|
Satellite
& Cable
February
14 , 2003
Cable TV viewers likely to pay 200 per month
Geetanjali
Wadhwa
NEW DELHI -- Indian cable TV viewers might have to pay
only Rs. 200 per month once the conditional access (CAS)
regime kicks off from July 14 this year! Once CAS is
operational, consumers will no longer have to pay for
poor quality signals of 90-odd channels. An announcement
is likely by next fortnight. A task force, with representatives
of broadcasters, multi-service operators, local cable
operators and consumer interest organisations, will
decide on the price band for the basic (FTA) tire of
service.
A
set-top box (STB) will be mandatory for accessing pay
channels. An analog set-top box will cost between Rs.
2,000 and Rs. 3,000, and a digital one will range between
Rs. 6,000 and Rs. 10,000. The service will be extended
to Hyderabad and Bangalore, besides Chennai, Kolkata,
Mumbai and New Delhi.
The
final cable TV bill will depend on what the Indian government
fixes as the maximum price band for free-to-air channels.
These channels will not require a set-top box for viewing.
Some of the existing free-to-air channels include DD,
Aaj Tak, MTV, BBC, Sab TV, Sahara and Sun TV. However,
consumers will have to buy pay channel bouquets from
broadcasters such as Star TV and Zee TV. There are three
major bouquets - Star, Zee-Turner and Sony- including
the smaller ESPN-Star Sports and Modi Networks.
A
recent survey conducted by ORG-Marg on the preferences
and perceptions of consumers toward CAS revealed that
the majority of consumers in New Delhi and Mumbai support
CAS. The study captured that over 70 percent of the
respondents perceived the cost of the STB as a prime
area of concern. The other apprehension is the possibility
of an increase in the prices of individual channels,
leading to an increase in the total monthly cable subscription.
The
study measured the brand equity index (BEI)of individual
pay channels, where Star Plus and Aaj Tak scored the
highest. The BEI of Star Plus and Aaj Tak were found
to be 3.9 and 3.3, respectively.
|
