I'm waiting for the successful launch of Insat 4 A series on December 21, 2005 as scheduled by Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) as it will take the DTH race in India to the next level.
Currently there is only one major private operator offering DTH services in India - Zee. Doordarshan's DTH venture is more for the masses as it would be offering only free to air channels with absolutely no value add.
Zee which offered its DTH hardware for about Rs. 7500 (USD 180) till about 6 months ago has already taken the lead in the price war by slashing it to just about Rs. 4000 (USD 90) including one year subscription to all the channels on plate!
The Tata-Star venture (Tata-Sky) has finaly got the government approval. They have blocked transponders in Insat 4A which is currently set to launch on Dec 21, 2005. (It has been delayed by about 4 months now). Once the satellite is on orbit, Tata-sky will have the necessary infrastructure in place to start beaming in the Ku band. It is expected to launch with about 150 channels. It is expected to go on air by around April-May 2006.
Another major player waiting in the final rounds for approval is Sun Network. It is expected that they will take south India by Storm by their pricing and aggressive programming once they launch.
Anil Ambani's ADAE has also approached the government for DTH license. They should also get through.
But, much depends on the Satellite launches as all these players need them to in place before they can beam their channels.
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