It is once again time to present the Annual Issue. We present various aspects of the broadcast, cable and satellite industry. Stalwarts from the industry and direct users have shared their thoughts and ideas through contributory guest columns.

The Commonwealth Games 2010 scheduled to be held from October 3 to 14 next year will give a major impetus to the broadcast equipment industry. Host broadcaster Doordarshan has to produce an international feed in HDTV format which requires at least three times more bandwidth compared to the standard telecast currently used by most broadcasters in the country. DD will also need to upgrade its infrastructure in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai to broadcast in HDTV format. The government has already provisioned around Rs. 220 crore in 2009-10 towards the programming for CWG 2010. A part of this amount will be utilized for upgrading existing hardware of DD kendras across the four metros.

With a clear focus on Commonwealth Games 2010, the government has increased the Budget outlay for the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting by 27 percent, and the broadcasting sector receives Rs. 519 crore from the Plan allocation for the ministry of Rs. 800 crore.

An additional amount of Rs. 87.95 crore has been allocated for North East Special Package-II. The government has also made a provision of Rs. 100 crore for setting up high-power TV and FM transmitters in border areas of Jammu and Kashmir and the North-East and low-power FM transmitters in uncovered areas of J&K.

The Uttar Pradesh state legislature has amended the UP Entertainment and Betting Tax Act, 1979, to bring DTH into the tax net. A 30 percent entertainment tax has been imposed on both the hardware as well as broadcasting services, with retrospective effect. The five DTH operators are relooking at their business model. They also fear that this move once implemented may have a spinoff effect on other states following suit.

The industry is excited about IBC 2009, scheduled September 11–15 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It is poised to showcase the latest technology for content creation, management and delivery. Major focus will be on three specialist exhibition zones: digital signage, IPTV, and mobile.