With around 1.14 lakh set-top boxes still in the industry stock, CAS may be introduced in the remaining parts of metros soon.
NEW DELHI: There’s more CAS coming your way, soon. With around 1.14 lakh set-top boxes still in the industry stock, conditional access system (CAS), which is all about accessing the channels of your choice and paying only for them, may be introduced in the remaining parts of the metros soon.
At a press conference on Wednesday, information and broadcasting minister PR Dasmunsi said, “Firm decision on rolling out CAS in other parts of the metros will be taken by the first week of February.”
Along with the metros, CAS may be introduced in some more big cities like Ahmedabad, Bhopal and Bangalore, Dasmunsi indicated.
Although no time-frame was set for CAS roll-out in the remaining parts of the metros, the government is exploring the idea in consultation with the industry, after the first phase was found to be successful.
CAS was made mandatory in certain parts of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata from December 31, 2006. That is, without set-top boxes, a cable TV viewer in these cities cannot access the pay channels, for which the ceiling tariff of Rs 5 each has been set by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai).
Chennai was the only city to have CAS before that. In Chennai, the addressible TV-viewing system was launched in 2003.
There’s no word yet on the launch of CAS in satellite towns like Noida and Gurgaon.
Even as the introduction of CAS witnessed a boom in demand for an alternate pay TV system— direct-to-home (DTH) broadcasting, the I&B minister called the first phase of CAS a success. According to the minister, no shortage of set-top boxes has been reported so far.
According to the data supplied by the I&B ministry, around 3.8 lakh set-top boxes have been supplied for CAS across Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata so far. Mumbai has the maximum number of CAS homes accessing pay channels, at 1.78 lakh, followed by 1.6 lakh in Delhi and only 41,522 in Kolkata.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}