Trai wants DTH users to get broadband too

The consumers who subscribe to direct-to-home services may soon be able to get broadband services from their operators as well.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has recommended that the government ensure and expedite availability of more Ku band transponders (which can be used for TV as well as data transmission) so that DTH companies can also offer broadband services.

There is a severe shortage of Ku band transponders even for broadcasting. But the regulator has suggested that the Indian Space Research Organisation (one can take transponders on lease only from ISRO) -- which is launching two more satellites with Ku band transponders and negotiating for more from Malaysia's Measat -- should expedite the process.

Trai had earlier suggested that the government should follow an open sky policy and allow DTH operators to get into long-term contracts with international satellite companies.

These are among the recommendations of a report released on Wednesday by Trai. The report seeks to boost the current poor growth of broadband in the country.

DTH operators, however, say that broadband on their platform will not be cheap and may be effective only in areas where there are few alternatives.

Dish TV (country's largest DTH operator) head Jawahar Goel says that to get a two-way communication (which is required in Internet and not for TV channels), subscribers may have to fork out around $500 for a satellite modem (of course you can subsidise).

"We are planning to keep some capacity on our Agrani (controlled by the Subhash Chandra-led group) group satellite for broadband as we will have over 10-12 transponders by April. But it will be a limited market. There are

also many regulatory issues which need to be tackled," said Goel. He points out DTH can offer a high speed of as much as 1.5 mbps without difficulty.

Meanwhile, taking a cue from telecom, the regulator has suggested that operators should share infrastructure, like optical fibre ducts that are being laid across the country, to bring broadband to homes and save costs considerably.
It has also suggested certification of customer premise equipment (like DSL machine at home) so they there can be interoperability for provisioning broadband.

This means customers can pick up equipment from the market rather than be dependent on operators. The equipment would work for all operators. This, the regulator hopes, will bring down prices of customer equipment dramatically.
Acknowledging that state-owned companies like BSNL and MTNL have failed miserably in meeting their broadband targets, the regulator has suggested that they should appoint franchisees to supplement their efforts and develop a more commercial approach.

BSNL, for instance, had targeted 1.5 million broadband subscribers by 2005, but had only 1.62 million subscribers till September 2007.

Apart from asking the government to push broadband connectivity through cable, Trai has also pleaded that the government expedite decisions regarding pricing of spectrum for 3G and Wimax -- effective wireless solutions -- to provide broadband in the country.

In an effort to push broadband in rural India, Trai has also suggested that the USO (Universal Service Obligation) fund be used to provide subsidy and at least two service providers offering minimum subsidy should be identified and given a rollout obligation.