TRAI's 'Best Fit Plan' for DTH subscribers: All you need to know

The new rules set by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) for cable and DTH operators came into effect on February 1. The deadline for the subscribers to pick their own channels for their television subscription however, was extended to March 31. Meanwhile, the cable operators implemented the 'Best Fit Plan' proposed by TRAI for users who did not migrate to the new regulations.

Hence, if you did not switch to new DTH regulations, the Best Fit Plan applies to you. Here's all you need to know about this new scheme:

What is Best Fit Plan?

According to TRAI's official press release, "The 'Best Fit Plan' shall be designed based on Consumers' usage pattern and language spoken. It should preferably be a blended combination of various Genres, while making 'Best Fit Plan' for a subscriber, DPOs should ensure that payout per month of the 'Best Fit Plan' generally does not exceed the payout per month of existing tariff plan of the subscriber."

Also Read: TRAI deadline to choose TV channels ends; here's what will happen if you haven't picked channels

The Best Fit Plan is derived from the older schemes modified to fit consumers' needs and choices. The Best Fit Plan is based on the users preferred genres, languages etc. DTH and cable operators identify these and activate Best Fit Plan.

In order to check if their Best Fit Plan has been activated or not, the subscribers will need to login to the website of their respective DTH operator, for example, Tata Sky, Dish TV, Airtel Digital TV (ADTV), Videocon D2H etc to check the same.

Also Read: TRAI extends deadline to choose TV channels to March 31; here's what will happen if you don't

What is the pricing of the Best Fit Plan?

TRAI under the new Best Fit Plan has dictated the operators to keep the users' total bill amount closer to the previous scheme which means the subscribers should not find much difference between the old charges and the tariffs under the new plan.

Also Read: TRAI refutes CRISIL report on TV bill hike under new tariff regime

How to upgrade and modify the Best Fit Plan?

The Best Fit Plan can always be upgraded in case the subscribers miss out on the channels of their choice in the current scheme. The users can also choose bouquets of clubbed and customised channels to save costs.

All cable, DTH operators have listed the monthly charges of individual channels on their websites besides the available bouquet packs with clubbed channels.

As per the TRAI rules, the Network Capacity Fee (NCF) or the base tariff for 100 channels is Rs 153 which includes Rs 130 per month plus 18 per cent GST.