Out of the box

Soon there will be at least six players offering direct-to-home (DTH) satellite services to television viewers: Reliance ADAG, Bharti, Sun TV and the three who've already started operations, dishtv, Tata Sky and the state-owned DD Direct. Question: How do these players differentiate themselves? Well, they can't compete by offering exclusive programming because regulations written by the TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) do not allow for that. They could compete on price, but that could turn into an ugly war that hurts all players. A more sensible option would be to use technology as a differentiator. That's what the Essel Group's dishtv is attempting by introducing a new set-top box that's compatible with a computer as well as television (TV).

Ajay Parmar, Head of Research Institution, Emkay Shares & Stock Brokers, says that this move on part of dishtv is a clever way to enter offices through PCs. "Until now we took into count only the households for cable & satellite homes, but now this move will increase the universe further. This technology exists in other parts of the world and it will not be long before competition catches up," he says.

The new box, which will cost Rs 1,000 more than the regular one available for Rs 4,000, will be rolled out in a phased manner, starting with eight big cities. "We expect to increase our monthly sales by another 10-12 per cent with the introduction of this product," says Jawahar Goel, Managing Director, dishtv. Dishtv's subscriber base currently stands at 2.2 million households.