Over 6 Lakh viewers face balnk TV in Mumbai 1st November

MUMBAI: Approximately six lakh viewers in Mumbai who have not yet switched to either set-top boxes or dish antennae for direct-to-home connections, will face blank television sets on Thursday. In percentage terms, while 70% Mumbaikars have opted for set-top boxes and around 26% have switched to DTH, 4%-or roughly six lakh viewers-are yet to digitalize their connections, local cable operators told TOI.

They claimed that a shortage of manpower as well as set-top boxes has hit digitalization in low-income pockets and even certain middle-income areas. Several consumers, though, said cable operators are not cooperating with them and are overcharging them for set-top boxes. Operators have denied this.
After buying signals from broadcasters, multimedia system operators (MSOs) supply these to local cable operators, which ultimately provide them to consumers through cables. "Our efforts would be to ensure that the maximum number of set-top boxes are installed. We hope to stabilize digitalization of the whole of Mumbai in the next three to four days," said Ashok Mansukhani, president of the MSOs' Alliance.

Jagdish Joshi of the Eastern Cable Operators' Welfare Association said set-top boxes are not available in certain pockets. Joshi said operators would now fight with broadcasters and MSOs to ensure better revenue benefits to operators as well as consumers.

Cable Operators Distributors' Association president Anil Parab said they have convened a meeting of all 3,000 operators in the city at Rang Sharda to decide on the agitation plan over the digitalization issue.