GROWING PREFERENCE OF DTH OVER CABLE TV
Submitted in the partial fulfillment for the award of the degree of
BACHELOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
TO
Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi
UNDER THE SUPERVISION SUBMITTED BY:-AND GUIDANCE OF: -
GARIMA WADHAWAN PROF. RAJESH BAJAJ BBA-VI(M)
0621701708
SESSION: 2008 – 2011
TECNIA INSTITUTE OF ADVANCED STUDIES
(Approved by AICTE, Ministry of HRD, Govt. of India)Affiliated To Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi
INSTITUTIONAL AREA, MADHUBAN CHOWK, ROHINI, DELHI- 110085E-Mail:[email protected], Website: www.tecniaindia.org
Fax No: 27555120, Tel: 27555121
CERTIFICATE
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I, Ms. GARIMA WADHAWAN, Roll No. 0621701708 certify that the Project
Report/Dissertation (BBA-310) entitled “GROWING PREFERENCE OF DTH
OVER CABLE TV” is done by me and it is an authentic work carried out by me at
TECNIA INSTITUTE OF ADVANCED STUDIES. The matter embodied in this
project work has not been submitted earlier for the award of any degree or diploma to
the best of my knowledge and belief.
Signature of the Student
Date:
Certified that the Project Report/Dissertation (BBA-310) entitled “GROWING
PREFERENCE OF DTH OVER CABLE TV” done by Ms. GARIMA
WADHAWAN, Roll No.0621701708, is completed under my guidance.
Signature of the Guide
Date:
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Address:
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Countersigned
Director/Project Coordinator
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ACKNOWELEDGEMENT
I , GARIMA WADHAWAN, student of Bachelors of Business Administration,
Tecnia Institute of Advanced Studies ,Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha
University(GGSIPU) with great sense of satisfaction I would like to express profound
sense of gratitude and respect those who helped me throughout the duration of this
project report
Certainly, this project could not have completed without the valuable suggestions
from various sources.
I would like to express my earnest gratefulness to Prof. RAJESH BAJAJ, faculty,
Tecnia institute of advanced studies, Rohini for giving me an opportunity to undertake
this research project under his expert guidance and for helping me in understanding
and completing the same in a fruitful manner.
This acknowledgement is incomplete without thanking and expressing a profound and
earnest gratitude to all the respondents who gave me their time and patience for
carrying out this research and helped me in finding out conclusion in a better and
significant manner.
I would also like to thank my institute Tecnia institute of advanced studies for giving
me an opportunity to work on this project. I would also like to thank my friends for
their support.
.
GARIMA WADHAWAN
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CONTENTS
S No Topic Page No1 Certificate (s) 22 Acknowledgements 33 List of Abbreviations 54 Chapter-1: Introduction 6-439 Chapter-2: Data Reduction & Presentation 44-5310 Chapter-3: Data Analysis 54-6211 Chapter-4: Summary and Conclusions 63-6912 References/Bibliography 7013 Appendices 71-74
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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
S No Abbreviated Name
Full Name
1 DTH Direct to home2 TV Television3 CAS conditional access system4 STB Set top box5 IPTV Internet Protocol television
6 AV Audio video
7 CPE Customer Premise Equipment
8 ISRO Indian Space Research Organisation
9 NSS New skies satellite
10 DVD Digital Versatile Disc
11 EPG Electronic programmer guide
12 SV-O-D Subscription video on demand
13 KU Name of the band
14 DD Doordarshan
15 LCD liquid crystal display
16 LED light-emitting diode
17 SWOT Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats
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1.1AIM OF THE RESEARCH
“To show that DTH is growing in preference over Cable TV”
1.2 OBJECTIVE OF THE RESEARCH
Every research work undertaken is completed with some objective in mind which is in
accordance with the significance of the study. Objective of the study is the main
purpose towards which the study is directed and it is important for undertaking any
research work in the right direction.
To determine how many people use Cable TV.
To determine how many people use DTH.
To give the interactive features of various DTH services.
To show the growing preference of DTH over Cable TV.
To understand purchase criteria of customers for selecting DTH or Cable Services
To understand competition between various players
To Find Out Opportunity & Threats In Indian DTH Industry.
To Study The Reason Behind Growth Of DTH Market.
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1.3 SCOPE OF THE RESEARCH PROBLEM
“The growing preference of DTH over Cable TV”- is a recent phenomenon and has
not been extensively researched.
Moreover, the research being primary in nature itself describes the newness of topic. I
feel that there is indeed a vast scope for research in this field keeping in mind the
advancement of technology day by day.
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1.4 OVERVIEW OF DTH INDUSTRY:
DIRECT TO HOME/ SATELLITE TELEVISION
DTH: stands for Direct-To-Home television. DTH is defined as the reception of
satellite programmes with a personal dish in an individual home.
DTH is a new technology that circumvents the cable operators by directly delivering a
bundle of channels to the end user. DTH involves transmission of encoded audio/
video signals (Ku band) via satellite. The end user needs an antenna to receive the
signals and a decoder (set top box) to unscramble the encrypted signals. DTH services
elsewhere in the world are Echostar and DirecTV (USA) and B sky B (Europe).
Rupert Murdoch of Star TV fame owns BskyB.
The size of the antenna in DTH will be 1.5-2 ft in diameter, shortly. In the meantime,
DD has sought to be the exclusive licensee for providing DTH services. The license
will be for a period of 15 years, the first 5 being exclusive and in the balance 10; DD
will be exposed to competition.
The DTH market in India, according to Star TV reports, is estimated at 0.1mn
households. Another issue that will impact valuations will be local program content.
In India, given the diversity and differences in tastes, regional content is critical for
success. This has been proved by the success of Sun TV in Chennai.
DTH will result in restructuring of the cable television industry. It will become
imperative to have cash reserves to withstand the technology threat. Upgradation to
fiber optic backbone will become necessary. A fiber optic network will cost about
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Rs0.5mn per km as compared to Rs0.1mn per km for coaxial cable. The stage is now
ripe for consolidation.
DTH services were first proposed in India in 1996. But they did not pass approval
because there were concerns over national security and a cultural invasion. In 1997,
the government even imposed a ban when the Rupert Murdoch-owned Indian Sky
Broadcasting (ISkyB) was about to launch its DTH services in India.
Finally in 2000, DTH was allowed. The new policy requires all operators to set up
earth stations in India within 12 months of getting a license.
DTH licenses in India will cost $2.14 million and will be valid for 10 years. The
companies offering DTH service will have to have an Indian chief and foreign equity
has been capped at 49 per cent. There is no limit on the number of companies that can
apply for the DTH license.
Since its inception in 2003, the Indian Direct-To-Home (DTH) TV industry has been
growing at a rapid pace. This growth has been supported by huge investments by the
existing and new players. Defying the global trend of economic crisis, DTH industry
posted significant growth in 2008 and 2009.
The DTH market acquired around 16 Million subscribers by the end of 2009, an
increase of approximately 44% over the 2008 levels. With the entry of new players in
the Indian DTH industry, competition is getting intense. Due to this intensifying
competition, installation prices are declining and subscribers have a wide range of
options to make choices.
The reason for high growth in DTH subscriber base can be attributed to the fact that
quality of service delivered by DTH is superior as compared to cable or any other
medium. Since DTH TV industry is currently in growth phase, it is expected to attract
a large number of subscribers in near future. As per our new research report “Indian
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DTH Market Forecast to 2012”, the number of DTH subscribers is projected to grow
at a CAGR of around 18% during 2010-2013 to 39 Million by 2013. In 2008, the
DTH subscribers accounted for only a small proportion (less than 10%) of total
number of TV households in India, which were 119 Million, representing a huge
future growth potential.
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CURRENT SCENARIO
Currently, the Indian DTH market is being served by six private players - Dish TV,
Tata Sky, Sun Direct, Big TV, Airtel Digital TV and Videocon D2H. For the purpose
of research, we have not included Doordarshan which is a free DTH service provider.
The report contains comprehensive information about all the DTH service providers
in India, with focus on in-depth analysis of their strengths and weaknesses. It also
explains the reason why all the incumbent players have been investing huge amounts
in the promotion and marketing of DTH services in the country.
In the early 2008, five major players, Zee‘s Dish TV, Tata Sky, Reliance ADAG, Sun
Direct and Bharti Telemedia formed an umbrella body – DTH Operators Association
of India (DOAI). Dish TV is the largest DTH provider with a subscriber base of
around 5 million, Tata Sky, a DTH joint-venture Company between Star (owned by
Rupert Murdoch) and the Tata Group (20:80), now has around 3.4 million
connections and the forecast for 2012 is that it will further increase to eight million,
Sun Direct, the 80:20 JV between the Maran family and the Astro Group of Malaysia,
over 2.3 million, Big TV about 1.2 million and Airtel Digital TV about 0.3 million
subscribers (Source: Business Standard, May 1, 2009).
According to sources, DD Direct Plus has a subscriber base of about 3-4 million
subscribers, mostly in the remote corners of the country not connected by terrestrial or
cable television. DTH operations in India could be enhanced if the dearth of satellite
capacity is removed by increasing the number of available Ku-band transponders that
at present is 12 on Insat 4A, which in turn would mean more channels for viewing.
Tax burdens on DTH are another area of complaint for operators. Around 40 per cent
of revenues are siphoned off to pay taxes and license fee and another 12 per cent for
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services imposed by the Central government. Apart from this, there are entertainment
taxes that differ from state to state.
DTH stands for Direct to Home which is a direct mode of transmission between
Broadcaster‘ and Subscriber’ through satellite.
Broadcast centre collects the signals from different programming sources (like Sony,
Zee, and Star). It processes the Signals and beams it to the Satellite. (16.1)
The first commercial DTH service, Sky Television plc (now BSkyB), was launched in
1989. Sky TV started as a four-channel free-to-air analogue service on the Astra 1A
satellite, serving the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. By 1991, Sky had
changed to a conditional access pay model, and launched a digital service, Sky
Digital, in 1998, with analogue transmission ceasing in 2001. Since the DTH
nomenclature is rarely used in the UK or Ireland, the popularity of Sky's service has
caused the terms "minidish" and "digibox" to be applied to products other than Sky's
hardware. BSkyB is controlled by News Corporation.
PrimeStar began transmitting an analog service to North America in 1991, and was
joined by DirecTV Group's DirecTV, in 1994. At the time, DirecTV's introduction
was the most successful consumer electronics debut in American history. Although
PrimeStar transitioned to a digital system in 1994, it was ultimately unable to compete
with DirecTV, which required a smaller satellite dish and could deliver more
programming.
DirecTV eventually purchased PrimeStar in 1999 and migrated all PrimeStar
subscribers to DirecTV equipment. In 2003, News Corporation purchased a
controlling interest in DirecTV's parent company, Hughes Electronics, and renamed
the company DirecTV Group.
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In 1996, EchoStar's Dish Network went online in the United States and, as DirecTV's
primary competitor, achieved similar success. AlphaStar also launched but soon went
under.
Dominion Video Satellite Inc.'s Sky Angel also went online in the United States in
1996 with its DTH service geared toward the faith and family market. It has since
grown from six to 36 TV and radio channels of family entertainment, Christian-
inspirational programming and 24-hour news. Dominion, under its former corporate
name Video Satellite Systems Inc., was actually the second from among the first nine
companies to apply to the FCC for a high-power DTH license in 1981 and is the sole
surviving DBS pioneer from that first round of forward-thinking applicants. Sky
Angel, although a separate and independent DTH service, uses the satellites,
transmission facilities, & receiving equipment used for Dish Network through an
agreement with Echostar. Because of this, Sky Angel subscribers also have the option
of subscribing to Dish Network's channels as well.
How it works
Direct to home technology is quite a sea change from what the cable network offers.
Here’s a step-by-step guide to the new system, including some potential snag you are
likely to encounter.
Satellite
Satellite beams the channels to the mini dish fixed in your balcony, outside the
window or on the terrace.
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Service provider
Service provider uplinks all channels to its dedicated satellite.
Apartments
For apartment blocks, the entire building can use a single big dish and carry
connections to different set top boxes on individual TVs.
Dish size depends on distance between it and the TV; 60 cm dishes are most common.
For Delhi, you need to align it in south east direction.
Set Top Box
Mini dish relays the channels to your set top box, where they are decrypted and sent
to you TV.
Viewing Card
Viewing card like a mobile sim card carries you unique ID number with your
subscription details. You can access DTH only when this credit card sized card is
inserted in the set top box.
You can watch DTH without disturbing you cable connection if you choose to, with
cable feed in normal TV mode and DTH in AV mode.
Remote Control
Your remote comes with the DTH kit. It interacts with the set-top box instead of the
TV. If you plan to install DTH, get ready for handling complex options on your
remote like multi-lingual choices etc
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Payment
You pay your subscription in advance (like a pre-paid cell connection) through credit
cards, smartcards, cheques or cash. Your viewing card is updated automatically.
Dth in India have three major competitors basically:
TATA SKY
DISH TV
AIRTEL
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1.5 PORTER’S ANALYSIS OF DTH INDUSTRY
1.5.1 THREAT OF SUBSTITUTES:
DTH faces stiff competition from the terrestrial, cable and IPTV. As per the industry
estimates, there are 130 million TV homes of which 85 million are served by cable
and around 16 million by DTH with the remaining taken by terrestrial transmission.
Terrestrial Television
Doordarshan is the world‘s largest terrestrial broadcaster with over 1400 terrestrial
TV transmitters. The reach provided by this route is phenomenal with Doordarshan
covering 88% of India‘s geographical area. Covering the remaining 12% area required
substantial capital investments which does not outweigh the benefits. The
transmission was done originally in Analog mode but beginning from 2002,
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Doordarshan has partnered with BBC resources – the consulting wing of BBC, in
offering digital terrestrial TV. The transmission could be received using a low cost
Yagi antenna. However, due to lack of attractive content it does not seem to be a
formidable threat for DTH.
Cable TV
Cable TV currently operates in 2 modes viz. through CAS covering cities like
Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkatta, and through non-addressable system in the rest
of the country.
As seen from the above diagram Cable TV enjoys the maximum share as compared to
other medium. In case of CAS controlled areas, the subscriber has to buy Set Top Box
(STB) to see the pay channels. On the other hand, in areas where non-addressable
system is used, nearly all the channels are available without the need of any separate
receiver by paying anywhere between Rs 100 to Rs 350 per month depending on the
place.
Due to phenomenal reach of Cable TV, it poses a serious threat to the growth of DTH
industry.
1.5.2 BARGAINING POWER OF SUPPLIERS:
DTH industry relies on three major supplies: Customer Premise Equipment (CPE)
comprising of the satellite dish, Set Top Box with the necessary Access card, the Ku
band transponders in the orbiting satellites and content. With India overtaking Japan
as Asia‘s largest DTH, the bargaining power of Indian DTH operators with CPE
supplies have increased.
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However, the availability of transponders is increasingly becoming difficult. The Ku
band transponder is generally provided by Astrix, the commercial wing of ISRO
either through its own satellites or by leasing transponders from suppliers. With only
two domestic satellite launches between 2007 and 2010 an d increasing DTH players,
Astrix is in a better position to use DTH as its cash cow for the next 5 to 10 years.
Also the crash of INSAT 4C and NSS-8 has worsened the situation of DTH players.
As there is not much of regulation particularly in terms of channel pricing, acquiring
content from the broadcasters is also difficult. DTH vendors are at the mercy of the
broadcasters.
1.5.3. BARGAINING POWER OF BUYERS:
With enough options to choose both from the pont of alternate mediums like Cable,
IPTV and Terrestrial broadcast and from the point of increasing DTH operators, the
consumer is at his will to decide.
Customers will continue to have a high bargaining power until DTH platforms try to
differentiate them as superior players with better content and clarity
1.5.4. INTER FIRM RIVALRY:
With 6 operational players, the inter firm rivalry is quite high. The competition from
state owned DD-Direct to private players is negligible from the content point of view
as. Between Dish TV and Tata Sky there is an intense rivalry exhibited by price wars
and discount schemes offered to new Other than price wars and intense competition in
increasing customer base, there is also a competition at acquiring the content. Dish
TV, Tata Sky and Sun Direct are part of big groups that also have popular bouquet of
channels like Zee, Star and Sunrespectively. The channels indirectly refuse content
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fexorbitantly or mandating that all the channels of their bouquet to be transmitted
when the vendor is already capacity constraint.
1.5.5. THREAT OF NEW ENTRANTS:
With already 6 players in the DTH space, threat of new entrants is relatively low.
There is already enough competition which will discourage new firms to enter this
business. While getting a license is relatively easy, the barriers to entry are high when
it comes to pricing of CPE and getting the connections. Being the first mover, Dish
TV has price.
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1.6 VARIOUS DTH SERVICE PROVIDERS IN INDIA
1.6.1 TATA SKY
Inception and Heritage
Incorporated in 2004, Tata Sky is an 80:20 JV between TATA and STAR. Tata Sky
endeavors to offer Indian viewers a world-class television viewing experience through
its Satellite Television service.
TATA Brand
The Tata Group is one of India's largest and most respected business conglomerates.
It comprises 93 operating companies in seven business sectors: information systems
and communications; engineering; materials; services; energy; consumer products;
and chemicals. The Tata Group has operations in more than 40 countries across six
continents, and its companies export products and services to 140 nations. The Group
and its enterprises have been steadfast and distinctive in their adherence to business
ethics and their commitment to corporate social responsibility. This is a legacy that
has earned the Group the trust of many millions of stakeholders in a measure few
business houses anywhere in the world can match.
SKY Brand
The SKY brand, owned by the UK-based British Sky Broadcasting Group, brings to
Tata Sky the reputation of more than 20 years experience of satellite broadcasting.
SKY is well known for the innovative products and services launched by BSkyB,
such as DTH broadcasting in 1989, digital satellite broadcasting in 1998, interactive
television services in 1999 and the SKY+ personal video recorder in 2001. Tata Sky
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joins an international group of DTH businesses that includes platforms as far apart as
the UK and Italy in Europe, and Mexico and Brazil in Latin America
Revolutionize television viewing
Tata Sky is set to revolutionize television viewing in India through its superior digital
quality picture and sound. The service aims to empower the Indian viewer with
Choice, Control and Convenience through its wide array of programming and
interactive features.
Tata Sky offers viewers a variety of channels ranging from entertainment, sports,
movies and music to news and documentaries in DVD picture quality and CD quality
sound.
Extensive Customer Service Network
Tata Sky has established an extensive customer service network across the country. It
has engaged a field force of approximately 3000 service engineers, who will be
complemented by high-end 24x7 call centers, manned by multi-lingual customer
service associates, trained to solve all customer problems.
Tata Sky takes direct responsibility for hardware installation at subscribers’ homes, as
well as for providing after-sales service.
Tata Sky will also retail its hardware and prepaid recharge vouchers through popular
consumer electronic stores to enhance customer convenience.
Partners
Tata Sky has invested in state-of-the-art digital infrastructure and has partnered with
global leaders in digital technology for the pay television market.
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Satellite
Tata Sky has leased all 12 Ku-Band transponders on ISRO’s Indian satellite, INSAT
4A, which is the most advanced and high-powered KU-Band communication satellite
in the region and is developed keeping in mind local requirements. The satellite
enables Tata Sky to offer superior picture and sound quality with a wider range of
channels.
Business Support Software
Siebel: Tata Sky has selected Siebel, leaders in Customer Relationship Management
(CRM) software, to support operations across the areas of call centre and field service
operations, customer order management and product configuration.
Kenan: Comverse’s Kenan FX billing software has been selected to support billing
for all residential, institutional and commercial customers. The Kenan software has
been enhanced specifically for Tata Sky, to support a first in industry pre-paid billing
capability which will provide customers with the ability to pay as you go.
SAP: SAP the leading Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) application suite, has
been selected by Tata Sky to support the company’s materials management, sales and
distribution, finance and control and human resources requirements.
IT:
Sun Microsystems: Tata Sky has selected Sun Microsystems to provide world-class
technology infrastructure, which helps the company to deliver high-level service
standards for its Satellite Television service. The servers ensure maximum up-time,
fault recovery and load management. Sun has also provided Tata Sky with
installation, engineering expertise and support.
Dig comp:
Tata Sky has partnered with Thomson and Hum ax, world leaders in digital broadcast
terminology, for building top-of-the line dig comps, customized specifically for the
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Indian markets. The technology’s feature rich design will enable Tata Sky to deliver
multiple programming, pricing packages and interactive services to its customers.
Our Offering:
In addition to new channels and exciting interactive features, Tata Sky offers all
popular television channels, thus becoming a one-stop shop for all the television
entertainment needs of customers.
Vision:
Tata Sky plans to launch its Satellite Television service with top-of-the-line
infrastructure. It aims to revolutionize Indian entertainment by offering superior DVD
quality picture and CD quality sound.
Channels offered:
Star World
Star Utsav (Hindi)
Star Movies
Star Gold
Star Plus
Star News (Hindi)
Star Vijay (Tamil)
Star Sports
Star One (Hindi)
DD Bangla
DD Malayalam
DD 8 Telugu
DD Sports
DD 5 Tamil
DD Marathi
ESPN
Channel V
MTV
National Geographic
AXN
Ten Sports
History Channel
Sony Entertainment
Television (Hindi)
SAB TV (Hindi)
Sony PIX
SET MAX
Animal Planet
Discovery Channel
Discovery Travel and
Living
Sahara one
Sahara filmy
Hungama TV
Aastha
Jaya TV (Tamil)
Aaj Tak (Hindi)
Headlines Today
NDTV Profit
NDTV 24x7
NDTV India (Hindi)
DD News
Times Now
Asianet (Malayalam)
Asianet news
(Malayalam)
Kairali (Malayalam)
DD 1
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MH1
1.6.2 DISH TV
Vision of the company:
To be the leader in changing the way the world communicates by providing innovative technology, quality products and dynamic services.
Mission of the company:
To place our satellite dish in every home, school and business throughout the world.
Dish Tv is an Essel Group venture. Essel Group has a vast range of national and
global business interests that include media programming, broadcasting &
distribution, packaging, entertainment, online gaming and telecom, in close synergies
with ventures active in the areas of content, distribution and infrastructure.
Essel Group has always been a pioneer - Zee TV the first Indian satellite channel,
Siticable the first MSO, Esselworld the first theme park, Play win the first online
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lottery, Essel Propack, which is the world’s No. 1 in packaging - were all
revolutionary concepts in their respective fields.
Continuing with the same path-breaking tradition, the group now brings to you a new
era of digital quality TV viewing.
Dishtv uses NSS-6 (communication satellite) to broadcast its programmes. NSS-6 was
launched on 17th December, 2002 by European-based satellite provider, New Skies
(one of the only four fixed satellite communications companies with truly global
satellite coverage)
Dishtv - India's first KU-band DTH entertainment service, hopped on to NSS-6 at
from an INSAT satellite in July 2004. The change in the satellite was to increase the
channel offering as NSS 6 offered more transponder capacity.
Going the DTH way has a lot of benefits. You are automatically upgraded to a host of
world class features that makes television viewing a pleasurable experience. Have a
look at some of the key add on benefits that DISH TV brings to your home.
Digital Picture Quality
The exceptional digital and direct-to-home transmission ensures you watch all your
favorite programmes in true DVD quality.
Stereophonic Sound
The Direct-to-Home satellite transmission treats your ears to a true theatre experience
by providing awesome stereophonic sound.
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Geographic Mobility
No matter which part of the country you are in or moving to, DISH TV with its all
India coverage ensures direct signals where ever you are.
Uninterrupted Viewing
With DISH TV at your home, as long as your equipment is connected to a power
source you can enjoy uninterrupted transmission of your favorite programmes.
Capacity up to 400 Channels
DISH TV can offer you up to 400 entertaining channels. And that's not all, every
month more channels will be added to provide complete entertainment to your family.
MARKET POSITION
Dish TV India‘s first DTH service provider launched in October 2003 is the market
leaderwith 6.4 million subscribers. Dish TV continues to be a market leader with 30%
market share in 7 player scenario on date, with sizeable sales and distribution
infrastructure of over 650distributors and 45,000 dealers across 6500 towns – once
again, the largest in the category.
These reach into far flung markets enables building of a diverse subscriber base
across consumer segments, which are supported by its rich content of regional
channel offerings.
Dish TV has maintained its leadership position through an improved market share of
all DTH subscribers. New offers, extensive marketing campaigns have contributed to
impressive subscriber acquisition and are committed to provide the best value to our
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customers and investors by enhancing operational efficiencies and by leveraging
economies of scale.
1.6.3 AIRTEL DIGITAL TV
Airtel digital TV’s standard definition broadcasts are in MPEG-4 with Interactive
Service (it) and 7-day EPG (electronic programme guide). Interactive Service (it) of
Airtel digital TV includes a add-on service which allows a user to shop, book movie
tickets etc. A universal remote is included in the package which can, over IR
frequencies control both the TV and the DTH box. Like other DTH service providers
it also provides a Video on demand interactive service which includes a catalogue of
movies in Hindi, English and other regional languages which can be ordered on
demand.
Airtel digital TV was launched on 8th October, 2008 with a 360 degree mega
campaign "Come Home to the Magic". Since that it has launched 2 other campaigns
'Stars come home' (March 2009) and 'DTH Picture Clarity' (August 2009) has
increased its channel base to 183+ channels.
Airtel digital TV is now amongst the fastest growing DTH brands in the country and
is available across 5000+ towns in India. It has also been ranked as the best DTH
service by "Living Digital" magazine
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1.6.4 RELIANCE BIG TV
Reliance BIG TV limited is a part of Reliance Communications Ltd., a subsidiary of
Reliance.Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group [2] founded by the Late Dhirubhai Ambani,
the Indian Business tycoon and owned by his son Anil Ambani. BIG TV started
operations from 19 August 2008 with the slogan "TV ho Toh BIG Ho" ("If you have a
TV, make it BIG"). It currently offers close to 240 channels and many interactive
ones, 32 cinema halls (i.e. Pay per View Cinema Channels) as well as many Radio
channels. The company plans to increase the number of channels in the near future to
400 and begin High Definition (HD) broadcast. It is the first Pan-India DTH provider
that uses MPEG-4 for broadcasting. There are also plans to introduce services like i-
Stock, i-News and other such interactive services in the future.
Reliance BIG TV's retailer network is spread across 100,000 outlets in 6,500 towns in
India. This was literally unheard of in the DTH industry. They had effectively out-
stripped the competition here. When it came to pricing – packaging, their introductory
offer stood at Rs. 1,490/- with 3 to 6 months of free subscription. They also
introduced 32 Pay-Per-View Movie Channels, the highest by any DTH player. Not
just that, while other players made subscribers pay for each movie, Reliance BIG TV
introduced the unique concept of Subscriber-Video-On-Demand (SVOD) under which
the subscriber paid a monthly subscription of Rs. 50/- to get a 24 x 7 access to the 21
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PPV channels showing Hindi and Regional Films. We were also the first to introduce
dedicated PPV channels for Marathi, Gujarati and Bhojpuri films.
1.6.5 VIDEOCON D2H
Videocon d2h is a DTH satellite television provider in India based in Mumbai, using
MPEG-4 with DVB S2 digital compression technology. Videocon Leasing &
Industrial Finance Limited was incorporated on 4th September, 1986 as Adhigam
Trading Private Limited. In terms of the necessary resolutions Passed under Sec. 21 of
the Companies Act, 1956, the name of the Company was changed to Videocon
Leasing & Industrial Finance Limited on14th February; 1991.The Company received
a fresh certificate of incorporation from the Registrar of Companies, Gujarat at
Ahmadabad on 14thFebruary, 1991. Videocon d2h launched May 1, 2009. it came
with a very good strategy for selling both of its electronic products like TV‘s DVD‘s
along with the new set top box. This is offering direct to TV without any set top box
also. Only the antenna is enough, it also came with DVD which is connected directly
to the TV or antenna is connected to DVD which gives a best quality of output
30
1.6.6 APNA DTH
General:
Doordarshan is the world's largest terrestrial broadcaster with over 1400 terrestrial TV
transmitters located throughout the country covering approx. 88% of India's
geographical area.
Doordarshan has setup a DTH platform to carry 33 FTA TV channels and 12 All
India Radio channels on its DTH platform which can be received throughout India on
Free-to Air (FTA) basis by consumers. The number of TV channels will be increased
to 50 and All India radio channels to 40 in due course of time as per 'A Doordarshan
press release'.
NSS-6 India Subcontinent KU Band Spot Beam
Satellite & Coverage
31
Doordarshan is using New Skies Satellite (NSS) series NSS-6 Ku-band high power
satellite with a footprint covering India and neighboring region and located at 95° E.
Doordarshan's DTH Bouquet
DTH platform is known as DD Direct Plus. This bouquet comprise of following:
TV channels:
» DD CHANNELS » EDUCATIONAL CHANNEL
1. DD - NATIONAL 1. GYANDARSHAN
2. DD - NEWS
3. DD - SPORTS » PRIVATE CHANNELS
4. DD - BHARTI 1. KAIRALI
5. DD - INDIA 2. SUN TV
6. DD - MALAYALAM 3. ETC PUNJABI
7. DD - BENGALI 4. AAKASH BANGLA
8. DD - ORIYA 5. JAIN TV
9. DD - GUJARATI 6. AAJ TAK
10. DD - PUNJABI 7. HEADLINES TODAY
11. DD - NORTH EAST 8. STAR UTSAV
12. DD - PODHIGAL 9. TV 9
13. DD - SAPTHAGIRI 10. BBC WORLD
14. DD - CHANDANA 11. ZEE MUSIC
15. DD - SAHYADRI 12. SMILE TV
16. DD - KASHIR 13. MH 1 - Music Channel
17. DD - RAJYASABHA 18. DD - LOKSABHA
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» RADIO
1. AIR VBS 7. AIR TAMIL
2. AIR MARATHI 8. AIR KANNADA
3. AIR GUJARATI 9. AIR HINDI
4. AIR BANGLA 10. AIR PUNJABI
5. AIR NE 11. FM RAINBOW
6. AIR TELUGU 12. FM GOLD
Initially, it provides 33 channels and will add 20 more channels after 4-6 months.
The formal launch of Doordarshan's DTH has been made by Dr. Manmohan Singh,
Prime minister of India.
Ground Network Doordarshan has deployed 10,000 DTH terminals comprising 120
cms, 90 cms and 60 cm antenna and associated hardware.
1.7 MARKET SEGMENTATION
1.7.1 Geographic segmentation
In terms of geographical location, North India and Western India together contribute
over 8million DTH subscribers, while the southern market contributes 3 million. The
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states of Maharashtra, Goa, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan are the leaders in
DTH subscription, contributing over 6.5 million DTH connections to the overall base.
1.7.1.1 Urban and Rural:
In order to cater to the diverse taste and needs of both urban and rural people
operators provide entirely different range of services and offerings. In rural areas,
fleet of vans for demos, installation as well as selling hardware and pre-paid vouchers
are being used. Most players are building up their subscriber base by targeting
viewers outside the big cities, which suggests that about 60 per cent of DTH
subscribers reside in rural areas and towns with a population under a million.
1.7.1.2 Region and States:
DTH service providers give special offers where regional and sports channels are
viewed the most. Silver subscription available in Tamil Nadu, Kerala Karnataka &
Pondicherry only, ultimate sports bonanza offer - Rs 2490 with 12 Months of Silver
subscription available in Andhra Pradesh only.
1.7.2 Demographic segmentation
1.7.2.1 AGE and GENDER:
Most of the players in DTH offer niche channels to create a unique and exciting
offering for its viewers of every age and gender segment. DTH industry mainly
concentrates on women who don’t like missing their daily soap and news more ever
34
women are able to learn English speaking which is a very special feature of DTH.
DTH also concentrates on children also by providing them games, dictionary, some
discovery videos specially inbuilt, math’s, and science and social knowledge. It also
focuses on old people as it has updated videos of various holy and religious places.
Example- Dish TV recently launched ‘Children Films
Festival’ with a bouquet of over 25 super-hit films across various categories priced at
Rs. 25/- per movie. thus targeting the children segment. Besides this value added
services like Games Active, Bhakti active services etc carters to needs of customers
from various age groups and gender.
1.7.2.2 INCOME:
DTH service provider gives various recharge options to consumer according to the
income like silver pack, golden pack, diamond pack etc.
1.7.3 Behavioural Segmentation
1.7.3.1 OCCASIONS:
DTH operators come out with new offers of channels or new buyer schemes at
relatively cheaper rates on occasions of festivals or major sports events. For example
it offers benefits to customers like: In a cricket match choosing the language of the
commentary, camera angles, know player statistics and watch match highlights at our
will.
35
36
1.8 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
It basically refers to the way in which a specific task or research is carried out and the
general principles guiding an investigation respectively.
1.8.1 RESEARCH DESIGN
Research design as such is a framework within which research is conducted and
contains a blueprint for collection, measurement and analysis of data.
The design, which is basically followed by my research, is DESCRIPTIVE
RESEARCH DESIGN.
Descriptive research studies are those studies in which a researcher is able to define
clearly what he intends to do along with a clear definition of the ‘population’ he wants
to study.
My research follows descriptive research design because of the following reasons
mentioned:
It specifies the objective with sufficient precision to ensure that the data
collected is relevant.
The technique used for collection of data is questionnaire method.
It specifies the sample size being used.
Lastly the data is processed and analyzed to give results.
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1.8.2 TYPE OF RESEARCH
Primary research: The research methodology for this topic involves survey methods
thus type of research can be defined as primary.
Primary research is also called field research which involves the collection of data
that already does not exist. This method is almost used as first technique which may
further lead to other methods. Various ways of conducting a primary research may
involve observation, experiment, surveys and consumer panel methods.
Popularity and its methods for any field can be researched using primary method at
any time of year. The plus point in DTH is that it is rather a new field and needs
research to be conducted before it can be accepted as source of entertainment.
This research is not utilizing any case study or earlier researches conducted on the
topic rather the research gathers the data from general public, analyze it, and gives a
conclusion based on that analysis.
The results of the data may not give the real picture of the story but a hypothesis is
generated which leads to further research problems and scope. The data generated
from this research will prove as secondary data for upcoming researches.
Secondary research: is also carried out on the concept of DTH and the Govt. policies
about the Cable operators and CAS, secondary research is also form an essential part
of the thesis as various newspaper and magazines are used to validate the data given
by the researcher.
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1.8.3 RESEARCH APPROACH
Why Research Approach?
Adopting a valid research philosophy is important for at least two reasons:
1. Different approaches may give different answers not all of which maybe correct i.e.
using an inappropriate technique may give false results.
2. On a pragmatic level most researchers invest a lot of time, money and effort in their
work and desire that the results of their research be accepted as valid e.g. to pass
examination; to obtain a postgraduate award or to have their work accepted for
publication or judged a valid by their peer group.
Qualitative approach: It is concerned with the subjective assessment of attitude,
behavior and opinion. In such a type of research, a researcher goes into insights and
impressions. Such an approach to research generates results either in non- quantitative
form or in the form which are not subjected to rigorous quantitative analysis.
Generally the techniques of focus group interviews, projective techniques and depth
interviews are used.
1.8.4 RESEARCH METHOD
Exploratory Research method: The topic has to be deeply explored in the research
as the problem is not clearly defined. Before deciding the tool for data collection the
researcher should first gain ample amount of knowledge about the field and the
system running it all.
39
In this research researcher needs to go through the minds of people using DTH and
what are the reasons of using or not using it as a source of entertainment. And then
further data can be collected to gain insight into the people’s opinion more precisely
and generate a conclusion for the report.
1.8.5 TOOLS OF DATA COLLECTION
Individuals and organizations collect data because the information is needed, they
may want information to keep records for administrative purposes, make decisions
about important issues or they may be required to pass information onto others.
Whatever be the specific reason, data has to be collected to provide information.
1.8.5.1 Primary Data Collection
The research being the primary in nature involves primary methods of data collection
for analysis. Out of the various methods available Questionnaire method is selected
for collecting the data.
Primary data collection is necessary when a researcher cannot find a data needed is
secondary sources. Researchers are interested in primary data about demographic
socio economic characteristics, attitudes or interest or opinions, awareness or
knowledge, intentions, motivations, or behavior.
40
In primary data collection, to collect the data yourself using methods such as
interviews and questionnaire, the key point here is that the data you collect is unique
to you and your research and until you publish it no one has access to it.
There are many methods of collecting primary data:
Observation
Survey
Experiment
Questionnaire
Interviews
Focused group interviews
Case study method
Primary Data Collection:
Research
Approach
Contact Method Sampling Plan Research
Instrument
Survey Personal Probabilistic Questionnaires
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QUESTIONNAIRE METHOD
Questionnaire are an inexpensive way to gather data from a potentially large number
of respondents, often they are the only feasible way to reach a number of reviewer
large enough to allow statistical analysis of the research. A well designed
questionnaire that is used effectively can gather information on both, the overall
performance of the test system as well as information on specific components of the
system.
It is important to remember that a questionnaire should be viewed as a multistage
process beginning with definition or the aspect to be examined and ending with
interpretation of the result.
Questionnaire is a good method if
(a) The problem is well defined (perhaps as a hypothesis) and it will not be modified
during the project,
(b) All the questions to be answered are known in advance, resp. additional clarifying
questions are not necessary.
(c) The range of possible answers is known in advance,
(d) The questions involve mostly facts, quantities or easily definable physical matters,
(e) There are questions that some respondents might prefer to answer anonymously
and
(f) You are keen on numerical analysis.
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UNIVERSE OF STUDY
The whole group from which the sample is to be selected is technically called
universe or population of study. Thus in order to draw the sample we must first of all
have a clear idea of the universe from which the sample is to be drawn.
The universe of study of our research comprises of ‘all the residents of Flag staff
road, civil lines’.
SAMPLE SIZE
The size of the sample is an important problem to be decided. This is because the size
has direct bearing upon accuracy, time, cost and administration of the survey.
An optimum sample size is one, which fulfils the requirements of efficiency,
representativeness, reliability and flexibility.
The sample size of our research comprises of ‘50 houses of Flag staff road, civil
lines.
SAMPLE UNIT SAMPLE SIZE
Sample unit comprised of the people from
all the Spheres:
It included:
Students
Housewives
Working Employee
Sample size used for the project is as
follows:
10
22
18
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TYPE OF SAMPLING
Sampling technique plays an important part in determining the size of the sample. The
main reasons why samples are taken are as follows:
How accurate must the final results be in order to make the type of decision
required in the particular situation?
What is the cost to the organization if the wrong decision is made?
How much more information must be added to reach that level of accuracy?
What kinds of data are needed? How much does it cost to acquire data?
Can we afford the extra cost.?
If the purpose of your research is to draw conclusions or make predictions affecting
the population as a whole then you must use a Probabilistic sampling approach, on
the other hand if you are only interested in seeing how a small group or a
representative group is doing for purposes of illustration or explanation then you can
use a Non- Probabilistic sampling approach
The type of sampling used in this research is Probability sampling. This is so
because in this type of sampling procedure the items for the sample are selected
randomly by the researcher i.e. his choice concerning the items is not supreme. In this
research we have randomly chosen 50 houses in our sample size which justifies that
the sampling technique of this research is Probabilistic in nature.
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45
2.1 DATA PRESENTATON
1. Your Full Name = …………………………………………..
2. How many T.V sets are there at your home?
2
3
4
More than 4
2 3 4 More than
4
30 12 4 4
60%24%
8% 8%
no.of T.V sets2 3 4 more than 4
INTERPRETATION
Out of All the people who were questioned mostly 60% have 2 T.V sets. Only few
said they 3 sets at their home.
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3. Which type of T.V sets you use?
Normal CPT television
LCD Television
LED Television
Others
Normal CPTV LCD LED OTHERS
24 10 8 4
52%
22%
17%9%
Type of T.V sets
normal CPTV LCD LED OTHERS
INTERPRETATION
52% of people have normal CPTV sets, 22% people have LCD sets, and 17% people
have LED sets while 9% have other sets like 3-D
4. Do you watch Television using DTH or Local cable connection?
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DTH
LOCAL CABLE
DTH LOCAL CABLE
34 16
68%
32%
DTH or local cable
DTH CABLE TV
Interpretation
68% of viewers view television using DTH, while 32% of them watch using Cable.
More than half a population has shifted towards DTH, which is a large share.
5. If you have a DTH connection, which among you use? *
48
Dish TV
Tata Sky
Airtel
Others
DISH TV TATASKY AIRTEL OTHERS
16 24 6 4
32%
48%
12% 8%
DTH CONNECTION
TATA SKY DISH TV AIRTEL OTHERS
INTERPRETATION:-
DISH TV is the market leader with 48% of market share, followed
by TATA SKY and Airtel respectively
49
6. If you get a chance to buy another/new DTH connection which one will you
choose? *
Dish TV
Tata Sky
Airtel
Reliance Big
Other
TATA SKY DISH TV AIRTEL RELIANCE
BIG
OTHER
20 24 4 1 1
40%
48%
8%2% 2%
NEW DTH CONNECTION
TATA SKY DISH TV AIRTEL RELIANCE BIG OTHERS
INTERPRETATION:-
Out of All the people who were questioned mostly said if given the chance to buy new
DTH they will opt for DISH TV because of its promotional strategies n new schemes,
followed by TATA SKY, followed by Airtel, reliance and others
50
7. Why you choose DTH over Local Cable?
Because of the Picture quality
You want more channels with clarity
Connection problem with Local cables/ Cost is Less
Other
PICTURE
QUALITY
MORE CHANNELS
WITH CLARITY
CONNECTION
PROBLEM WITH
LOCAL CABLES
OTHERS
18 16 16 0
36%
32%
32%
DTH over Local Cable
PICTURE QUALITY MORE CHANNELS WITH CLARITYCONNECTION PROBLEM WITH LOCAL CABLES OTHERS
INTERPRETATION:-
36% respondents choose DTH because of better picture quality, 32% gave reason of
more channels, while 32% choose because of connection problem with local cables.
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8. Why you choose Local Cable over DTH? *
Because price is less in Cable
You need Local News content which is missing in DTH
Too many choices in DTH
Other
price is less in
Cable
You need Local News
content which is
missing in DTH
Too many choices
in DTH
Others
28 4 10 4
61%9%
22%
9%
local cable over DTH
price is less in CableYou need Local News content which is missing in DTHToo many choices in DTHothers
INTERPRETATION:-
61% respondents choose Local cable because of fewer prices, 22% gave reason of
more channels in DTH which make it confusing for some people, 08% told need of
local news content which is missing in DTH, 9% said others
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9. What is the price you currently pay to your cable operator (Monthly)?
If you are DTH user kindly jump to Next Question/
100-200
200-300
300-400
Other
100-200 200-300 300-400 other
9 16 20 5
18%
32%
40%
10%
Price given to cable operator
100-200 200-300 300-400 other
INTERPRETATION
Out of All the people who were questioned mostly pay 300-400rs to their cable
operator, while others pay less than 300.
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10. What is the price you currently pay to your DTH operator (Monthly)*
100-200
200-300
300-400
Other
100-200 200-300 300-400 other
12 23 8 7
24%
46%
16%
14%
Price given to DTH
100-200 200-300 300-400 OTHER
INTERPRETATION
Out of All the people who were questioned mostly pay 200-300rs to their DTH
operator, only few pay above 300.
11. Your Age*
Contact Number=
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DATA ANALYSIS
The data so collected by questionnaires and from secondary sources like newspapers
and websites are analyzed on the basis of SWOT analysis, which means:
Strengths
Weakness
Opportunity
Threat
The DTH and the Cable TV markets are analyzed by knowing customers responses in
favor of them and against them. The customer’s perceptions about the products helped
in devising the SWOT analysis.
The society where the survey is conducted for analysis is:
ALL THE RESIDENTS OF FLAG STAFF ROAD, CIVIL LINES, NEW
DELHI.
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SWOT ANALYSIS: DTH INDUSTRY
Strength
Right products, quality and
reliability.
Superior product
performance vs.
competitors.
24 hrs after sales service
Direct delivery capability.
Product innovations
ongoing.
Better product quality and
reception
The viewers are empowered
as they control what they
watch and how much they
watch.
Management is committed
and confident.
Requires very low volts of
electricity
Various new content from
west would be added for the
viewers
Weaknesses
Less of value added service
The content offered is the
same when compared to
cablewallahs and even less.
The product is costly ,and
penetration would be difficult
as cable has already made its
entry long ago
Heavy rain and snowfall can
disrupt the signals for a Dth
Local cable channels cannot
be watched by viewers
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Opportunities
Could bring in more value
added services with the
coming of 3G and could
build the internet
infrastructure through the
same network
Profit margins will be good.
End-users respond to new
ideas.
People are fed up with the
service and quality of cable
so that could be on factor
for the success of DTH
Threats
Legislation could impact
adversely making the scenario
for MSO’S even worse.
Could distract from the core
business
The emergence of IPTV and
WIFI TV can be mar in the
growth of DTH
The cablewallahs can indulge
in malpractices and can cause
damage to the wires and even
the dish
No barriers to the new entrants
in the market can be a serious
threat to the DTH operators
SWOT ANALYSIS: CABLE TV INDUSTRY
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STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES
Technology for the mass
No hardware costs
Very low and affordable monthly
expenses
Customized local content being offered
Old technology
Less no. of channels in view
Cost of upgrading the current network
to broadband is very high
Loss of revenue to service providers
Unable to provide value added services.
OPPORTUNITIES THREATS
Big market which is expected to grow
further
Presence of a huge middle class
population
DTH technology – biggest threat in
future.
WHAT GIVES DTH THE CUTTING EDGE
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PICTURES & SOUND
DTH signals are digital and beamed directly to your home via satellite. Hence, picture
quality is excellent and the sound stereophonic. By contrast, the cable feed is analog
(though they plan to go digital soon) which can’t match DTH’s picture and sound
quality even in ideal conditions
INTERACTIVITY
With DTH, you get programme listings for up to a week on your screen. Providers are
offering interactive news channels that let you choose between hard news and feature
programmes. You also have the option of watching four news channels
simultaneously in the Tata Sky package
MOVIES ON DEMAND
This paid feature allows you to watch a movie at the time of your choosing. The films
are listed for a couple of days on dedicated channels with staggered starts, typically of
45 minutes. If you wish to see the flick, just inform the provider through SMS,
internet or phone and you get access to the next ‘show’. Costs Rs 30-40 per movie
HINDI OR ENGLISH
Does watching Nat Geo or Discovery in Hindi get your goat? DTH gives you the
choice of watching these and other multilingual channels in your preferred language.
The language option doesn’t stop there. For instance, Dish TV will be giving the
option of watching the forthcoming one-day cricket series in Malaysia in five
languages
GAMING
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Both Tata Sky and Dish TV buy a digital video recorder you can download games
from the internet and play it on TV after transferring it to the DVR using a USB port
PLAY-PAUSE TV
If you never again want to miss the climax of a cricket match or a movie, record them
in a digital video recorder. An 80 GB DVR costs around Rs 16,000 and has enough
memory to record about 35 movies. With a DVR, you can record programmes in six
other channels even as you watch TV. You can also pause a programme and watch the
rest later or watch two channels simultaneously using picture-in-picture. DTH’s
digital feed enables the use of DVDs
DTH MARKET STRUCTURE
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The DTH market structure can be classified into three categories; Market leaders,
Market challengers and Market followers. There is intense competition as some of the
leading players have not only succumbed in the sales for acquiring new customers but
has started losing existing ones to Tata Sky, Big TV and other new entrants.
MARKET LEADER:
Dish TV India’s first DTH service provider launched in October 2003 is the market
leader with 6.4 million subscribers. Dish TV continues to be a market leader with
32% market share in 7 player scenario on date, with sizeable sales and distribution
infrastructure of over 650 distributors and 45,000 dealers across 6500 towns – once
again, the largest in the category. This reach into far flung markets enables building of
a diverse subscriber base across consumer segments, which are supported by its rich
content of regional channel offerings.
Dishtv has maintained its leadership position through an improved market share of all
DTH subscribers. New offers, extensive marketing campaigns have contributed to
impressive subscriber acquisition and are committed to provide the best value to our
customers and investors by enhancing operational efficiencies and by leveraging
economies of scale.
MARKET CHALLENGERS:
The gap between the leader and the challengers is decreasing because of the
increasing competition and promotion strategy followed by each player.
TATA Sky
In the enormous consumer market that is India, occasionally an opportunity arises that
can create incredible growth and profit—provided those who seek to capture it can
move quickly enough. TATA wanted to capitalize on this opportunity as there was
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currently only one player in the DTH market. It was the second Mover after Dish TV
leveraging on brand TATA and high brand recall.
Incorporated in 2004, Tata Sky is a JV between the TATA Group and STAR. Tata
Sky endeavors to offer Indian viewers a world-class television viewing experience
through its satellite television service. The key business challenge in a country like
India is meeting customer demands—which are very dynamic— under the regulatory
purview of the country.
Sun DIRECT
Sun Direct is the fastest growing DTH service provider having garnered over 1.9
million subscribers since its launch in December 2007 and aims to become one of the
leading players in the DTH space. Sun Direct challenged the existing players by
involving them in the price war by acting as a discounted brand. It started offering
subscriptions at as low as Rs 99 to reach as much at the bottom of the market. The
biggest differentiator for the brand is the pricing point which is lesser than the other
brands.
MARKET FOLLOWERS:
Reliance BIG TV/ Airtel Digital/Videocon d2h
The approach being followed is of Market Follower (as they are late entrant and their
primay objective is to attract max subscribers in shortest span of time.
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64
RECOMMENDATIONS
Repackage: In a market like India, all a DTH player may need to do is
repackage existing channels that are not universally available. In sports, some
players have won an advantage through long-term rights purchases.
Broadcasting rights to cricket in India, for example, belongs to ESPN for the
next five years.
Content: The movies, news channels, sporting events, and/or general
entertainment features that constitute an offer to consumers.
Move First: In the DTH industry, a credible and well managed first-mover
service has a tremendous advantage over others. In India, a first mover may
effectively shut out competition.
Exploit Market Niche: In some markets, the segment of consumers who
desire highly specific content may be large enough to form the core subscriber
ship of a DTH service. An example of this could be again cricket in our
country.
Build an appropriate content offer: This is the single most crucial choice a
DTH company will make. In a remote town with no access to television, for
example, even a DTH bouquet of just two channels might seem attractive.
Standardized the price plans and avoid frequency changing: Frequent
changes in price and offers is proving no good for Dish TV as it is in way
frustrates the customers with changes in offers without being informed about
it. So Dish TV needs to watch out for this and should pre inform the customers
about the offers and changes well in advance. This in a way, I feel would
create more brand loyalty and preference.
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FINDINGS
More than half a population has shifted towards DTH, which is a large share.
Dish TV is the market leader with more market share, followed by TATA SKY and
Airtel respectively.
Out of All the people who were questioned mostly said if given the chance to buy new
DTH they will opt for Dish TV because of its promotional strategies n new schemes,
followed by Tata sky , followed by Airtel, reliance and others
36% respondents choose DTH because of better picture quality, 32% gave reason of
more channels, while 32% choose because of connection problem with local cables.
Customer care service is considered to be very poor as dealers often complain of
problems in recharge process managed by DTH.
Many persons say they recommend Tata Sky and Airtel because they get the
installation done much faster in comparison to Dish TV. With Dish, it takes up to 3-4
days sometimes.
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CONCLUSION
DTH VS CABLE
Over the years many adjectives have been prefixed to this breed arrogant and
unprofessional to name cable wallah. Missing out on a major football match or being
unable to watch the slog over of an important cricket international has often resulted
in loud curses and abuses. And, yet there is often an overwhelming sense of
helplessness. The cable guy is irreplaceable; he controls the remote of entertainment
in our lives
In the wake of the opening up of the earth and skies (literally) to private operators,
India is all set to see a "war of the accesses". With very few large players, a
widespread geography and an extremely rowdy and unorganized cable operator set-
up, the options between DTH and Cable as access modes are both set to woo the ever
increasingly discerning Indian consumer. Finally, there’s life without the
intermediary. In millions of homes across the country, home entertainment is getting
redefined and revolutionized as DTH (direct to-home) companies move into top gear.
The DTH technology has been available in India since Dish TV started offering its
service back in October, 2003. But the scene warmed up early with the coming of
Tata Sky on August 8. Now with regulations on channel sharing gradually falling in
place, size of the bouquet (number of channels on offer) has grown huge making DTH
an attractive proposition for the consumer.
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Many players like AIRTEL digital TV, Dish TV (Essel Group) and Tata Sky (a joint
venture between Tata and Star) etc is making a bold pitch for the 110 million
television homes: 63 million cables and 47 million terrestrial. Other DTH aspirants
include the Anil Ambani group and Sun TV, both planning to enter the fray.
With 7 operational players, the segment rivalry is quite high. The competition
from state owned DD-Direct to private players is negligible from the content
point of view as the number of channels offered by DD-Direct is very limited.
However, DD-Direct does not charge any monthly subscription fee which poses
a threat to the private players. Between Dish TV and Tata Sky there is an intense
rivalry exhibited by price wars and discount schemes offered to new connections.
Being the first mover, Dish TV has price advantage in both the STB as well as
procuring the transponders. On the other hand, Tata Sky claims its STB having
superior DVD quality video. There is also a competition at acquiring the content
The private players are offering a lip-smacking fare. Apart from the much sharper
picture quality you got to see it to believe it there’s stereophonic sound, interactive
television, gaming, break-free cinema, multi-audio programming. You can also store a
programme and watch it later. Tata Sky has also engaged 3,000 engineers to cater to
customer problems.
However, the truth is that there are more choices before the consumer than ever
before. Healthy competition between the two technologies will ensure that cable
operators, including those in the final mile, improve their quality of service. The
customer finally has the option to think beyond the cable guy.
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The DTH system of broadcasting scores over its cable counterpart in the following
areas:
Higher subscriber accountability since the system eliminates the cable service
provider in the distribution chain. Thus there would be no under-reporting of
subscribers as is prevalent in the current cable system.
Premium quality service can be made available through the DTH system. The
quality of transmission in the case of DTH system is much better than that of
the conventional cable system.
DTH would be more accessible in remote areas where the cable's excessive
length may make the system expensive or technically un-acceptable.
DTH is good news for smaller channels because the digital technology allows
a provider to compress between eight and 10 channels on a single transponder.
So most big broadcasters are likely to be left with plenty of unutilized
transponder space.
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SUMMARY
Over the last seven years, the direct-to-home (DTH) satellite industry has come on
strongly worldwide. It has grown from a niche delivery mechanism into a mainstream
business. The spread of subscription-based DTH satellite TV promises to enhance
choices for many households in developing countries.
With the Government throwing open the DTH sector in the country, a handful of
players have come up with grandiose plans to enter the market. Given the stiff level of
competition this premium services will face from the existing multi-channel cable
network, possible entrants need to clearly grasp a few of the winning rules of the
game.
Direct to home (DTH) television service, more popularly known as direct broadcast
satellite service, is coming to India after a government ordained delay of three years.
The other advantage of DTH is the availability of satellite broadcast in rural and semi-
urban areas where cable is difficult to install.
Due to digital compression techniques, many more niche channels are available than
can be provided by cable operators.
The services are more reliable vis-à-vis repeated breakdowns that can occur in cable
transmissions as against satellite broadcast.
One of the great advantages of the cable industry has been the ability to provide local
channels, but this handicap has been overcome by many DTH providers using other
local channels or local feeds.
DTH also offers digital quality signals which do not degrade the picture or sound
quality. It also offers interactive channels and program guides with customers having
the choice to block out programming which they consider undesirable.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
BOOKS:
Kothari C.R., Research Methodology Methods & Techniques, New Delhi,
WISHWA Publications, Second Edition (reprint) 2004
Mcnabb David E., Research Methods of Political Sciences, New Delhi,
Prentice Hall of India, 2005
Buddenbuan Judeth M. Applied Communication Research, New Delhi, Surjeet
Publications.
WEBSITES:
www.google.com
www.humanlinks.com
http://www.nrf.ac.za/yenza/research/resmeth.htm
http://www.fh-vorarlberg.ac.at/res/weitere/phd/methodology_programme.pdf
http://polish.krakow.usconsulate.gov/krakow-pl/online.html http://www.firstmonday.org/issues/issue6_10/deuze/
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INDIA TODAY
BUSINESS TODAY
FRONTLINE
THE OUTLOOK
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QUESTIONNIARE
72
It included questions as follows:-
Respected Sir/Madam,I am conducting a research on DTH and Cable connection.Please give your opinions regarding the sameThank YouRegards
1. Your Full Name = …………………………………………..
2. How many T.V sets are there at your home?
2
3
4
More than 4
3. Which type of T.V sets you use?
Normal CPT television
LCD Television
LED Television
Others
4. Do you watch Television using DTH or Local cable connection?
DTH
LOCAL CABLE
5. If you have a DTH connection, which among you use? *
Dish TV
Tata Sky
Airtel
Others
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6. If you get a chance to buy another/new DTH connection which one will you
choose? *
Dish TV
Tata Sky
Airtel
Reliance Big
Other
7. Why you choose DTH over Local Cable?
Because of the Picture quality
You want more channels with clarity
Connection problem with Local cables/ Cost is Less
Other
8. Why you choose Local Cable over DTH? *
Because price is less in Cable
You need Local News content which is missing in DTH
Too many choices in DTH
Other
9. What is the price you currently pay to your cable operator (Monthly)?
If you are DTH user kindly jump to Next Question/
100-200
200-300
300-400
Other
10. What is the price you currently pay to your DTH operator (Monthly)*
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100-200
200-300
300-400
Other
11. Your Age*
Contact Number=
75
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