TV signals to go digital by 2015
The days of hooking a wire to get cable television could soon be over with the I&B ministry on Thursday setting a March 31, 2015 deadline for shift from analog to digital systems.
This will ensure better quality picture and services, choice of channels and interactive services. The industry will benefit as the move is expected to bring greater transparency in subscriber base and reduction in carriage fees. “This is the way ahead for the industry,” a government official said.
The proposal has been sent to broadcast regulator TRAI and will be put before the cabinet for approval. Digitisation, where the feed will be received through set-top boxes, is expected to be executed in phases and the four metros of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai have to shift to digital addressability by March 31, 2012. Phase II will include 35 cities with population of more than 1 million like Patna, Chandigarh, Pune and Bangalore by March 31, 2013. Digitization will bring set-top box prices down
New Delhi: Moves are afoot to digitize television signals. All urban areas are expected to digitize by November 30, 2014 and the remaining areas by March 31, 2015.
Zee News CEO Barun Das said, “Digitization will help industry grow at an accelerated speed. It is the key to problems like distrbution bottlenecks and under-declaration leading to loss of subscription revenue that broadcasters face today.”
Industry insiders said digitization was the world norm and would bring prices down not just of set-top boxes but also carriage fees.
Consumers are likely to spend Rs 1,000 for a set-top box but the monthly subscription could remain the same — around Rs 250-Rs 500 or even drop further.
This will ensure better quality picture and services, choice of channels and interactive services. The industry will benefit as the move is expected to bring greater transparency in subscriber base and reduction in carriage fees. “This is the way ahead for the industry,” a government official said.
The proposal has been sent to broadcast regulator TRAI and will be put before the cabinet for approval. Digitisation, where the feed will be received through set-top boxes, is expected to be executed in phases and the four metros of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai have to shift to digital addressability by March 31, 2012. Phase II will include 35 cities with population of more than 1 million like Patna, Chandigarh, Pune and Bangalore by March 31, 2013. Digitization will bring set-top box prices down
New Delhi: Moves are afoot to digitize television signals. All urban areas are expected to digitize by November 30, 2014 and the remaining areas by March 31, 2015.
Zee News CEO Barun Das said, “Digitization will help industry grow at an accelerated speed. It is the key to problems like distrbution bottlenecks and under-declaration leading to loss of subscription revenue that broadcasters face today.”
Industry insiders said digitization was the world norm and would bring prices down not just of set-top boxes but also carriage fees.
Consumers are likely to spend Rs 1,000 for a set-top box but the monthly subscription could remain the same — around Rs 250-Rs 500 or even drop further.
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