Videocon d2h adds 71 channels in regional languages this year

MUMBAI: Videocon d2h is widening its TV channel portfolio. The direct-to-home (DTH) arm of Videocon Group has added two news channels, JK 24×7 and Gulistan News, for its subscribers in Jammu & Kashmir. In fact, Videocon d2h has added 71 new channels in regional languages this calendar year.

Said Videocon d2h executive chairman Saurabh Dhoot, “We at Videocon d2h have always kept ahead of what our consumers require. Whether it is innovating in our set-top boxes or by continuously adding the best channels or in service, we have always led from the front. Content has been a key driver of our leadership; this calendar year, we have already added 71 new channels in regional languages. With JK 24X7 News and Gulistan, our subscribers will have even more choice to stay informed with the latest news.

” While JK 24×7 is a Hindi news channel, Gulistan News is an Urdu channel. The 24-hour news channels will deliver the day’s top stories, both national and international.

 The two channels will be available on promotional Hindi Top-up for flexi pack on channel No 335 and 790 respectively.

 With the fourth phase of digital addressable system (DAS) nearing closure, there is a growing demand for state specific and regional-language channels.

Said Videocon d2h CEO Anil Khera, “As DAS Phase IV nears an end, we are seeing a significant appeal of state specific and regional language channels. Adding two channels specifically for J&K underlines our commitment to provide holistic family entertainment to the state.

” Videocon d2h has a line-up of 570+ channels and services, including a host of regional channels. It offers a wide range of active services like smart services including Smart English, Smart Games. The other active services include d2h Hollywood HD, d2h music, d2h spice, d2h cinema in both standard definition and HD

Resource:http://www.televisionpost.com/dth/videocon-d2h-adds-71-channels-in-regional-languages-this-year/

Tariff regulation in DTH industry via a-la-carte packs won’t help much, cable operators say

PUNE: The move to regulate tariff in the direct-to-home entertainment industry won't help much in bringing down cost for the customer, according to the leader of one of the direct-to-home operators. He did not want to be named because the matter is yet to be decided and he is one of the petitioners against the move

The telecom regulatory authority of India has said that direct-to-home operators and cable service providers must make channels available on a a-la-carte basis to the customers and not force them with unrequired channels in packages. "It is a hassle to unbundle channels...the cost will remain the same for the customer," he said, adding, "If each channel is priced at the proposed pricing of Rs 19 per channel, a bundle of 20 channels will be Rs 380 per month. In the same money, a customer is given more channels. So why change that?

He further added that though DTH operators are offering channels on an a-la-carte basis for the last 5 years, people have not subscribed to it in a big way. Also, it is difficult to map cable service providers as most of their services are still un-accounted for, even if digital. "In DTH case, you can at least give us a call. What will you do with cable operators," he said.

Stay updated on the go with Times of India News App. Click here to download it for your device.
Resource : Resource :https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2457861156656369908#editor/target=post;postID=8680072871825523901

Harmonic HEVC System Put to Use by Almatel Kazakhstan

SAN JOSE, CALIF.—Harmonic is assisting Kazakhstan’s largest cable operator, Almatel Kazakhstan, with the latest generation of HEVC video compression technology for the operator’s new direct-to-home (DTH) satellite television platform.   

Using Harmonic’s Electra X advanced media processing platform helps deliver SD, HD and UHD channels across Kazakhstan, increasing bandwidth efficiency by leveraging HEVC codec. The software will also allow the station to adopt new formats and codecs in the future, including 4K/UHD. As a result, Almatel Kazakhstan has launched a new UHD channel and has plans expand its UHD offerings in the future.

Almatel Kazakhstan CEO Eric Franke says that the Electra X platform allows for the delivery of about 140 SD and HD channels from the same DTH platform.

Resource :http://www.tvtechnology.com/news/0002/harmonic-hevc-system-put-to-use-by-almatel-kazakhstan/281208

GST bonanza: Electronics, lifestyle goods get cheaper

The new tax regime will not allow retailers a full set-off on goods procured in the last six months

 If you have been bitten by the shopping bug, you can’t be blamed. Well, at least, not this year. After all, it is not often that retail stores offer steep discounts in the months of May–June. While monsoon sales by apparel stores usually start by end of June and electronic stores do have some clearance sales in June-July, this year with the Goods and Services Tax (GST) starting from July 1, discounts are bigger than before.

For instance, electronic stores like Vijay Sales, Kohinoor and Digi1 are offering up to 50 per cent off on certain models or till stocks last. Snehanjali, another Mumbai-based electronic chain is advertising its offer as the pre-GST sale with a warning thrown in for good measure that “Prices for most electronic items are set to rise by 5 per cent’’. Electronic manufacturer Samsung is offering free DTH connection with televisions and extended warranty periods and free services with air-conditioners (ACs) and microwaves as part of its ‘June Fest’.


Brands such as Puma, Bata, ONLY, Jack & Jones, Vero Moda, Louis Philippe, Van Heusen, Benetton and US Polo have already begun their sales across major cities.

Retail chains such as Pantaloons, Lifestyle and Shoppers Stop are yet to come out with their formal end-of-season sale, but they have already started giving discounts on select brands in the range of 20-40 per cent.

Then, Flipkart and Shopclues are running their own versions of GST sale. Flipkart Fashion Days will run for nine days, from June 10 to June 18 under which the company would offer products from 50 brands. It will also hold A 'Bid n Win' contest for customers during the nine-day sale and the lowest unique bidders will win prizes like Emporio Armani watch worth Rs 13,995, Victorinox bag worth Rs 15,960 and more.

Impact of GST: With the GST on the anvil, retailers are worried that as any stock that they have procured in the last six months will not get the full set-off on the tax already paid when the transition to GST happens on July 1. That is why there is a scrambling to clear off stuff.

Currently, on stocks which are invoiced and delivered to the retailer, the VAT, excise and octroi in some cases have been has been paid. From July 1, if this stock is not cleared, retailers will be stuck with two kinds of stock. Stock on which there are GST invoices from the manufacturer client where the retailer can bill out and effectively claim a set off on GST and stock that is from before GST. On that stock retailer does not have GST invoice. And the effective set off would be only 60 per cent. “Essentially there is a loss on that and that is why retailers are trying to get the old stock out,”Ritesh Ghosal, Chief Marketing Officer, Infiniti Retail which owns Croma. The impact of GST will not be uniform and will vary depending on the region. For instance, in areas that have a lower VAT regime, like Karnataka and UP, prices could go up post GST. While in areas with higher VAT like Gujarat or Mumbai (which also has octroi) there could be softening of prices. “The immediate impact will not be more than 1.5 per cent either way,” he adds.

 case of apparels, with the input tax credit being made available under GST, prices will go down for cotton apparels below Rs 999 and remain unchanged for apparels above Rs 1,000, says Rakesh Biyani, Joint Managing Director, Future Retail. Apparels have a tax rate of 5 per cent and 12 per cent under GST. “June end-July is when end of season sales are held at stores. With the festive season this month, we are offering 50 per cent cash back on purchases of Rs 2,000,’’ he says.

Older models are being cleared: According to Arvind Singhal, Managing Director, Technopak, a management consulting firm, June and July are among the weakest months in the year for a number of categories. So these sales could be a way for many companies to actually use the pretext of GST and get their slow moving stocks out of the way by giving a discount. “Inventory lying in the pipeline will not be able to get any kind of tax rebate abatement. So, that is one reason why sales are happening. But GST is also a reason for stores to get their slow moving stocks out of the way by giving a discount,’’ he says.

Ghosal adds that the current sales are more clearance sales as stores push out inventory. “Every year, at this time there is a churn that happens. It is end of season and setting up for the new season. May and June is the period when stores flush out old stock,’’ he says. For instance, new television models are launched around August and between the festival season. Similarly, new laptop and computer models are launched in July when schools and colleges start their new terms.

It is likely that the discounts may continue post July, as stores clear their stock to make place for new models. “The festival period begins in September and usually there are not much discounts on the new models which will hit retail outlets by then,” says Singhal.

The discounts going on currently are more of a unit wise discount rather than a category wise discount. The discount depends on the age of the model and the particular store. Largely, they range from 15-25 on most categories. Though in stray cases they could be 70 per cent.

“Essentially the discount is catering to people who are deal seekers and who are happy to settle for older models,” Ghosal says. 

Resource : http://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/gst-bonanza-electronics-lifestyle-goods-get-cheaper-117061401458_1.html

Sun Direct has 3-year capex plan of Rs 1,475 cr; capital infusion from promoters not needed

MUMBAI: With Sun Direct turning profitable, the promoters need not infuse equity funding to support the direct-to-home (DTH) company. Sun Direct, which is 80% owned by Kalanithi Maran and his wife and 20% by Malaysia’s Astro, has a capital expenditure plan of Rs 1,475 crore for the next three financial years. Out of this, the intent is to have a debt funding of Rs 450 crore during FY18–FY20. The future capital expenditure of the company is expected to be supported through internal accruals and debt, with no further dependence on promoters’ contribution.


The main capex will be for purchase of customer premises equipment (CPE), a market source said. Earlier, the promoters of Sun Direct had been providing financial support to the company by infusing equity. Though Sun Direct started generating cash profits from FY13, it continued to incur losses until FY16. For the first nine months of FY17, Sun Direct posted net profit of Rs 21.2 crore on a revenue of Rs 907.93 crore. In FY16, Sun Direct reported net loss of Rs 35.30 crore compared to Rs 156.92 crore a year ago. T


otal operating income grew to Rs 1,116.61 crore, up from Rs 1,048.62 crore in the earlier year. Sun Direct’s net subscriber base has remained nearly stagnant for over four years with the focus being on South India. The company has a 10% market share of the total active DTH subscriber base, which is pegged at 62.65 million, as of 31 December 2016. Sun Direct has been able to maintain its market share in South India at about 40%. I

n the company’s net subscriber base, the share of South India has increased from about 94% during FY14 to over 97%. Sun Direct’s ARPU has been seeing steady growth over the years. For the first nine months of FY17, the DTH company’s ARPU increased to Rs 175 compared to Rs 163 in FY16. ARPU in FY15 was Rs 153, up from Rs 143 in FY14 and Rs 131 in FY13. The growth in ARPU has helped Sun Direct to improve on profitability parameters.


 The company’s losses at the net level have been declining over the last three years. In FY17, Sun Direct added three transponders on GSAT 15.

 It has a total of eight transponders, equally split between Measat 3 and GSAT 15. The addition of the transponders has enabled the company to increase the number of HD channels in its bouquet to 55. The increase in bandwidth will help Sun Direct to not only retain but also add subscribers while enhancing its ARPU, a media analyst said.

Resource : http://www.televisionpost.com/dth/sun-direct-has-3-year-capex-plan-of-rs-1475-cr-capital-infusion-from-promoters-not-needed/

Dish TV adds 3 channels to its portfolio

MUMBAI: Direct-to-home (DTH) operator Dish TV has added three new channels, namely Mirror Now, Miniplex and Teleone, on its platform. With the three new additions, the total count of channels and services offered by Dish TV now stands at 620.


Commenting on these additions, Dish TV CEO Anil Dua said, “We at Dish TV have been at the forefront of enhancing TV viewing experience and exploring opportunities to bring wholesome entertainment to the audience. With a sharp focus on content, the move aims at connecting strongly to provide the best of entertainment to our subscribers. The addition of these three channels will not only strengthen our presence but will also diversify our offerings.”

Moreover, keeping up the idea of providing the best of entertainment in industry, Dish TV recently added Arnab Goswami’s news channel Republic TV on their platform. Enhancing the kids genre, the DTH operator had also added Sony Yay to its channel repertoire last month. These two channels will be available on channel #771 and #989 respectively.

Resource : http://www.televisionpost.com/dth/dish-tv-adds-3-channels-to-its-portfolio/

Will the stars align for Airtel Digital TV's new SVOD astrology channel, Astrovaani?

Airtel Digital TV, the DTH arm of Bharti Airtel, and Dominiche, an MCN catering to the DTH and OTT ecosystem launched Astrovaani, a subscription-based video on demand (SVOD) astrology channel. Through this, Indian viewers will have access to on-demand, round the clock, cable content focused on astrology for the first time.

Currently, the service is available to Airtel DTH users at an introductory price of Re 1 for the first fortnight, after which subscribers can access the channel for a nominal Rs 39 per month.

Astrovaani showcases a variety of astrology techniques and practices including tarot, Vastu, Feng Shui, palmistry, numerology, healing, face reading, aura reading and Runes. Also, the programming will cover astrological accessories such as gems and precious stones, rudraksh, yantra and lalkitaab, among other things. Predictions on Astrovaani will be made by prominent names in the field including MunishaKhatwani, BejanDaruwala,Neel Choksi and Bhavesh Dave, among others.

Sriram Sundresan, Chief Marketing Officer, Airtel Digital TV, said, “We are pleased to announce the launch of Astrovaani. Indians have shown an appetite for content related to astrology and this service will offer them easy access to the latest in the genre and will go a long way in answering their questions on the subject.”

Utpal Vaishnav, Managing Director, Dominiche, said, “As part of our endeavour to constantly make unique and compelling content available to the DTH ecosystem, we have curated and produced the Astrovaani channel. The genre has the capability to drive a lot of viewership in India. The Astro genre also fills a significant void. Astrovaani features the best Indian astro experts. Dominiche has covered this genre most comprehensively by exclusively signing up over 350 top experts and creating over 500 hours of programme content.”

Earlier, Airtel Digital TV launched ‘Internet TV,’ its latest smart set top box, powered by Android TV, which comes preloaded with Netflix, YouTube, Google Play Music, Google Play Games, Airtel Movies and more.

Bharti Airtel lately has been pretty active in the digital space with its announcement of tie-up with Amazon for its recently launched Fire TV Stick with Voice Remote last month. Through this partnership, customers purchasing Amazon Fire TV will avail 100 GB high-speed data free via Airtel Broadband/Airtel 4G Home Wi-Fi.

Resource :http://www.exchange4media.com/digital/will-the-stars-align-for-airtel-digital-tvs-new-svod-astrology-channel-astrovaani_69014.html

After Zee Entertainment, Sun TV slashes channel prices ahead of TRAI rules

After Zee Entertainment, it is the turn of Sun TV to slash its channel prices with effect from Sept 1 in anticipation of the implementation of new channel pricing rules by TRAI. 

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India had, three months ago, announced that media companies and cable and DTH companies will no longer be allowed to push unnecessary channels down consumers’ throats by pricing individual channels at high rates.

At present, most DTH operators price individual channels at very high rates to discourage people from buying channels one-by-one and to force them to buy packs or bouquets.

When a consumer buys a pack, the DTH operator can make money in two ways: First, it gets a subscription free from the consumer, and secondly, it gets money from the channel owner as well for having included the channel in the pack.

However, if most people start buying channels one-by-one, then the second source of revenue — called carriage fees — will become irrelevant.

For broadcasters, this will mean the end of their ability to push their less-popular channels to consumers by bundling them with popular channels.

Under the new TRAI rules, the sum of the individual prices of channels included in a package cannot be more than 17.65% higher than the price of the overall pack.

In other words, if the total cost of a pack consisting of 10 channels is Rs 85, then the sum of the prices of the 10 individual channels cannot be more than Rs 100. At present, it is likely to range from Rs 300-400.

Zee Entertainment has already tweaked the prices of its individual channels to conform to the new rule, and now Sun TV — which operates around 38 channels — has also done so by bringing down individual prices.

With effect from September, it has reduced the maximum retail price of Sun TV HD to 19 per month per connection from Rs 40 at present. With this, the price of standard definition version of Sun TV and HD version of the same channel has become the same.

Similarly, it has reduced the price of KTV HD and Gemini TV HD to Rs 19 from Rs 40, while the price of newly launched Surya HD has been reduced to Rs 15 from Rs 20.

Even as Zee and Sun — which have both channels and DTH businesses — seemed to have welcomed the news, Star India — which has only channels and no DTH — and Airtel and Tata Sky — which have only DTH and no channels — have challenged the new rules in court.

Resource : https://ultra.news/t-t/31472/zee-entertainment-sun-tv-slashes-channel-prices-ahead-trai-rules

Taxes on entertainment, cable, DTH to come down under GST

The Dollar Business Bureau

The government said on Tuesday that taxes on entertainment, Direct-To-Home (DTH)  and cable services would come down in the new Goods and Services Tax (GST) as 'entertainment tax' that is imposed by the states has been included in the GST regime.

The services offered through admission to cinematography films or entertainment events in cinema halls will be imposed with a rate of 28% under GST effective from July 1, the Finance Ministry said in a statement.

Presently, the states levy entertainment tax of up to 100% with regard to exhibition of films in cinema halls/theatres.

The entertainment tax has now been subsumed under the GST, and therefore only the taxes imposed by a municipality or panchayat on amusements and entertainments will stay.

“Entertainment services shall suffer a lower tax incidence under GST. In addition to the benefit of lower headline rates of GST, the service providers shall be eligible for full input tax credits (ITC) of GST paid in respect of inputs and input services,” the statement said.

The GST Council has decided a tax rate of 18% on cable TV and DTH services.

Presently, the states impose entertainment tax on these services in the range of 10-30% over and above the 15% service tax.

With regards to theatre, circus, classical dance together with folk dance and drama, a rate of 18% will be levied under GST.

Presently, the states levy entertainment tax on these services, the statement said.

“Presently, such service providers are not eligible to avail of input credits in respect of VAT paid on domestically procured capital goods and inputs or of Special Additional Duty (SAD) paid on imported capital goods and inputs,” it added.

While the GST is a value-added tax, the entertainment tax currently imposed by the states is similar to a turnover tax, it said.

The GST Council, last week, had finalised the tax rates of more than 1,200 goods and 500 services in a four slab rate structure of 5%, 12%, 18%, and 28% under the new GST regime.

Resource : https://www.thedollarbusiness.com/news/taxes-on-entertainment-cable-dth-to-come-down-under-gst/50374

Tata Sky to add five more HD channels to take total to 86

Tata Sky, the Indian DTH operator with the highest amount of spectrum and channels, will add five more HD channels to take the total high-definition offerings on the platform to 86.

The new channels being added tomorrow are DSports, MTV HD+, Surya (Malayalam), Udaya (Kannada) and Gemini Movies (Telugu).

With 86 HD channels, the operator has further solidified its position as the largest provider of high-definition content in India.

In comparison, most DTH operators provide only 45-65 HD channels, while cable players provide between 30-50 such channels.

However, due to the paucity of high-definition content, Tata Sky has been forced to offer so-called ‘plus 1’ channels, which are essentially one-hour delayed feed of existing offerings.

As such, it provides +1 services for ‘Star Gold’, ‘Zee Cinema’ and so on.

SPECTRUM BONANZA

Tata Sky has found itself in a happy position of being faced with a glut of spectrum after one of ISRO’s satellites — INSAT-4A — failed to ‘die’ on time.

Tata Sky was using 432 MHz of spectrum on INSAT-4A to deliver content to the Indian subcontinent and was behind players like Videocon D2h, which has 540 MHz, and Dish TV, which had 648 MHz.

INSAT-4A was supposed to reach ‘end of life’ in 2017, and to replace it, ISRO sent GSAT-10 to the same orbital location with 432 MHz of capacity.

As luck would have it, both satellites are working simultaneously. However, because the older satellite can die any time, ISRO cannot sell the capacity on its new satellite to a new player. For the same reason, it cannot sell its capacity on the older satellite either, to any new player.

As a result, Tata Sky has been permitted to use both satellites at the same time, and now has about 828 MHz of spectrum at its disposal.

This is almost double of what most operators in India have.

The only serious competitor is Dish TV, which has recently increased its capacity to 828 MHz. However, since Dish uses the older and less-efficient MPEG-2 standard, 828 MHz is equivalent to around 600 MHz only.

Airtel Digital too has increased its spectrum recently to 396 MHz to 504 MHz and can take it even higher, depending on its need.

Resource : https://ultra.news/t-t/31436/tata-sky-add-five-hd-channels-take-total-86