There is an enormous cost involved in digitization of cable signals and many cable operators are shying away from this kind of investment, except for a few organized and large scale cable operators. Through this service, the recipient will receive the signals directly from the satellite on his Set Top Box. The viewer gets a wider range of channels to choose from which can be activated through packages. The viewers are also able to watch High Definition content which is set to make television viewing even more outstanding.
Digitization is the process of converting information into a digital format. In this format, information is organized into discrete units of data called bits that can be separately addressed usually in multiple-bit groups called bytes. This is the binary data that computers and many devices with computing capacity such as digital cameras and digital hearing aids can process.
Audio and video digitization uses one of many analogue-to-digital conversion processes in which a continuously variable analog signal is changed, without altering its essential content, into a multi-level digital signal. The process of sampling measures the amplitude signal strength of an analogue waveform at evenly spaced time markers and represents the samples as numerical values for input as digital data. Digitizing information makes it easier to preserve, access and share.
For example, an original historical document may only be accessible to people who visit its physical location, but if the document content is digitized, it can be made available to people worldwide. There is a growing trend towards digitization of historically and culturally significant data.
India is home to roughly million cable TV households today, up from , in January and 94 million in as per a recent report. The "idiot box" is so popular in the country that it is one of the only devices known to have infiltrated pretty much every income group. As understanding of the new regulation spread and people started talking about the need for set-top boxes, it became clear that the move would be far from smooth.
Right at the beginning, meeting the expenses emerged as one of the factors that could scamper the entire plan of making set-top boxes compulsory. It has been revealed that consumers are often being charged illogically for set-top boxes by their cable TV operators. Many operators charge as much as Rs 1,, but there are instances of STBs being offered for free. This not only infuriates the subscribers, but also dissuades those who are waiting for prices to be regulated in the hope that STBs will become cheaper.
Even if the price of a set-top box is standardized, it could be too much for some subscribers. Principally, digitization guarantees to improve the quality audio and video that a customer receives. Digital TV services also allow for more channels and services such as movies on demand. Digitization will also help control the under-reporting of subscribers by local cable operators, which is a general tactic for avoiding taxes and fees.
According to the same report as mentioned earlier, local cable operators report only around 15 percent of their paying customers to Multiple System Operators MSOs and broadcasters, as a result of which their value reduces and the government loses out on service tax. In stark contrast to the slow rate of adoption of digital TV technology in the country, a host of Direct-To-Home DTH players have managed to corner large audiences across Indian towns and cities.
This has clearly shown that there is room for improvement in the market, and that consumers are prepared to pay for superior services. Some guidelines in the interest of consumers have now emerged from the Broadcast Regulator, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India TRAI ; first, the number of channels that you get increases massively. On the current analogue system, technically about channels can be broadcast.
However, in the real world scenario keeping issues like quality of wiring, signal drops due to distance etc. On a digital network, the operator will be able to offer anywhere between channels to channels. Secondly as discussed earlier, the picture quality will see a huge improvement. Third is the ability to tailor the channel package more to your needs, meaning you can pick up channels individually as well. However, the limitation here is that you will need to buy a set top box from your cable service provider to continue using the service.
This will cost anywhere between Rs and Rs , and will be offered with the option of absolute forthright payment or part payment and part EMIs. Without this box, you will not be able to watch television, not even free to air channels FTA. For the government, greater customer declaration will lead to better tax compliance and tax revenues.
It is a step towards the removal of the the Right Track? It stated that Digitisation will capacity constraints. In the digital provide various benefits like increased addressable systems, service providers can choice and quality for viewers, Lower offer more channels and consumers can transaction costs, Switching off analogue select the channels of their choice. Also, terrestrial transmissions of Doordarshan the digital addressable system opens out will bring better efficiency in spectrum additional business opportunities to the use.
The opportunities signals into digital signals. With the could be in fields as diverse as analytics, research, applications, improving sound digitisation of cable television, a Digital systems or managed billing and services Set Top Box will be needed to decode for cable companies, among other things.
Regulation Amendment Bill, LCOs will suffer as a result of complete mandated to digitize the cable sector in transparency. India by December 31, Subtracting about cable in many rural and urban areas in one-third subscribing to Direct-To-Home India. IPTV, on the other hand, has been a services, the rest are going to be touched minor success in some of the major metros by cable digitization. In parts of the country. Meerut, Jodhpur, Solapur, Amritsar, 2. BST - Since the consumer is can only be received through a digital required to pay for FTA channels, addressable box at the consumer end.
Carriage Fees — The fees which integrated system through which signals of broadcasters pay to MSO for taking cable television network can be sent in their channel to viewers. Information and Broadcasting.
The Act also requires the cable operators It mandatory for analog Cable TV to submit reports on the total number of networks in India to switch over to a new subscribers, subscription rates, and the Digital Addressable System DAS by number of subscribers for free-to-air and December It shall be deemed to have pay channels. The Bill would authorise the central government to inspect cable networks and Carriage fee, which broadcasters pay to services.
Prior notice may not be given to MSOs and Local Cable Operators LCOs the cable operator or broadcaster if it for taking their channels to the viewers, would defeat the purpose of the inspection. The agreement was for and distributed by the MSO only. Invariably MSO ends up losing money, as the subscription Digitisation will increase the broadband money so collected from LCO for penetration in India, and will do so at a distribution of TV channels is far lesser much lower cost.
Analysts suggest a 10 than the amount demanded by the pay per cent increase in broadband penetration broadcasters. Better picture and sound quality - mutual negotiations. High definition video shift the balance of power away from and other value added services are LCOs to cable service providers and available to viewers. TV broadcasters who will now be able 2.
Pay for what you see — Consumers are to monitor their subscriber base and able to select channels of their choice control the flow of revenues. Operators MSOs 3. Cable companies needed big investments to make the shift, while the local cable operators LCOs resisted the move for fear of losing control of the end consumer.
Yet, over the years, with increasing shift from analogue to digital TV homes, all the industry stakeholders have benefited. Digitization brings with it transparency, which, in turn, has already led to an upside in subscription revenues. Although it is still a work in progress with cable platforms offering subscriber reports only from large cities with population of a million-plus , the trends are extremely encouraging.
With increase in bandwidth availability, there has been a significant drop in carriage costs vis-a-vis the analogue regime," says Gandhi.
Last but not the least, digitization benefits have accrued to the consumers— more channels are available at far better quality and a significantly improved viewing experience. Channels are provided by the platforms both on a la carte basis as well as in packages. However, he suggests that the government must activate all nodal officers to stop analogue signals and ensure an online Aadhaar-based registration of LCOs and MSOs.
Jehil Thakkar, partner at management consulting firm Deloitte India, feels that India is on the road to success as far as digitization is concerned. However, the objectives of digitization have been met only with partial success.
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