Sonys Dth Service In Us Goes Off Air
Sony Entertainment Television (SET), the 24-hour Hindi channel, has gone off the air in the US for its direct-to-home (DTH) subscribers. The channel is, however, available for its cable subscribers.
The move is a fallout of Ethnic American Broadcasting Corporation (EABC), which markets the channel in the US facing bankruptcy proceedings. Sony had a franchise agreement with EABC.
This was confirmed by Rajesh Pant, chief operating officer (COO), SET. "I however, stress that at present only the DTH subscribers are not receiving the channel while the cable subscribers still do," he stated.
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EABC had an agreement with Direct TV which is a provider of a DTH platform. SET was abroad two satellites operated by Direct TV Galaxy 3 and Galaxy 6. When bankruptcy proceedings were launched against EABC, Direct TV stopped beaming the channel.
Sony has, however, initiated talks to clamber on to another satellite. Pant, however, refused to disclose names. The cable subscribers are still able to receive the channel as there is a separate tie up independent of Direct TV for this.
The same channel which is beamed in India is also beamed to the US. The presence of a massive expatriate population form the Indian subcontinent is the chief reason why Hindi channels like Sony and Zee are beamed into the US.
Meanwhilw, SET India, the company which is in charge of Indian operations, has set itself a revenue target of Rs 800 crore in the year 2000-2001. The company has set this target as it achieved the target of Rs 400 crore in the previous year ahead of schedule.
SET India is also interested in the portal business. It has already initiated talks with a number of players. The company is looking to pick up equity and strike alliances with a number of Internet companies and portals.
It has also lined up an investment of Rs 250 crore for SET Max, another channel from the Sony stable. This channel showcases cricket matches, Hindi films and other special events.