"Videocon's foray into DTH services is part of the company's business strategy to tap growth in  competitive markets with a wider reach and bigger business portfolio"

When would the DTH service be launched?

Videocon had applied for DTH license last year and is expected to roll out the service from August 2008. The new service from the group will be marketed as D2H. The move is part of Videocon's business strategy to tap growth in competitive markets with a wider reach and bigger business portfolio.

What are the targeted regions?

Our focus area would be all the key cities as well as rural areas. We have already budgeted an investment of Rs.1000 crore in this venture over the next three years.

How many channels will be offered?

We will have a range of packages available to our customers, from basic to the premium range or family packages. We intend to offer choice to the customers.

What is your company's marketing strategy? How would you differentiate your services from competition?

The DTH space is witnessing the entry of several major players. Yet Bharat Business Channel Limited (BBCL) is confident about its new venture. As we know, competition is always tough. But, we have been associated with consumer durables for more than two decades and have a deep understanding of the viewing experience that a consumer seeks. It is this experience of the market which will help us achieve our goal of 20 percent market share over the next five years.

In addition to this, the increasing awareness of the benefits offered by DTH will help us grow faster in the days to come.

What is your pricing strategy?

We will have competitive prices offered with the best service premised on quality in content and choice. We will offer quality product to the consumers.

What are the challenges and opportunities in the DTH segment?

The major challenge will be the support from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and broadcasters. The next will be competition from existing DTH operators and new players who are waiting to enter the market.

The total number of color television households in India is pegged at 120 million which represents a huge potential. Even if one considers the projections, estimating that the total DTH subscriber base is growing to 15-20 million by 2013, there is enough space for all the players.

Who are your equipment vendors?

We have selected leading vendors as our technology partners. They have a good experience in the field of DTH. Coming from a strong manufacturing background, we will manufacture our own set top boxes with Korean technology.

What are your plans and targets for the year 2008?

BBCL is targeting 1 million subscribers in the first year of operations and has almost finalized its marketing and brand building strategies for D2H.

What are your customer service initiatives?

We will offer best services to customers. We will ensure that each product installed at customer's home is up to his satisfaction. We will also have multi-lingual call centers for a country that has more than 29 major languages.

We will have 200 plus service locations across the country. These service centers will ensure prompt service to the customer. The back office and data center will be at Noida. They will provide support to our customers for all the requests and escalations to ensure timely resolution.