The Indian government would ideally like to keep the price of the basic tier of free-to-air (FTA) channels, once the conditional access system (CAS) is implemented, below Rs. 100. This is in contrast to the figures that have been touted in the industry that ranges between Rs 125 and Rs 150.Ideally we are looking at pricing the basic tier of FTA channels at around Rs 90," a senior information and broadcasting ministry official told indiantelevision.com.

However, the government official also added that if, after a meeting with cable operators, slated to take place soon, the operators say they would be comfortable with Rs 100 we‘d "come to a compromise as the government is quite flexible about the whole idea. "

The official also added that "the government is not looking at controlling channels - specially the FTA channels. "

Explaining the rationale behind the clause in the Cable TV (Networks) Regulation Amendment Bill, 2002 passed by Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament), which empowers the government to decide on the FTA package, the official explained that if a certain area in a city is dominated by for example South Indians, then having Punjabi or Bengali channels as part of the FTA basic tier in the area would not be feasible.

Still, media analysts insist that certain clauses in the Bill, yet to be okayed by the Rajya Sabha (Upper House), are aimed at giving government a control over what Indian cable and satellite subscribers can watch or not.

A report, about to be released by analyst Kagan Media Appraisals shows that hard drive-enabled set-top boxes and the personalised services they make possible will give the cable industry increased revenue streams, greater customer retention (reduced churn), and lower infrastructure costs thanks to a more efficient use of limited bandwidth.
Titled "The Future of Local Data Storage in Set-top Boxes", the report deduces that putting hard drives in cable TV set-top boxes will turn into a money-maker for cable operators. "Cable Multiple System Operators (MSOs) that include PVR services will be among the early winners in the emerging video-on-demand and subscription video-on-demand markets. Other near-term possibilities range from audio services to enhanced advertising to gaming. Music is a killer application for adding revenue. Music service bundling opportunities alone can increase annual revenues by more than $100 per subscriber," the report notes. Says Kagan World Media senior analyst Ian Olgeirson, "The introduction of local storage connected to a two-way multimedia distribution network creates broad opportunities to add numerous services and the accompanying subscription fees."

The new services will reduce customer churn, enticing consumers to stay with their cable service provider, the report says. Kagan report states that Personal Video Recorder (PVR) technology will pay for itself in reduced VOD infrastructure costs. "PVRs can provide a valuable complement to the deployment of VOD, and help limit strain on the system‘s capacity," says Kagan chief content officer Larry Gerbrandt.

"Customers will increasingly store personal content such as photographs, home video and music collections on the hard drive in their cable set-top box - so they‘ll have a greater personal interest in the device itself. This can further reduce churn," says Gerbrandt.

Sportsworld Australia, earlier a part of the Sportsworld Media Group, has changed ownership and is now christened Sportsbrand Media Group.
Sportsbrand carries forward the heritage of over 10 years in creation and production of quality sports programming and reflects the growing importance for producers to understand brand communications, says an official release.

The programming portfolio, that is envisaged to increase over the coming months will be driven by the demands of broadcasters and advertisers‘ requirements, it adds.

Says Sportsbrand Media Australasia MD Matthew Pearce, "Our name change does not mean cultural or personnel change. Our team remain committed to service of the highest standard."