DD to decide on DTH on Nov 11

Direct-to-Home (DTH) service is finally a reality, and the potential players are back in the limelight once more. Doordarshan, which has been a part and parcel of the DTH show all through, will soon decide whether it’s going to participate in the open-to-all set-up or not. According to R.R. Shah, CEO, Prasar Bharati: "We’ll place the entire framework of DTH in front of the board at the board meeting on November 11."

The board will then decide whether Prasar Bharati will be a player in DTH or not. For the rest of the industry, it’s a mixed bag of reactions. The wait has been very long for some in the industry and the signs of indifference are hard to hide.

There are doubts in their minds: "Will DTH work, or won’t it?" There are others who are optimistic about the new technology offering new options to the market and the subscribers. Take Star TV, for instance. The CEO of its India operations, Peter Mukerjea, has declined to give his comments on DTH being cleared.

According to insiders, it’s been a bad experience for Star, as far as DTH is concerned. Over the years, the channel had not just heavily invested in setting up its DTH infrastructure, but had also hired around 200 employees for the DTH operations. But when Star realised that DTH was taking too long to happen, it dismantled the section and relocated the DTH staff. Now, when DTH has been cleared by the Cabinet, Star is not showing any signs of enthusiasm. It is being felt that if the channel is to plunge into DTH all over again, it has to start from scratch, which is a gigantic task. And the decision to be a player in the DTH market or not will have to be taken at an international level.

Kiran Karnik, Managing Director, Discovery Channel, who’s been quite vocal on the issue of DTH, is, however, optimistic about the new technology. Karnik said: "I’m happy that DTH has got through. It will offer more options to the viewers."

On the licence fee of Rs. 10 crore, Karnik said: "The fee is a bit high. But if you compare it with the high bid prices in Radio FM voluntary auction, the licence fee of Rs 10 crore cannot be considered exorbitant." On the commercial viability of DTH services in India, Karnik said: "If it’s marketed well, it will be a commercially viable project in two to three years." Karnik’s projections: "DTH should have 2 to 3 million DTH homes in three years." Zee, another probable in the DTH market, also refused to give any official comment on the issue of DTH.

Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) also reacted positively to the DTH clearance. Lalit Modi, Chairman, Entertainment Committee of FICCI, said: "There is no element of monopoly in this. Since no broadcast or cable network company shall be eligible to own more than 20 per cent of the total equity of an applicant company at any time during the licence period, there will be more players in the market." He added: "Insistence of uplinking from India will give a sense of purpose and security."

According to Arun Bharat Ram, President, Confederation of Indian Industry: "The decision to allow DTH was welcome subject to inter-operability of set-top boxes and non-exclusivity of channels." He stated that these decisions needed to be quickly integrated into the broadcast policy or the new Convergence Bill so as to ensure equal opportunities to all players.

Cable operators, who may feel the impact of DTH services the most, are not up in arms against DTH though. Rakesh Datta of Cable Network Association said: "We are not against DTH per se. However, out of three of our concerns only one has been addressed -- the cap on cross-holdings." He added: "We were promised the conditional access system for cable, which has not been effected so far." It is imperative that it comes through quickly now, else the cable industry will perish, he said.

Suzail Wris and Roop Sharma, active members of the United Cable Operators’ Forum, were of the opinion that technology must have its way. But they expressed apprehension about what this augurs for the cable industry. They also hoped that regulations over content would equally apply to the DTH players as well. Says Sharma: "The government should address our concerns as well, since the small cable operators were the ones who initially built up this vast infrastructure."

On the question of the steep licence fee, Waris adds: "The licence fee is insignificant for the kind of revenues which are expected out of it." And as the Information and Broadcasting Minister, Sushma Swaraj, has said that it’s going to take one year for the DTH to be implemented in the country, the debate has only begun.

Nivedita Mookerji & Shalini Dagar

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