In a move that could be termed completely contrary to what the state government is trying to achieve bring down the monthly subscription fee for cable TV services by launching Arasu Cable TV Ltd, the Chennai corporation has hiked the rentals for cable TV overhead cables that pass through its street lamp posts (SLP) by 200 per cent for a distance of one km.
Cable operators feel this could have a slight impact on the public as the MSOs might hike the monthly subscription fee citing the increase in rental charges.
The civic body had recently revised upwards the annual rental after over a decade since 2,000 when Rs 9,400 was fixed as the charge to use SLPs for a distance of one km. It has been increased to Rs 29,500 per year.
From 2001, the rental has been raised with a hike of 10 per cent every year. Dues from Multi system operators (MSOs) would be collected based on this calculation and this would fetch a considerable amount to the civic body from the MSOs.
City cable operators feel that the hike would not affect them directly as most of then operate within one km area.
“MSOs will have to shell out a few crores in addition every year due to this hike, which might even prompt a few MSOs to change in revenue sharing percentage with operators that could affect the subscribers too,“ operators opined.
However, a few operators feel this move would help ACTL as it is new to the business and it is a state run company as well.
Yet, it will be interesting to see how the MSOs are going to react at a time when tough competition prevail among them in wooing the city subscribers in the wake of set top box based cable digitisation is on cards. Rentals for overhead cables hiked The Chennai corporation has hiked the rentals for cable TV overhead cables that pass through its street lamp posts (SLP) by 200 per cent for a distance of one km This can have a slight impact on the public as the MSOs might hike the monthly subscription fee citing the increase in rental charges