Reliance Communications, the country's second largest communications company, is in the process of making its DTH arm, Reliance BlueMagic, a 100% subsidiary.
At present, Reliance Communications holds 20% equity stake in BlueMagic, the rest is held by other group companies. Company sources said the move to make it's DTH arm a 100% subsidiary will considerably enhance shareholder value and increase growth potential. BlueMagic will roll out its DTH operations by the year-end.
BlueMagic would also be the first operator in the country to deploy the latest 'MPEG4' technology. "W4 provides high-power coverage for services, including television and radio broadcasting, multimedia, Internet, public telephony, business networks and satellite news gathering," sources said.
Being a late entrant in the DTH space (after Dish TV, DD Direct, Tata Sky and Sun Direct), BlueMagic is slated to break the entry level barriers in a bid to gather a larger market share. Current entry barriers are about Rs 2,500 plus.
While India has over 5 million DTH users at present, the numbers of subscribers opting for this digital platform when the next next round of compulsory Conditional Access System (CAS) conversion commences in 2008.
Meanwhile, Reliance is understood to have tied up with Microsoft for several technological collaborations, including software for Internet Protocol Television (IPTV), WiMAX and a software development toolkit for the Internet, the personal computer and mobile phones.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, would be in India on November 5, and Reliance Communications Chairman Anil Ambani are expected to make a joint announcement, according to sources close to the development regarding the IPTV pact.
Ambani had told an analyst conference call on Thursday that the company's IPTV roll out will happen in two months and RCom had already finalised the necessary technological back up for the venture. "We will launch IPTV launch in Mumbai and Delhi by year end," Ambani said.
In 2003, RCom announced that Microsoft would develop a solution for its IPTV services, using the existing Reliance fibre network.
RCom to take full control of BlueMagic; IPTV by year end | Televisionpoint.com News
At present, Reliance Communications holds 20% equity stake in BlueMagic, the rest is held by other group companies. Company sources said the move to make it's DTH arm a 100% subsidiary will considerably enhance shareholder value and increase growth potential. BlueMagic will roll out its DTH operations by the year-end.
BlueMagic would also be the first operator in the country to deploy the latest 'MPEG4' technology. "W4 provides high-power coverage for services, including television and radio broadcasting, multimedia, Internet, public telephony, business networks and satellite news gathering," sources said.
Being a late entrant in the DTH space (after Dish TV, DD Direct, Tata Sky and Sun Direct), BlueMagic is slated to break the entry level barriers in a bid to gather a larger market share. Current entry barriers are about Rs 2,500 plus.
While India has over 5 million DTH users at present, the numbers of subscribers opting for this digital platform when the next next round of compulsory Conditional Access System (CAS) conversion commences in 2008.
Meanwhile, Reliance is understood to have tied up with Microsoft for several technological collaborations, including software for Internet Protocol Television (IPTV), WiMAX and a software development toolkit for the Internet, the personal computer and mobile phones.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, would be in India on November 5, and Reliance Communications Chairman Anil Ambani are expected to make a joint announcement, according to sources close to the development regarding the IPTV pact.
Ambani had told an analyst conference call on Thursday that the company's IPTV roll out will happen in two months and RCom had already finalised the necessary technological back up for the venture. "We will launch IPTV launch in Mumbai and Delhi by year end," Ambani said.
In 2003, RCom announced that Microsoft would develop a solution for its IPTV services, using the existing Reliance fibre network.
RCom to take full control of BlueMagic; IPTV by year end | Televisionpoint.com News
