A month later, video clippings of news will also be available on mobile phones. Mobile phone users will have to dial 676733 to get the latest news from around world.
Doordarshan, which already has an interactive voice response (IVR)-based news service, become the first service provider to have both SMS and IVR-based service on the same short code (676733).
By April-end, three prime DD channels - Doordarshan India, Doordarshan Bharati and DD News - will be available on 3G mobile phones all over the world.
The Indian diaspora in the United States will be able to watch Doordarshan India from May 27. The channel is a favourite among the Indian immigrants in Canada. Doordarshan will earn $3 million through the channel.
Public broadcaster Prasar Bharati, which has posted a record net revenue of nearly Rs 1,200 crore (Rs 12 billion) in 2005-06, also plans to increase its Direct-to-Home coverage to 51 channels, including 32 private channels from next month.
''The target is 100 DTH channels by the end of this year'' said K S Sarma, CEO, Prasar Bharati. Doordarshan has fixed a Rs 1 crore (Rs 10 million) fee for private channels to find place in the DD Direct Plus DTH platform, which currently beams 33 channels.
As many as 68 channels have shown interest in the DD Direct Plus, which claims a viewership of 50 million, 80 per cent of them in the rural areas.
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