NTO: Cable operators to pull the plug on manoranjan

HYDERABAD: Close to 80 lakh people across Telangana, including 30 lakh from Greater Hyderabad, who are dependent on cable TV for their daily dose of entertainment, may not be able to watch their favourite shows from February 1 when the new tariff order (NTO) set by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) comes into force.

Cable TV operators in Telangana along with their counterparts from other States have decided to air only 100 free-to-air channels as a protest against NTO if TRAI does not bend to their demands before February 1.Once the NTO comes into force, even cable TV subscribers who have been paying a small lump sum for a large number of channels will have to shell out money according to what channels they wish to watch as DTH subscribers do. While the price of a paid channel can range anywhere between `0.50 and `19, most popular channels are priced at the maximum.

Of the 876 channels, 336 are paid and the rest are free-to-air. However, of the 540 free-to-air channels only 100 can be aired by the cable operators without charging money from customers, as per the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India law. Above this limit, `20 has to be charged per free-to-air channel.  Cable TV operators are also demanding transparency in revenue sharing agreement between broadcasters and Multi-Systems Operators (MSO) along with a fair share in revenues for cable TV operators.

Seemandhra Cable TV Operators Welfare Association president VS Divakar Pakki said, “Broadcasters earn huge revenues from advertisements. With NTO coming into effect, they will earn about 80 percent of revenue from other sources including the amount paid by subscribers for various channels whereas cable operators will earn only 10 per cent. This shows that the NTO is meant to benefit broadcasters and should not be enforced.”