive.

“We are looking at ramping up our activity and service over the next three months when the service should be covering the whole of India,” Tata Sky consumer marketing head Vikram Mehra said.

The company has engaged a field force of approximately 3,000 people who will be complemented by a high-end 24×7 call centre, manned by multi-lingual customer service associates, trained to solve all customer problems.

But Mehra was not forthcoming on the media campaign that’s about to break “soon”, except to say that it would be a 360 degree campaign using all normal media outlets.

Tata Sky is an 80:20 DTH joint venture between the Tata Group and Hong Kong-based Star Group.

The joint venture has invested over Rs 25 billion in the project till now, according to Kaushik, who added the target of 1 million subscribers in the first year is achievable.

The unveiling of the Tata Sky service finally turns into reality a dream Murdoch has had since 1997 – of having a DTH platform in India

(Rs 47 = $ 1)

All pictures, including slide show, by SANJAY SHARMA/Indiapix Network

Applications

Moltbook, the AI-only social network, sparks hype, doubt and fear

Published

1 month ago

February 3, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

CALIFORNIA: Moltbook, a Reddit-style social platform built exclusively for artificial intelligence agents, has emerged as the latest obsession in Silicon Valley, drawing intense attention for its explosive growth and surreal bot-driven interactions.

The platform hosts more than 100 communities where AI agents post, argue and joke about topics ranging from governance theory to esoteric “crayfish debugging” concepts. Within days of launch, Moltbook recorded tens of thousands of posts, nearly 200,000 comments and more than 1 million human visitors observing the activity.

Yet the numbers and the autonomy are under scrutiny, as per media reports. A security researcher has suggested as many as 500,000 accounts may trace back to a single address, raising doubts about Moltbook’s membership claims. Many posts could also be the result of humans instructing their AI tools to publish content, rather than bots acting independently.

The platform runs on agentic AI, powered by an open-source tool called OpenClaw, formerly known as Moltbot. Unlike chatbots such as ChatGPT or Gemini, these agents are designed to perform tasks on users’ devices, from sending messages to managing calendars, with minimal human input. Once authorised, they can interact freely on Moltbook.

Some tech figures have hailed the platform as a glimpse of a post-human internet. Head of crypto custody firm BitGo Bill Lees, called it evidence that “we’re in the singularity”.

Academics are less convinced. Petar Radanliev, an AI and cybersecurity expert at the University of Oxford, said the idea of agents acting independently was “misleading”, describing Moltbook instead as automated coordination within human-set constraints. Columbia Business School assistant professor David Holtz, dismissed the spectacle as “thousands of bots yelling into the void and repeating themselves”.

Beyond hype, security worries loom large. ESET global cybersecurity advisor Jake Moore, warned that granting AI agents access to emails, private messages and files risks prioritising efficiency over privacy. Andrew Rogoyski of the University of Surrey said high-level system access could lead to serious damage, from erased data to compromised company accounts.

Even OpenClaw’s founder Peter Steinberger, has felt the darker side of attention, with scammers hijacking his old social media handles after the platform’s rebrand.

For now, Moltbook remains a strange digital zoo: part experiment, part spectacle, where AI agents banter about philosophy, productivity and, occasionally, their fondness for their human operators.

Applications

Apple appoints Avtar Ram Singh as head of international marketing

Published

1 month ago

February 2, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

CALIFORNIA: Apple has handed a bigger global brief to a long-time insider. Avtar Ram Singh has taken over as head of international marketing for the App Store, Apple Arcade and the Apple Games app, deepening his remit across one of the company’s fastest-growing businesses.

“I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as head of international marketing, App Store, Apple Arcade and Games App at Apple,” Singh said while announcing the move.

The promotion crowns nearly seven years at Apple, where Singh has led services marketing across Southeast Asia and India and previously served as head of marketing for Southeast Asia content and services, business lead for Apple Podcasts in the region and interim marketing lead for the App Store internationally.

His new portfolio spans three pillars of Apple’s services push. The App Store, which Apple positions as a safe and trusted discovery platform, now attracts more than 850 million average weekly users globally. Since 2008, developers have earned over $550 billion on the platform.

Apple Arcade, the company’s gaming subscription service, offers unlimited access to a catalogue ranging from brain teasers to big-name franchises. The recent addition of Sid Meier’s Civilization VII Arcade Edition brings a AAA PC title to iPhone, iPad and Mac from 5 February.

Then there is the Apple Games app, unveiled at WWDC as a unified destination for games from the App Store and Arcade. It aggregates titles in one place, surfaces personalised recommendations, tracks events and achievements, and lets users compete with friends or connect controllers for a console-like experience.

Singh arrives with a hybrid background in strategy, data and creativity. His career spans digital and social media marketing, business intelligence, content, editorial and analytics across culturally diverse markets. He has worked on brands including P&G, Accor, Audi, UBS, Nikon, Samsung, Sony, Pizza Hut, HBO and Singapore Airlines-linked businesses such as Scoot.

Before Apple, Singh led strategy at Falcon Agency, focusing on performance marketing and ROI-driven digital frameworks. He earlier ran the social practice at Publicis Singapore, where he oversaw operations, business development and regional social strategy for multinational clients. His career also includes roles at Ogilvy-linked Circus Social, Rocket Internet ventures Lazada and Zalora, and research firm IDC in Bangkok, where he analysed technology markets and won early awards for collaboration and client retention.

At Apple, he has been close to several service launches and expansions, including Apple Fitness+ in Singapore, Apple Creator Studio, global podcast subscriptions and new App Store marketing tools.

The timing is notable. Apple’s services business has posted record years, and gaming is becoming a sharper battleground as platforms chase engagement and recurring revenue. Singh’s brief sits at the intersection of content, community and commerce.

In a market where attention is scarce and loyalty scarcer, Apple is betting that sharper storytelling and smarter marketing can keep users inside its ecosystem. Singh now holds the megaphone. The real test will be how loudly the world listens.

Applications

Cloud nine in the capital Bharathcloud plugs Delhi into its AI plans

Published

1 month ago

January 30, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Bharathcloud is bringing its cloud closer to power. The Hyderabad-based sovereign AI cloud services provider has opened its Delhi office, marking its formal entry into North India and setting the stage for its next phase of growth.

The expansion comes as India’s digital transformation fuels rising demand for AI-ready cloud infrastructure, driven by wider adoption of artificial intelligence, machine learning, the Internet of Things and data-heavy applications. With the new office, Bharathcloud plans to onboard more than 100 employees in 2026, strengthening its workforce to support customers across government, enterprises, MSMEs and social sectors.

The Delhi presence is expected to sharpen the company’s engagement with organisations seeking secure, scalable and cost-efficient cloud platforms that comply with India’s data sovereignty requirements. It also positions Bharathcloud closer to policy, public sector and enterprise decision-makers in the region.

Founded in Hyderabad, Bharathcloud offers AI-ready cloud infrastructure including Kubernetes-as-a-Service, zero-trust security architecture and multi-level data protection frameworks. Its platform supports AI and ML workloads, blockchain application migration from hyperscalers and distributed data management, with an emphasis on reliability, low latency and operational continuity.

“With the Delhi expansion, we are positioning Bharathcloud to engage more closely with AI-driven enterprises and technology hubs in North India,” said Bharathcloud co-founder Rahul Takallapally. He added that the move would help nurture local cloud and AI talent while accelerating the adoption of secure and resilient AI infrastructure across sectors.

The company currently operates in Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kolkata, Lucknow and Chennai, employing over 200 people and serving more than 1,500 clients across manufacturing, healthcare, financial services, IT and media. Aligned with national initiatives such as Digital India and Make in India, Bharathcloud continues to focus on building indigenous AI-cloud infrastructure to support data localisation and the country’s growing appetite for next-generation digital solutions.

With its Delhi office now live, the company is signalling a clear intent: to make sovereign, AI-ready cloud infrastructure not just an alternative, but a mainstream choice for India’s north as well as its tech capitals.