Business digitisation is yet to start in phases I and II: Cisco

KOLKATA: The phases I and II of cable TV digitisation may have been complete technically but a lot needs to be done as far as the back end is concerned, that is the business digitization is yet to start, thinks Cisco India & SAARC regional manager and service provider Sandeep Arora.

Arora thinks that with digitisation in municipal and rural areas also being in demand in phases III and IV across the country, the headend market is redefining itself in India. Fulfilling that would be Cisco, which is planning several innovations to enhance the consumer experience.

“Business and technical digitisation go hand in hand. Revenues for MSOs (multi-system operator) have started flowing in. Profitability and consumer experience are expected to go up in coming days,” remarked Arora while talking to indiantelevision.com.

According to Arora, phases I and II of digitisation of cable TV were implemented in the right frame of mind. “The players adhered to the MIB rules and the phases were well coordinated,” he said.

The US based tech giant set up the hosted headend facility which could be leased by MSOs and local cable operators (LCOs). This will help the company garner revenues from the small LCOs and MSOs that cannot earmark huge investments for installing headends. “We initiated this in phases I and II and its deployment will substantially reduce the capital expenditure of the MSOs and the LCOs,” said Arora.

Interestingly, Cisco garnered a market share of 53-55 per cent in the first two phases where more than 25 million cable TV homes were digitised. “In the next two phases, there is a requirement of 75 million homes to be digitised and if not more we will aim to maintain the same market share of around 55 per cent,” he added.

Some of the clients of Cisco include Hathway, Den, KCBPL-GTPL among others.

Cisco is eager to offer cable TV operators broadband services by upgrading their existing networks. “Broadband is a key priority for us now and it will drive growth,” he said.

The company is offering a technology that will enable cable TV players to start two-way communications required for Internet services.