The Subhash Chandra-Rupert Murdoch-owned Siticable has finally managed to grab a major stronghold in Mumbai. The cable TV MSO has signed an agreement with south and central Mumbai cable network SpaceVision. SpaceVision was earlier affiliated with UCN, another cable TV network, both of which were taken over by the now defunct BiTV Cable TV Networks. BiTV Cable, which included another two headends in Mumbai and several others elsewhere in India, was later taken over by the Rajan Raheja promoted Hathway Cable, but the deal excluded SpaceVision.

Hathway had been trying very hard to get SpaceVision to sign on with it but its promoters had been resisting as they had differences with its management. Space Vision has around 100,000 subscribers.

Siticable has agreed to set up a joint venture with the four SpaceVision promoters. Three of them had signed on at the time of writing while one was holding out. But the Siticable management was confident that things would finally work out.

According to sources, Siticable is paying upwards of Rs 300 per subscriber to get the Space Vision promoters into a joint venture. The new tieup will take Siticable's subscriber base in Mumbai to more than 300,000. The MSO recently launched a cable TV cinema channel called SitiCinema and a news and current affairs service in Mumbai.