STB interoperability is not viable, say DTH operators of India

[IndianMascot]

Set-top box (STB) interoperability should be kept out of the new licence guidelines the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is working on, the direct-to-home (DTH) operators have said.

Dish TV, Tata Sky, Videocon d2h, Reliance Digital TV and Airtel Digital TV have pointed out that technical interoperability is not only difficult to achieve since different DTH operators have deployed different technologies but it is also commercially unviable.

Technical interoperability is difficult since some platforms operate on MPEG-2 DVB-S technology while most others have chosen MPEG-4 DVB-S2-8PSK.

The DTH operators also argue that they will keep adopting the technologies themselves by virtue of their business model and there is no need for TRAI to make Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) specified technology mandatory in licensing conditions.

In its supplementary consultation paper, the authority had recommended that the government should ensure that the BIS specifications are based on open architecture and should incorporate the latest technological developments with respect to the technical interoperability of DTH STBs, taking into account its practicability as well as the international experience. The BIS specifications must clearly specify the contours of interoperability between the STBs based on different technological standards.

TRAI had also stated that the licence conditions should be amended to mandate compliance to the latest BIS specifications for the STBs to be offered to all the new subscribers. For compliance, the operators must be given a suitable period of say six months from the date of notification of such specifications.



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[Heart]

TRAI To Study How Interoperability In DTH Can Be Made Effective

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The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) that released a recommendation paper on the new DTH licensing regime amongst other things also covered the issue of set top box (STB) interoperability. In the paper, the Authority has said that STB interoperability is not possible because of the different technologies adopted by the operators due to them entering the market at different times.

TRAI thus, has asked the bureau of Indian standards (BIS) to regularly keep updating the standard of STB technology.

Just one day after the recommendation paper, the Authority has now been asked by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry (I&B) to give its recommendations on how the portability of direct-to-home (DTH) set top boxes can be done easily.

TRAI to study how interoperability in DTH can be made effective | Indian Television Dot Com

 

[IndianMascot]

It has been more than 10 years since DTH is launched and TRAI is still studying

 

[Technoglitch]

it will take another twenty years to implement.

 

[IndianMascot]

Till then we will be having STB of every company at our home

 

[DashMajor]

Such think won't be implement until and unless we keep purchasing STBs from resp. DTH.

 

[Technoglitch]

by that time we may have more DTH players.

 

[SUNIEL]

But really if TRAI want to do something in favour of user then why not asking dth operator to provide unlock stb. Atleast we would able to watch dd direct plus.

 

[DashMajor]

But really if TRAI want to do something in favour of user then why not asking dth operator to provide unlock stb. Atleast we would able to watch dd direct plus.

Is all DTH able to get signals from INSAT 4 B ?

 

[IndianMascot]

Present hardware which is at your and mine home doesn't support interpolability. It will be possible when TRAI will study and ask each operators to develop and implement such Boxes which is a distant dream.

And now a days each operator us providing STB at subsidized rates. So practically it's better to buy a box worth Rs 2000 having freebies of Rs 500 to 1000.

So, interoperability isn't in demand.