News Broadcasting
Chandra’s ASC seeks fresh teleport license
NEW DELHI: In a bid to push through a proposal to have a headend in the sky, the Subhash Chandra-promoted ASC Enterprises Ltd., which amongst other things is implementing the Agrani satellite project, has now sought the Indian government’s permission for a licence for a teleport for uplinking purposes. This would also help Agrani as it is a prospective KU-band direct-to-home (DTH) player.
This has been necessitated as an earlier proposal by the Chandra-controlled Zee Telefilms, seeking the government’s green signal to ‘turnaround’ satellite channels in a digital format from its uplink base on the outskirts of Delhi for, what Zee calls, headend in the sky project was turned down on the ground that the proposed project was a case of uplinking for which separate permission would have to be sought.
While government officials admitted to have “seen a headend in the sky proposal in the information and broadcasting ministry and uplink permission” (with Parliament in session, government officials generally are averse to giving out details to the media), Zee group sources indicated that an application from ASC Enterprises for a teleport licence has been submitted recently.
It was also clarified that as Agrani is a serious and prospective DTH player in India, the teleport licence will help it when a DTH platform is put together by it. In the meantime, the teleport facility could also be used for implementing the headend in the sky project.
Zee, through its cable subsidiary Siti Cable, has been aggressively pushing for a headend in the sky which, it says, will substantially lower investments on cable headends by cable operators and multi-system operators as and when conditional access system (CAS) is implemented.
What is headend in the sky ? In short, pay channels are decrypted and aggregated at a central facility, then all channels are up-linked with common CAS inserted. After this, the channels are downlinked at headends where the cable operator with the help of a trans-modulator makes the satellite signals compatible for a cable system and mixes signals of free-to-air channels for further re-distribution to cable subscribers. The combined channels go to subscriber’s set top box and get decrypted for viewing on the TV set.
According to broadcasting industry sources, for the headend in the sky project to succeed, other broadcasters like Star and Sony have to agree to common encryption which, media observers say, is a tough nut to crack. Still, industry sources indicated talks have been initiated at both formal and informal levels with other broadcasters for inclusion of their respective channels in the common encrypted signal. A headend in the sky project is likely to cost between Rs 150-180 million. Technical advantages of this apart, in a post-CAS scenario an average cable operator will have to upgrade his system where the costing may work out between Rs. 60,000- Rs 1,00,000 per channel.
At the moment, an average Indian cable home with a comparatively modern TV set is capable of receiving on an average about 50 channels. According to a blueprint of the headend in the sky proposal, prepared by Siti Cable, if necessary permissions come through, then at a later stage the subscriber, through the set top box, can have a new service or go in for a change in his service mix by calling up a toll free number connecting to the subscriber management system ( SMS) and log in his request. The subscriber management centre gives a message to ‘turnaround’ centre and executes the request through a data controller. The billing is generated by SMS and sent to the subscriber through designated means.
It has also been proposed that all stakeholders in the industry should be part of the headend in the sky project and a separate legal entity can be formed with equity stake offered to all stakeholders, namely broadcasters, cable operators, and MSOs.
News Broadcasting
Times Network to air JVC Exit Poll across 5 regions on April 29
Four-hour broadcast spans states and Puducherry with data-led analysis
MUMBAI: Times Network is set to roll out what it calls one of its most expansive election programming efforts yet, culminating in the JVC Exit Poll on 29 April, with a multi-hour broadcast spanning key poll-bound regions.
The exit poll will air across Times Now and Times Now Navbharat, beginning at 5pm and 4pm respectively. Co-powered by Vedanta and Jindal Stainless, the programming aims to combine on-ground reportage with data-driven projections across West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry.
The network has deployed over 50 journalists across these regions, gathering voter sentiment and local insights in the run-up to polling. The effort builds on its ongoing election formats such as Election Yatra and Election Premier League, which have tracked campaign narratives and community-level issues.
In parallel, Times Now Navbharat has focused on constituency-level reporting in West Bengal through its Jan Gan ka Mann series, capturing voter opinions across diverse segments.
The coverage has also featured interviews with prominent political leaders. Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Congress leaders Ramesh Chennithala and V D Satheesan have appeared on the network’s election specials. From Tamil Nadu, voices including deputy chief minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran, BJP leader K Annamalai and NTK’s Seeman have also featured in discussions.
On the day of the exit poll, the network’s primetime anchors, including Navika Kumar, Zakka Jacob and Sumit Awasthi, will lead the coverage. They will be joined by a panel of political analysts, psephologists and senior journalists offering real-time insights and interpretation of trends.
The programming will integrate grassroots reportage with analytics from the JVC Exit Poll, aiming to give viewers an early sense of electoral outcomes ahead of the official results on 4 May.
With its combined English and Hindi broadcast reach, Times Network is positioning this effort as a comprehensive look at voter sentiment, blending field reporting, data and debate to decode what could lie ahead when the final mandate is revealed.
