Chennai, Oct. 23 To keep pace with the demand, direct-to-home (DTH) service provider Tata Sky has entered into an agreement to buy set-top boxes from Korean manufacturer Kaon Media, which will set up a manufacturing unit in Uttaranchal catering exclusively to Tata Sky, said Mr Vikram Kaushik, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Tata Sky Ltd.
The unit is likely to go “on stream” next month, he said without sharing how many set-top boxes (STBs) the facility could produce. This would be the company’s third dedicated STB manufacturing facility after Thomson Electronics and Humax’s units in Pune and Noida. However, about 90 per cent of components are imported.
“We have been facing a slight STB supply crunch in recent months. With Diwali nearing, we do not want to take any chances,” Mr Kaushik said during an interaction with media persons of The Hindu group. About 40 per cent of all television sales in the country happen during Diwali. Tata Sky is offering discounts on subscription depending on the size of televisions people buy this Diwali. For example, those buying a 21- inch television would get a 21 per cent discount on a Tata Sky subscription.
The company recently made available a collection of art films by directors like Akira Kurosawa on its movie-on-demand section and plans to add more such content in future including newly released Indian films.
About 10 per cent of Tata Sky’s over 10 lakh users use its movie-on-demand and interactive television features.
When asked how DTH would impact the cable television business in India, he said DTH would not kill cable. “Nowhere in the world has DTH wiped out cable. India has about 7.5 crore cable connections. As DTH gains ground, these will have to become more efficient, providing more value,” he said. Digitisation would be a way to do this, however, cable operators would have to invest heavily in such a venture, he said. The US cable industry spent about $90 billion (about Rs 3.60 lakh crore) over 10 years to upgrade to digital cable.
The addressable market for DTH in India is estimated to be about 7.2 crore households and by 2010, about 3 crore of these are expected to be DTH subscribers.
The Hindu Business Line : Korean co to make set-top boxes for Tata Sky
The unit is likely to go “on stream” next month, he said without sharing how many set-top boxes (STBs) the facility could produce. This would be the company’s third dedicated STB manufacturing facility after Thomson Electronics and Humax’s units in Pune and Noida. However, about 90 per cent of components are imported.
“We have been facing a slight STB supply crunch in recent months. With Diwali nearing, we do not want to take any chances,” Mr Kaushik said during an interaction with media persons of The Hindu group. About 40 per cent of all television sales in the country happen during Diwali. Tata Sky is offering discounts on subscription depending on the size of televisions people buy this Diwali. For example, those buying a 21- inch television would get a 21 per cent discount on a Tata Sky subscription.
The company recently made available a collection of art films by directors like Akira Kurosawa on its movie-on-demand section and plans to add more such content in future including newly released Indian films.
About 10 per cent of Tata Sky’s over 10 lakh users use its movie-on-demand and interactive television features.
When asked how DTH would impact the cable television business in India, he said DTH would not kill cable. “Nowhere in the world has DTH wiped out cable. India has about 7.5 crore cable connections. As DTH gains ground, these will have to become more efficient, providing more value,” he said. Digitisation would be a way to do this, however, cable operators would have to invest heavily in such a venture, he said. The US cable industry spent about $90 billion (about Rs 3.60 lakh crore) over 10 years to upgrade to digital cable.
The addressable market for DTH in India is estimated to be about 7.2 crore households and by 2010, about 3 crore of these are expected to be DTH subscribers.
The Hindu Business Line : Korean co to make set-top boxes for Tata Sky
