All Set Top Boxes to Support More Than One DTH Operator: TRAI

To support interoperable set top boxes all TVs will have to offer USB support as well.

Dish Smrt Hub (left) and Airtel Xstream (right) hybrid boxes.

(Photo: The Quint)

It was last year in October that The Quint spoke with C-DOT, the telecom technology development centre of the Government of India who had proposed the concept of a DTH Set Top Box (STB) that supports interoperability.

We even saw a demo of the STB and learned that something like this will be pushed by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India soon. Turns out, it’s happening.

TRAI has stated that all STBs provided to customers will have to mandatorily support interoperability and this will go into effect after the lockdown period ends. The ruling also suggests that the mandate has to be made mandatory only after the current economic crisis is resolved.

For users, this means that no STB will be linked to only one DTH operator and the users will have the option to change their service provider without having to change the box.

TRAI has further said that the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (I&B) may also amend these rules for India's satellite TV operators to ensure interoperability is offered there also.

Despite how much of a relief this might sound for the consumers the decision has been opposed by a few DTH operators.

It is not desirable to have interoperable STBs for the commercial, technical, security and service-related reasons. There is no proven global model of interoperability available. It is anticipated that interoperable STBs would turn out to be a much more expensive proposition for the subscribers. Also, the interoperable STB would stifle individual operator’s ability to innovate.   

<a href="https://www.cnbctv18.com/technology/trai-directs-for-set-top-boxes-to-be-made-interoperable-dth-players-oppose-move-5669491.htm">Tata Sky spokesperson to CNBC TV 18</a>

According to the CNBC TV 18 report, DishTV also had a similar sentiment stating that the concept of interoperable STBs is “highly misplaced” and will cause “difficulty in operations.”

The Quint tried reaching out to both Tata Sky and Airtel for their response on this decision by TRAI but none agreed to comment.

The ruling mentions that the STBs will offer interoperability but doesn’t state how they will be procured.

At the moment the DTH operators provide the STBs at a certain one-time premium which adds to their overall revenue. Doing away with this setup is deemed to affect the entertainment package pricing and also service cost.

In light of this ruling, the I&B Ministry and also the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeITY) has been advised that they coordinate and roll out a ruling that makes it mandatory for all television manufacturers to make TVs with USBs and that support STBs with interoperability functionality.

We are still waiting for an official statement from DTH operators and will update this story as soon as we get their inputs.