Unveiling JioPhone TV cable at RIL's 40th annual general meeting (AGM) in Mumbai on Friday, Ambani said many JioPhone users might like to view their favourite content such as live TV, movies, and education on the big screen of their television sets.
After shaking up the Indian telecommunications space with affordable 4G services under brand Jio, Reliance Industries' chairman Mukesh Ambani is probably working on another disruption in the cable television, direct-to-home (DTH), and the overall broadcasting space in the years to come. And the unveiling of 'JioPhone TV cable' initiative seems to the first step in that direction.
Unveiling JioPhone TV cable at RIL's 40th annual general meeting (AGM) in Mumbai on Friday, Ambani said many JioPhone users might like to view their favourite content such as live TV, movies, and education on the big screen of their television sets.
"This is especially true in many remote parts of India where even cable TV and high-speed internet have not reached. Our young Jio engineers have created an innovation to help them — a special and affordable 'JioPhone TV cable' that connects JioPhone with any TV, not just a smart TV, so that all JioPhone users can enjoy viewing on the big screen of their existing television sets," said Ambani. He added that along with this accessory, users can opt for the existing 'Jio Dhan Dhana Dhan' Rs 309 pack that would allow users to watch almost 3-4 hours of video of their choice daily, and that too on a large screen.
While analysts tracking the media sector feel it's too early to call the JioPhone TV cable disruptive, the very fact that it can be done in a big way certainly pose challenges for the broadcasting industry. "This is something that's still in its infancy right now. But my sense is that it seems to have the potential to become very big in future. It also depends on a lot of things like the quality of bandwidth provision to start with. One has to really wait and see how it plays out. If a technology like that exists and works perfectly, it certainly is a big threat," said an analyst adding that it's too early to really make an authoritative analysis of its impact.
The JioPhone TV cable initiative basically allows users to mirror the television content from the JioTV application on to their television sets using a cable to connect the devices. Taking into account 1GB of high-speed data, users will be able to watch their favourite content for a duration of anything between two and four hours. As 4G data speed will come down to 128 kbps after 1GB gets exhausted users will have to top up their data plan for an uninterrupted live TV watching experience.
"In that case, it will become a very expensive proposition especially in areas where cable and DTH subscribers pay between Rs 300 and Rs 500 per month. However, in places where both services are not available, JioPhone TV cable can be a great option as users can then opt for the Rs 309 monthly plan as against the Rs 153 monthly plan as access television content on both the JioPhone as well as their television set," said a senior media industry professional requesting not to be quoted.
The analyst community is of the view that as an idea it is potentially big affecting not just the cable and DTH players but broadcasters as well. "It can be a very big game changer and totally change the industry in the future. Right now, for pretty much similar assets one company may make Rs 1000 crore in revenue while another one will make just Rs 300 crore depending on past business relations, clout, legacy and first mover advantage in the market. If something like this becomes a reality, all that will vanish," the analyst said adding that while this disruption is happening slowly, analysts feel it's still questionable as of now.
Among various reasons for analysts to doubt the JioPhone TV cable disruption is its execution. "As someone who has been watching the lag between what Reliance announces and what actually goes through, it tends to take a lot of time and there are numerous execution issues as well in doing something like this. I surely, don't expect this to materialise very soon but as an idea it certainly sounds like a huge disruption in the years to come," the analyst said.
The right call
The JioPhone TV cable initiative basically allows users to mirror the television content from the JioTV application on to their television sets using a cable to connect the devices.
Taking into account 1GB of high-speed data, users will be able to watch their favourite content for a duration of anything between two and four hours.
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