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Essel Group in licensing deal with OpenTV for digital TV services
MUMBAI: Essel Group has entered into a multi-year license agreement with San Franscisco-based OpenTV Corp, the provider of enabling technologies for advanced digital television services. The agreement represents OpenTV’s initial entry into the Indian pay television market.
OpenTV’s solutions will enable Essel Group to deliver a variety of advanced interactive television services, including PVRs (personal video recorders) and EPGs (electronic program guides) to its subscriber base. Essel Group expects to provide its interactive services first to subscribers of Dish TV.
Essel Group subsequently expects to deploy similar OpenTV-enabled services to a portion of its Siticable customer base as Sitibase converts its cable systems from analog to digital.
Essel Group additional vice chairman Jawahar Goel said, “Partnering with OpenTV will enable Dish TV to offer our growing subscriber base an exceptional television viewing experience unlike any other in the region, with multi-camera viewing, gaming, interactive channels, PVR, and push video-on-demand (PVOD). It also allows us to further accelerate Siticable’s aggressive plans to provide similar compelling and interactive digital services to its cable networks in time for the Commonwealth Games in 2010. We are confident that OpenTV’s track record, expertise, and premier technology will help us to achieve our goals of growing our subscribers throughout India at an accelerated rate.”
“With nearly 17 per cent of the world’s population, a fast-growing economy, and a middle class that has tripled in size in the last twenty years to some 300 million, the Indian market represents a tremendous opportunity for OpenTV and reinforces our strong market position in the Asia Pacific region and globally,” OpenTV CEO James A Chiddix said .
“This deal also is among our first ‘subscription model’ arrangements, under which we are paid monthly for each active set-top box that is deployed in the field for so long as that set-top box remains in service. We believe that this business model offers us more of a recurring revenue stream and should provide us with a better opportunity to increase our revenues in line with those of our customer’s growing subscriber base. We look forward to supporting Essel as they accelerate the growth of the digital television market in India and other countries in the region,” he adds.
NEW DELHI: Hamdard Laboratories gathered a cross-section of India’s achievers in New Delhi on Friday, handing out the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Excellence Awards to figures who have left their mark across healthcare, education, sport, public service and the arts.
The ceremony, attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth and senior officials from the ministry of Ayush, celebrated individuals whose work blends professional success with a sense of public purpose. It was as much a roll call of achievement as it was a reminder that influence is not measured only in profits or podiums, but in people reached and lives improved.
Among the headline awardees was Alakh Pandey, founder and chief executive of PhysicsWallah, recognised for turning affordable digital learning into a mass movement. On the sporting front, Arjuna Awardee and kabaddi player Sakshi Puniya was honoured for her contribution to the game and for pushing women’s participation onto bigger stages.
The cultural spotlight fell on veteran lyricist and poet Santosh Anand, whose songs have echoed across generations of Hindi cinema. At 97, Anand accepted the honour with characteristic humility, reflecting on a life shaped by perseverance and hope.
Healthcare honours spanned both modern and traditional systems. Manoj N. Nesari was recognised for strengthening Ayurveda’s place in national and global health frameworks. Padma shri Mohammed Abdul Waheed was honoured for his research-backed work in Unani medicine, while padma shri Mohsin Wali received recognition for his long-standing contribution to patient-centred care.
Education and social development also featured prominently. Padma shri Zahir Ishaq Kazi was honoured for decades of work in education, while former Meghalaya superintendent of Police T. C. Chacko was recognised for public service. Goonj founder Anshu Gupta received an award for his dignity-centred rural development initiatives, and the Hunar Shakti Foundation was honoured for empowering women and young girls through skill development.
The Lifetime Achievement Award went to former IAS officer Shailaja Chandra for her long career in public healthcare and governance, particularly in the traditional systems under Ayush.
Speaking at the event, Hamdard chairman Abdul Majeed said the awards were a tribute to those who combine excellence with empathy. “These awardees reflect Hakeem Sahib’s belief that healthcare, education and public service must ultimately serve humanity,” he said.
Minister Seth struck a forward-looking note, saying India’s young population gives the country a unique opportunity to become a global destination for learning, health and wellness by 2047.
The ceremony also featured the trailer launch of Unani Ki Kahaani, an upcoming documentary starring actor Jim Sarbh, set to premiere on Discovery on 11 February.
Instituted in memory of Unani scholar and educationist Hakeem Abdul Hameed, the awards have grown into a national platform that celebrates those building a more inclusive and resilient India. For one evening at least, the spotlight was not just on success, but on service with substance.
