RCom to hive off DTH, IPTV business

Reliance Communications (RCom), India’s second-largest telecommunications company, plans to hive off its direct-to-home (DTH) and internet protocol TV (IPTV) businesses into a separate company Reliance Digital Works. People familiar with the matter said the company, plans to bring in multi-system operators (MSOs) as stakeholders in the company.

A company spokesperson did not want to comment on the development.

Reliance Digital Works may offer a 25 per cent stake to overseas investors and 10 per cent to multi-system operators for digital cable subscription. The DTH business of Reliance Communications, which offers a direct-to-home satellite TV service under the brand name Big TV, has 2.3 million subscribers.

The development comes just days after Reliance Communications decided to sell a part of its telecom tower business under its subsidiary Reliance Infratel. Earlier this month, the company had taken permission from its board of directors to sell as much as 26 per cent to investors at a premium to its stock price.

The company is also looking at selling another 26 per cent stake and talks are on with a slew of companies, including Etisalat. The company’s stock went up by 2.3 per cent to Rs 191 a share by close of Thursday’s trade on the Bombay Stock Exchange.