News Broadcasting
Star India launches wireless division
NEW DELHI: Well, we had alluded to this development happening in March, and so it has come to be. Not content with dominating the Indian cable and satellite TV market — media analysts project that Star Group’s growth in Asia would be largely fuelled by the Indian operation’s stridency — Star has now set its eyes on tapping the wireless segment in a big way in India and China in conjunction with its TV business.
An initial target is to reach 10 million cable homes in India where there are multiple mobile phone users within 12 months.
For starters, not only has a new division been created within Star India to focus on this business opportunity, but the company has also concluded deals with various telecom companies to mop up additional revenues.
The newly created wireless business development division is being headed by Sumantra ‘Sumo’ Dutta, who attended a session relating to the wireless business in Hong Kong recently. He also looks after the FM radio venture Radio City carried out in association with a PK Mittal company.
Star India CEO Peter Mukerjea told indiantelevision.com, “Globally wireless is becoming a lucrative business opportunity. Even if we do not garner big time revenue in India initially, it has the potential of growing exponentially over a period of time as we involve more and more TV-watching people and the number of cellular phone users grows.”
According to Mukerjea, the deals signed with telecom companies envisage Star India cornering 30 per cent of the revenue from SMSs sent (related to Star-supported services like horoscope and news) over cellular networks.
The companies with which agreements to this effect have been signed include pre-dominantly GSM players like Bharti (Airtel) , Hutch, Orange and BPL. Those like Reliance and Tatas, offering limited mobility through wireless in local loop, have not yet been targeted.
How is Star looking at tapping the wireless business?
Not only is it going to promote the usage by cellular phone users of its four-digit universal access number, 7827, to SMS and participate in various TV programme-related contests, but it is also looking at offering a host of services like horoscope, weather reports and news. What’s more, there’s going to be a Star loyalty club as well where the aim would be to reward people who have sent a large number of SMSs to 7827. “The more SMSs you send, more the points you get. More the points you accumulate, more
the chances of winning grand prizes,” Mukerjea said, adding that Star is not averse to giving away cars as prizes.
“If we successfully manage to tap into cellular phone users and leverage our strengths in TV, there’s sizeable revenue to be made from wireless ,” he explained.
Asked what does he feel about Star’s latest business moves, Hong Kong-based media analyst Vivek Couto of Media Partners Asia said, “For Star Group, as a whole, while advertising represents a dominant revenue stream, followed by subscription or affiliate fees, revenues from programme syndication (sales) and wireless/SMS will also provide valuable top up, a valuable incremental revenue stream in other words.”
Star has global trends to support its grand plans. In its latest issue, dated 7 June, in an extensive coverage of the wireless domain, Newsweek has written that all over the planet, wireless is making waves, from the text-message-mad teenagers outside Tokyo’s Shibuya station to a Wi-Fi-equipped McDonald’s in New York City to Everest climbers calling home from the summit. With dizzying rapidity, wireless innovations move from the cutting edge to the routine. Just like what happened with Marconi’s
magic box during the first wireless revolution as the cell phone increasingly incorporates the features of traditional TV and PC, the magazine concludes.
India is not far behind in adopting global tech and gizmos. Take, for example, the growth in cellular connections.
According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, at the end of May, 2004, total fixed lines were 43.18 million, while cellular phone users numbered 36.3 million, taking the total of telephony subscribers in the country to around 79.5 million.
No wonder, Newsweek is the most preferred magazine in Star India offices these days.
News Broadcasting
Induction cooktop demand spikes 30× amid LPG supply concerns
Supply worries linked to West Asia tensions push households and restaurants to turn to electric cooking alternatives
MUMBAI: As geopolitical tensions in West Asia ripple through global energy supply chains, the familiar blue flame in Indian kitchens is facing an unexpected challenger: electricity.
What began as concerns over the availability of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has quickly evolved into a technology-driven shift in cooking habits. Households across India are increasingly turning to induction cooktops and other electric appliances, initially as a backup but now, for many, a necessity.
A sudden surge in demand
Recent data from quick-commerce and grocery platform BigBasket highlights the scale of the shift. According to Seshu Kumar Tirumala, the company’s chief buying and merchandising officer, demand for induction cooktops has risen dramatically.
“Induction cooktops have seen a significant surge in demand, recording a fivefold jump on 10 March and a thirtyfold spike on 11 March,” Tirumala said.
The increase stands out sharply when compared with broader kitchen appliance trends. Most appliance categories are growing within 10 per cent of their typical demand levels, while induction cooktops have witnessed explosive growth as households rush to secure an alternative cooking option.
Major e-commerce platforms including Amazon and Flipkart have reported rising searches and orders for induction stoves. Quick-commerce apps such as Blinkit and Zepto have also witnessed stock shortages in major metropolitan areas including Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.
What was once considered a convenient appliance for hostels, small kitchens or occasional use has suddenly become an essential addition in many homes.
A crisis thousands of miles away
The trigger for this shift lies far beyond India’s kitchens.
Escalating conflict in the Middle East has disrupted shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical energy corridors. Nearly 85 to 90 per cent of India’s LPG imports pass through this narrow waterway, making the country particularly vulnerable to supply disruptions.
The ripple effects have been swift.
India currently meets roughly 60 per cent of its LPG demand through imports, and tightening global supply has already begun to affect domestic availability and prices.
Earlier this month, the price of domestic LPG cylinders increased by Rs 60, while commercial cylinders rose by more than Rs 114.
To discourage panic buying and hoarding, the government has also extended the mandatory waiting period between domestic refill bookings from 21 days to 25 days.
Restaurants feel the pressure
The strain is not limited to households. Restaurants, hotels and roadside eateries are also grappling with supply constraints as commercial LPG availability tightens under restrictions imposed through the Essential Commodities Act.
In cities such as Bengaluru and Chennai, restaurant associations report that commercial LPG availability has dropped by as much as 75 per cent, forcing many establishments to rethink their kitchen operations.
Some restaurants have reduced menu offerings, while others are rapidly installing high-efficiency induction systems, creating hybrid kitchens where electricity now shares the workload with gas.
For smaller eateries and roadside dhabas, the shift is less about sustainability and more about survival.
A potential structural shift
The government has maintained that there is no nationwide LPG crisis and has directed refineries to increase production to stabilise supply.
Nevertheless, the developments of March 2026 may already be triggering a longer-term behavioural shift.
For decades, LPG has been the backbone of cooking in Indian households. However, recent disruptions have highlighted the risks of relying on a single fuel source.
Increasingly, households appear to be hedging against uncertainty by adopting electric cooking options to guard against price volatility and delivery delays.
If the current trend continues, the induction cooktop, once viewed as a niche appliance, could emerge as a quiet symbol of India’s evolving kitchen economy.
