Checked out Reliance IPTV!

Even USB is not required. IPTV protocols are public and PC based clients are available, sadly no client is free. Its not populer since mostly developers working on IPTV stack are the only ones who need them.

USB not reqd? dont STB require some card to be inserted to recv channels? with comp may be u atleast need to read card once (mostly thru USB card reader) and create raw image file.

IPTV would be a good driver for broadband growth. More ppl will want tv instead of fast connections. If IPTV takes off, it can only be good for the net in India.So once the iptv takes off, then there is a good reason to upgrade/invest in more capable hardware, fatter pipes etc. I thought broadband would precede it but i think it will happen the other way around.DTH is only for small towns with poor infrastructure, which would be a big part of the country no doubt. But in the big cities IPTV will have the advantage.What i would like to know is what is the bandwidth requirement atm for DTH, how much data can the satellite stream one way ?

USB not reqd? dont STB require some card to be inserted to recv channels?

That card stores credentials, these credentials can be supplied by PC as well. You are right you will need someone to read it once for you. I think STB reapir shops should be willing to do that.

What i would like to know is what is the bandwidth requirement atm for DTH, how much data can the satellite stream one way ?

transmitting 40 'Free to Air' channels require 155 mbps bandwidth with VCD like quality.

In practice, Dish TV, Tata Sky seem to use higher compression [and lower quality] so their requirements might be lesser.

Thanks for that 🙂

Tata seems to be broadcasting a lot more than 40 channels from this list.

Well i have undergone inplant training at Doordharshan,chennai.We had the oppurtunity to see the real time video encoders that is sent to Terrestrial broadcasting section and to the satellite for DD DTH.The only channel that is being transmitted from chennai is DD Podhigai that is available in DD DTH and others from start.The stream was encoded at variable rates from 2.xxMbps to a max of 4.xx MbpsIt was a big machine and it had its own Windows xp based computer in which a software was running showing the details about the encoding level and stuff.Man we have xH.264 and other new codecs in market which are especially made for better than DVD quality(Bluray official video format,ipod video,Apple TV,iPhone, ps3,360 and a lot more now supports h.264) and at lower bit rates.Definetely Dish TV and Tata Sky doesnt support H.264But IPTV do support h.264 though.So the available bandwidth is not the only factor for transmitting N number of channels.Codecs really do involve in the transmission of channels.Its like the MHz-GHz war that went on some 5 years before in processor market.People thought that the processing power is proportional to the GHz value.But its not the real thing.With advanced instruction set,more cores per chip the Hertz war got ended. 😉

Has it been launched?

It was supposed to be launched in november. Any updates guys ?

I doubt it has launched.

I think they are still confused on what to start first, the DTH service or IPTV. Before that they need to make sure that the BB/telephone service they provide should become usable.
At my place their BB service is very pathetic. My neighbor took the connection last month (if he could have asked me which BB connection to go for 🙂 ) and now, just after a month he is disconnecting it. He said , out of last 30 days the BB connection was available for just 3 or 4 days and rest of the days it was down. The speed was pathetic and their cc s***s. He was saying that this is the first CC he has ever seen where the phone will keep on ringing and no one will pick it up. Even if he gets some one, the default answer is they will send someone within 8 hours, but no one came till date.
How they will start the IPTV service if they cannot manage the BB service itself. 😡

meaculpa has got the reliance IPTV all wrong!1. they still have the óld' iptv setup in the NNOC where meaculpa visited 🙂2. that system was rejected 2 years ago3. read the next post - reliance ties with Microsoft for IPTV services4. the remote as answering machine is history5. fantastic product - absolutely world class (i have seen it)6. 15GBPS dedicated internet line for the service7. HD content (channels + movies) available8. commercially launced already9. not for masses!!!

The Reliance IPTV service is currently available in select areas of Mumbai. It will also be made available in all major cities and towns of India.

Info Courtesy:
Welcome to Reliance Communications