Delhi-based fibre optic manufacturer Aksh Optifibre intends to increase its IPTV subscriber base to 40,000 by 2008-end.
To take service to 18 cities
MUMBAI: Delhi-based fibre optic manufacturer Aksh Optifibre intends to increase its IPTV subscriber base to 40,000 by 2008-end. The company, trying to diversify into services by launching its IPTV services in 22 cities, currently has around 8,000 subscribers in Delhi and 2,000 in Mumbai.
It is in the process of raising funds to part fund its ambitious expansion across north India.
Ashok Kumar Wahi, head of strategic initiatives at Aksh, said by year-end, the company will take IPTV services to 18 more cities in Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. The company had posted revenues of Rs 127.48 crore for the 18 months ended September 2007. About 90% of new subscribers will be from its oldest markets of Delhi and Mumbai, he said.
Currently, Aksh gets virtually all its revenues from manufacturing operations, but has invested a huge amount trying to get its IPTV service up and running. It rolls out its TV services over the copper-line infrastructure of public sector telecom operators such as MTNL and BSNL.
Each of the states in which IPTV services are to be rolled out will require investments in the range of Rs 150-200 crore for the central infrastructure. “Installation is in progress in Rajasthan and orders for the equipment have been placed for Punjab as well,” Wahi said. The company charges Rs 199 a month per subscriber in Delhi, which accounts for 80% of its current subscribers. Wahi said the firm is banking on alternate means to monetise the service, which cannot be profitably run only on the current subscription model. “There is the option of a la carte pricing, where consumers have to pay only for the channels they watch. In addition, we have also archived video content, similar to ads, as well as services such as video-on-demand, which will increase the average revenue,” he said.
Aksh is the most successful of a crop of IPTV providers that sprung up in the last five years as partners to public sector landline operators. But the firm, like the others, has been facing legal problems that delayed the full roll out of the service. Broadcasting companies, for example, still refuse to allow the ‘time shift’ feature, the killer feature of IPTV, on their channels as it involves caching and re-transmitting their content. “Time-shift is currently available only on free-to-air channels, but we hope the legal hurdles are removed soon,” Wahi said.
Meanwhile, to attract more customers, Aksh will start distributing its offerings through third-party dealers over the coming weeks. “We will also set up 50-70 demonstration centres by December,” Wahi said.
e_sreejiraj@dnaindia.net
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