NEW DELHI: Even as the issue of conditional access or addressability in India cable homes lurches from point to another, hopefully, to a logical finish, the government-piloted task force on CAS is scheduled to meet here on 21 May.
According to some task force members, the agenda of the proposed meeting has not been listed, but it is expected that the rollout deadline would figure in the meeting.
According to government sources, if by then, the broadcasters managing pay channels have not already come out with the individual pricing of each pay channel, that issue is also likely to be taken up.
Incidentally, the government sources on the task force said that the broadcasters had said that within 48 hours of the announcement of the price of the basic tier of free to air channels, the pay channels' individual pricing would be announced.
It seems that the pay channels are having second thoughts as till date no move has been made by any pay channel to come out with the maximum retail price, assurances on this from broadcasters notwithstanding.
Amidst all this brouhaha, a candid confession from a media company managing pay channels really sums up the whole scenario. On the condition of anonymity, a senior executive of a broadcasting company admitted:"In the game of CAS, there is no denying that the consumer will be the ultimate loser."
Are the government and the industry people listening?