Page 61 - 31DEC2018E

ENTERTAINMENT

How much your cable and offer larger packages to households that much lower as explained below. At pre- pack has to be maintained at the same

sent, individual channels are priced very
range, the average individual selling price
have more TVs and want more options in
satellite TV bill would rise programming. high so as to discourage subscribers from of these channels cannot be more than
purchasing channels one-by-one and in-
Many services come at a higher month-
7.05 per month due to the new 85% rule.
ly cost. Service providers are focused on
stead go for one of the operators’ ‘packs’ —
For example, if the individual price of
these channels is 10 per month, then the
such as Gold, Diamond or Platinum.
the majority of customers that get a bun-
or fall in 2019? dle of services, most significantly Internet DTH or cable operator is able to sell sev- the price is hiked to that extent, many HD
When anyone subscribes to a ‘pack’, the total HD pack price will rise to 340-425. If
service, rather than the few that only get
TV service from them. Star India has chal-
subscribers will simply exit the pack and
eral extra channels as part of the pack in
lenged the Madras High Court order in the addition to the channel that the subscriber purchase 20 of these channels individu-
Supreme Court, and the apex court is hear- is looking for. In return for selling these ally, which will cost them only 200 per
Cable and satellite TV providers are ringing in the New Year 2019 with an unwelcome gift: higher cable ing on the matter. Except for Star India, ‘unwanted channels’, the DTH or cable month. This is because most subscribers
bills. However, new rules are subscriber-friendly and your monthly bill may be less if new rules are most broadcasters have complied with the operator gets money from the owners of do not ‘need’ all 40-50 HD channels they
get, but consume only about half of them.
tariff order by announcing their respective those channels. As such, they are keen to
implemented in letter and spirit, writes SUMAN reference interconnect offer (RIO) docu- Under the new rules, cable and DTH
ments, listing the maximum retail price of companies can charge money under only
per month per channel. Tata Sky’s pric- channels and bouquet rates. two headers that are basic subscription
ing is more flexible, ranging from 25 If the Supreme Court order is in favour While TV package and pay-channel charges.
for regional channels to 75 for sports of TRAI, broadcasters will have to sign providers announced The basic subscription charge has
channels. Videocon D2h, too charges their interconnect agreements with cable been stipulated at a maximum of 130
between 23 and 60. In other words, if and DTH companies by December 27 and only modest rise per month, which enables you to buy 100
you were to subscribe individually to 50 comply with the new tariff order, which in 2018—generally standard or 50 HD channels. If you need
HD channels, it would cost you around offers consumers the choice to get first more channels, the operator can charge
2,500 per month. 100 channels for not more than 130. Out in the 3 to 4 per you a maximum of 20 for every 25 stand-
It’s probably no surprise that pay-tv of these 100 channels, 26 are mandatory cent range—they’re ard channels per month. If it’s for HD
packages were more expensive in 2018 Prasar Bharati channels and we expect a channels, it is 20 for every 12 HD chan-
than in 2017. And TV packages would be rush among broadcasters to pay to get in continuing to impose nels. For example, if you want to watch a
even more expensive in the year 2019 vis- the remaining 74 channel slots. total of 40 HD channels and 20 SD chan-
a-viz 2018. But what’s less obvious is that add-on charges that nels, you have to pay 104 as a capacity
while providers announced only mod- Good News are quietly inflating charge for the HD channels and 26 as a
est increases in 2018 — generally in the However, there is a good news for the sub- capacity charge for the standard channels.
3 to 4 per cent range — they’re continu- scribers. The new rules on the pricing of your TV’s monthly At present, subscribing to all required
ing to impose add-on charges, such as television channels are likely to make the outgoing amount packs to get all the channels that the sub-
“broadcast TV fees” and “regional sports viewing of HD and sports channels in In- scriber wants costs between 500-700 per
fees” that are quietly inflating your TV’s dia cheaper and make charges such as ‘HD month. The problem of bundling is more
monthly outgoing amount. To add to it Access Fee’ totally illegal. The rules have sell their channels in packs and never in acute on platforms like Tata Sky, which
the Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEE), already been issued and come into effect the form of individual channels. charges something known as ‘HD Access
Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN), Vi- after being published in the Gazette. Fee’ to watch HD content. In the case of
acom18 and TV18 are among networks The most important of the new rules is Cap on prices Tata Sky, the HD Access fee is Rs 175 per
that have converted all their free-to-air the imposition of a price cap of 19 on all The new rules are designed primarily to month on top of the pack charges. Under
channels into pay channels. channels, HD or otherwise. The only way address this issue of thrusting unwanted the new scheme, all HD Access charges
he ZEE, SPN, Viacom18, and Of television broadcast networks, in- And often these additional fees can be for any broadcaster to price its channel channels down consumers’ throats in the become illegal as they are neither capacity
TV18 have converted all their cluding Star, Zee, and Sony Pictures, have imposed even if you’re locked into a pro- above 19 will be to take it out of all pack- form of bundling. charges nor pay-channel charges.
free-to-air channels into pay decided not to offer their channels in the motional rate for TV service. ages and sell it only as an individual chan- Another rule has also been brought out The service providers can charge less
channels. Cable and satellite basic pack of cable and DTH operators. No price hike is welcome, the consum- nel — something that is practically impos- towards this end. The second provision is if they wish to but not more as per the
T TV providers are ringing in This will be a shock for viewers who were ers expect the companies to absorb some sible given the market situation. that the total price of any pack cannot be new rules. For example, Star Sports 1 HD is
the New Year with an unwelcome gift expecting a drop in their monthly cable of the increased programming costs in- As a result, the maximum price that any less than 85% of the total price of all the priced at 19 per month, the DTH operator
that is higher cable bills. Over the past or DTH bills. Reason-many of their fa- stead of passing them on to consumers. cable or DTH operator can charge for a channels contained inside it. is free to sell it at 10 per month if it is will-
decade, prices for TV service have risen vourite channels will not be available in single channel has, in effect, been capped Right now, the price of a pack of 40-50 ing to take the loss. Similarly, it can charge
almost twice as fast as inflation, accord- the basic pack capped at 130 (plus taxes) Minting money at 19 per month. This is far below what ca- HD channels ranges between 225-300 less than 130 as its basic charge. Because
ing to an analysis of government data. by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of The real money for cable companies ble and DTH operators are charging right per month — or about 6 per channel. The of the way they have been framed, the new
Data provider S&P Global Market Intel- India (TRAI) in its tariff order. these days are in selling bundles that in- now. reason it is kept at this level is that if it is rules are likely to force many channels to
ligence says customers’ cable and satel- However, according to Airtel Digi- clude TV programming, internet access, Under the new system notified by increased much beyond this range, con- reduce their subscription charges to zero.
lite TV bills have soared 53 per cent since tal’s tariff card, almost all the HD chan- and perhaps phone service. The tradi- TRAI, it would cost only a maximum of sumers may disconnect or look for other
2007. nels are priced between 50 and 60 tional cable and satellite services tend to 950, but the actual number is likely to be options. So, if the overall price of the HD LETTERS@TEHELKA.COM

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