Not only has there been tremendous growth in the C&S household who view pay television but a number of cable television networks have emerged. A report

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has forwarded the Group report on ‘Digitalization and Introduction of Voluntary CAS' along with the comments of 16 stakeholders to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. The report will be useful in deciding the roadmap for bringing about addressability in the cable TV sector. The major recommendations in the Group's report include voluntary CAS to be a non-starter unless the date from which CAS is to be implemented is mandated by the government, 55 cities in the country i.e. all state capitals, and all other cities with a population of one million and above have been identified for this purpose, the dates of roll out of CAS for these identified cities to be notified in advance by the government of India in one go, and a framework to facilitate voluntary efforts for introduction of CAS in cities other than identified cities.

Rolling out of CAS on digital networks has been the most significant step to implement order in the marketplace and remove some of the vagaries in cable distribution such as unequal bargaining powers amongst various players, under-declaration of subscriber base, rampant disconnection disputes, numerous billing and payment disputes, allegations of discriminatory practices in pricing and unfair trade practices.

It is agreed that CAS brings about freedom of choice to consumers, transparency in the systems, improves quality of services to the consumers, brings in addressability - leading to better tax administration, and enhances competition among operators/platforms resulting in lower prices. Despite all these benefits, so far, CAS could take off only under a mandatory route barring some stray voluntary attempts. It should be noted here that there is no bar whatsoever for the service providers to introduce CAS on voluntary basis by mutual agreements.

Meanwhile, Broadcast Engineers Consultancy India Limited (BECIL) on its quality of service audit report has said CAS has been well implemented, but has asked each MSO to improve certain aspects of its functioning to meet QoS standards of TRAI.

Voluntary CAS is perceived to be a non-starter unless the date from which addressability will be implemented is mandated, and unless the interconnection and tariff are also mandated for the initial roll out period. It is believed that CAS will succeed only if all MSOs and cable operators voluntary agree to roll out CAS simultaneously and they also enter into interconnection agreements with all broadcasters accordingly. This is very difficult to achieve to a purely voluntary basis in a deregulated environment. It is therefore recommended by the group that the date of the rollout of CAS should be mandated for 55 cities in the country (all state capitals and all other cities with a population of one million and above). This is to be done in phases beginning with October 2008, and ending with September 2011.

It is important to highlight that in the absence of addressability, broadcasters have been able to push their content only at a high price. It is also important to note that the operators have not disturbed such a non-addressable system as they under-report the subscriber base, to the broadcasters and the operators are negotiated ones, where subscriber numbers are negotiated on a lump sum basis. In a mandated CAS scenario, the revenue share arrangements implemented by TRAI require that the broadcasters and the operators make accurate declarations, apart from maintaining high quality of standards.

It is observed that voluntary implementation of CAS without a timeframe and determinable yardstick to monitor the same could lead to dissipation of a well-intended objective. A detailed plan to implement CAS ought to include commercial framework for addressable cable platforms to ensure consumers are not burdened with unreasonable price fluctuations, standards of quality to be strictly implemented to ensure defaulters are accountable for deficiency in services, and incentivising networks which have upgraded their networks and which are seeking to voluntarily implement CAS. This could be done by extending the CAS framework by the regulator to such networks ahead of the CAS effective date.

While digitalization of cable TV should be promoted, the choices of analog CAS or digital CAS should be left to the cable operators as per their business plans. The development of digital decoders, which are considered essential for viewing digital channels on analog TV, should be promoted with an aim to promote digitalization of cable TV in the country. There is also a need for a clear policy framework for headend-in-the-sky (HITS) which could be on the lines of the permission already given by the government for one operator. According to Avnindra Mohan, Executive Vice President, Zee Network, ‘ Headend-in-the-sky (HITS) is one such model which confers benefits of wider reach even in far- flung and rural areas and also ensures digital delivery in most effective and economical manner. With HITS technology, the digitization can be achieved throughout the country at one stroke and with an investment far lower than what is needed to establish terrestrial digital headends in each city'.

From a consumer's and operator's perspective

The implementation of CAS entails an initial investment in a set top box (STB) and making a choice of desired pay channels available to a consumer. It also means that for choice to be available to the consumer, the operator ought to have an arrangement to carry the desired pay channels. Broadcasters generally have a business model which does not provide their channels on a-la-carte basis to the operators. Thus the operator seeks to impose a bouquet on the consumers. In this situation there is a limited choice with both the operator and the consumer.

The road ahead

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has invited all stakeholders in the mandated CAS areas of the three metros to put in their comments on the revenue sharing formula originally envisaged in the regulation on CAS. The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) has maintained that TRAI should invite stakeholders to send their comments and documentation, which industry sources say would include evidence that the MSOs have not received "carriage fees" for feeding the channels from broadcasters in the mandated CAS areas. TRAI has been granted two and half month of time for the process to be completed.

It is apparent from the experience of the stakeholders that CAS is beneficial in the long term as it brings transparency and accountability into the industry and offers choice to the consumers. It is also observed that voluntary implementation of CAS without a timeframe and determinable yardstick to monitor the same could lead to dissipation of a well planned objective.