Hinduja arm awaits BIS nod for set-top box production

It is learnt that Hinduja Group is working towards having these devices made in India having designed the boxes to suit Indian conditions.

Grant Investrade Ltd., a Hinduja Group company, is seeing a major boost to the government of India’s Make in India drive, through the transition of TV cable services from the analogue to the digital platform.

“This is mainly expected to happen through the manufacture of set-top boxes (STBs) in India,” Tony D’Silva, Managing Director, Grant Investrade, told The Hindu.

STBs, which have now become an integral part of digital cable services, are currently imported from countries such as China and Taiwan. It is learnt that the Hinduja Group is working towards having these devices made in India having designed the boxes to suit Indian conditions. The prototype is now awaiting BIS approval.

These boxes will also have features, which will have early warning systems encrypted in them so as to caution people in far flung areas against impending disasters.

While the phase I and II roll-out of digital cable services has been completed, covering 31 million satellite TV homes in four metros and 38 cities, the drive enters its most challenging two phases culminating in the roll out of the services in 110 million TV households by December 2016.

“This is being seen as the biggest and the most significant step for the media and the entertainment industry in India,” Mr. D’ Silva said.

The Hinduja Group company is offering cable operators as well as MSOs a service called NXT Digital, which, Mr. D’ Silva said, would enable them transit from analogue services to digital platforms in a technology-friendly and yet cost-efficient manner.

The services are set to roll out by August, 2015.

3-phase roll-out

DAS (digital addressable system) roll-out in phase 3 markets will see 50 million analogue households convert to digital by end-2015 and 60 million households will go digital by end 2016, after which cable operators will have to stop analogous signals.

“Our services will not only help LMOs and MSOs go digital as per government mandated standards, but also help them stay independent and retain ownership of their network,” he said.

He said that the Hinduja Group had already invested $80 million out of a planned spend of $100 million on this project. It involved investing in technologies like Head end in the Sky (HITS), a pipeline for content delivery and setting up earth stations.