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Dish TV finally gets STAR channels on board

Dish TV will have to pay Rs 27 per subscriber to STAR India for its 14 channels

Dish TV, the country's first and only private direct to home (DTH) platform, can now air all 14 channels of the STAR bouquet on its platform.

This follows a long-standing battle between STAR India and Dish TV as STAR India had earlier denied content to this DTH platform. On July 14, Telecom Disputes Settlement Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) had asked STAR India to provide its bouquet of channels to Dish TV, within 15 days.

TDSAT explained its standing by citing that DTH is an addressable system where loss of revenue down the value chain is negligible if not zero.

As per the deal, STAR India will get Rs 27 per subscriber for Dish TV.

A senior executive at STAR India told agencyfaqs! that STAR India has already provided decoders to Dish TV, and the service provider needs to decide from when it wants to distribute the STAR channels.

It is assumed that the absence of STAR India and the One Alliance channels on the Dish TV platform has been a big deterrent for its growth.

But now, it seems things are turning out in favour of Dish TV. Just last month, One Alliance had agreed to allow its content on Dish TV, and now the deal with STAR India could give a major boost to Dish TV’s growth.

Currently, Dish TV boasts of a customer base of about one million with more than 120 channels across the country in its first year of operation.

The new tariff card for Dish TV consumers, which will include the One Alliance and STAR bouquet of channels, will be worked out soon.

© 2006 agencyfaqs!

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