by ANJAN                                 
ZeeNetwork                                 

Over the last three years, the Direct-to-Home (DTH) satellite industry has come on strongly worldwide. It has grown from a niche delivery mechanism into a mainstream business. The spread of subscription-based DTH satellite TV promises to enhance choices for many households in developing countries. With the Government throwing open the DTH sector in the country, a handful of players have come up with grandiose plans to enter the market. Given the stiff level of competition these premium services will face from the existing multi-channel cable network, possible entrants need to clearly grasp a few of the winning rules of the game. HOW PLAYERS CAN MAKE MONEY? A DTH offer comprises six elements. Content: The movies, news channels, sporting events, and/or general entertainment features that constitute an offer to consumers. Space: Ownership or access to sufficient transponders in the right orbital slot to broadcast an offer to a specific area. Ground: The ability to distribute, install and service dishes and set-top boxes (otherwise known as customer premises equipment, or CPE), combined with access to relevant technology and manufacturing capabilities. Subscriber management: Ability to acquire and deactivate subscribers, bill and collect from them, activate pay-per-view movies and perform customer service. Financing: The provision of credit to customer seeking to buy or lease CPE. Government relation: Ability to navigate government procedures and regulations to obtain permits and so on. So diverse are these requirements that no existing player in any market will be able to fulfill all of them on its own. Thus, the industry will be populated by consortia and it is unlikely that more than one or two DTH consortia will be able to achieve break-even. Contd..... Strategic & Sucess factors