Large quarter-page ads from the government are appearing in newspapers intermittently for the past several days that seek to inform TV watchers about the soon-to-come CAS or Conditional Access System. CAS debuts in metro cities from Jan1 next, and all fingers connected to the issue are firmly crossed as to how the newbie is likely to fare.
For a long time, cablewallahs (ubiquitous those who arrange TV signals through cables), as they are commonly called, have milked the Indian TV-viewers to their hearts’ content, as if there is no tomorrow.
But talk to them about commensurate service you feel you deserve, you’re likely to be dismissed like a fly in the ointment. So if you want to catch up on the latest on BBC News while most in your locality prefer a Hindi soap, no amount of your shouting will help if that doesn’t fall into the cablewallah’s scheme of things.
It took the government immeasurably long time to realize that TV-viewing is a serious occupation of average Indians and so some amount of regulation to rein in waywardness of cable people is necessary. But then, it’s better late than never. And so at long last CAS is coming as an eagerly awaited relief.
Under CAS there’ll be a distinction between free channel and pay channel. Instead of a fixed tariff that a viewer currently pays, she will have a choice to pay only for those channels she wishes to view, while presumably not paying anything, except perhaps for barebone link charge, if she doesn’t want to view pay channels at all.
But how will there be a link from your TV to the thin air from where to catch the signals? For that one has to go for one-time refundable deposit for a set-top box for Rs.900 and Rs.30 per month for the link. Read more.
Meanwhile, DTH (Direct to Home) satellite TV services have already debuted. Tata Sky is a major player in this segment. Similar to CAS, DTH too needs to a set-top box to be installed where the TV is, in addition to a small dish antenna. DTH looks costlier at the outset. Tata Sky offers the hardware for Rs.3000, plus another Rs.1000 for their installation and 12-month warranty (see this report).
There’s a monthly subscription of Rs.300 for Tata Sky, and so taking all of that together, its service certainly costs quite a bit. But then, as it says, you’re likely to enjoy world-class viewing, what with 108 channels that include nearly all the popular programs and several other options like gaming, split viewing, hot movies, and so on.
Say we’ll be spoilt for TV viewing. And pray why not? After all, isn’t the idiot box a great family entertainment in most of our homes?
A crash course – technology matters [Picture source]
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