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Addressing a small media gathering this afternoon Broadband Pacenet
India chairman Jagjit Singh Kohli said, " In the first year we expect
to sell a minimum of a million units. Right now we are talking with
all the parties in the industry including the MSOs, broadcasters.
It is a TV plus device and not a computer minus product. Out targetted
consumers are those who cannot afford a computer or who are unfamiliar
with it. Right now we are testing 1000 boxes. We are expecting revenue
growth to the tune of 500 per cent for the company. Before too long
the number of consumers with set top boxes will outnumber those
with computers. Among other things the box allows people to send
emails, surf, watch television and play online games. "
The box uses royalty free open standard conditional access technology
for an internet environment called Secura. Kohli added that the
Cas imbroglio would never have happened had the government mandated
that an open standard be used. He added that the government was
making the same mistake with DTH by insisting that all the boxes
use a DVBCI interface. This pushes up the cost of the boxes. In
fact Pacenet is meeting the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
tomorrow on this very issue.
" Of course Home Genie box can also be used with NDS, Canal Plus
or any of the other pay TV technologies. These technologies are
most unreliable. They get hacked within a couple of years and the
consumer gets gypped with promises of a more secure advanced version.
In fact none of the six pay television technology companies offer
any guarantee that their products will not get hacked in the future.
The cost to install those technologies runs into millions of dollars.
So it is a racket that is basically going on with the companies
trading piracy allegations against one another"
The Home Genie box will initially be priced at Rs. 5000. As more
features like personal video recording are added the price will
go up to a maximum of Rs. 8000. However as volumes increase the
price will come down Kohli added. One of the unique features of
Home Genie is that it has both the ethernet network and coxial cable.
This means that both cable systems and DTH satellite will work.
It wil have a 40bps downstream pipe along with a 100mbps two way
interactive pipe. It also has a peoplemeter built in to it. In this
way Pacenet can work out promotional deals with broadcasters as
they will have an exact idea of how much their channels are being
watched.
Talking about Reliance which recently made a huge presentation
at the Frames Convention Kohli said, " Reliance's STB does not have
the coxial interface as yet. They are trying to provide everything
like data, voice and video through ethernet. While they are working
on IPTV the fact is that IP for video is evolving more for services
like video on demand. So far simulating cable TV on an IP platform
has not been done anywhere in the world. It will take time for Reliance
to get there. For us the advantage is that cable internet is already
there in most homes in Mumbai. All we are doing is laying an ethernet
network over it. With Reliance the whole infrastructure will have
to be over hauled. In fact if a cable operator ties up with a telco
he will be rendered redundant as his existing equipment will not
be used."
Kohli also said that unlike Reliance the company did not have to
worry about laying fibre optic cables throughout the country thanks
to the recent tie up with Ipstar. This is the worlds first two way
satellite system and provides a two way IP link. This will allow
Pacenet to reach any part of the country.
Coming back to Home Genie Kohli said that it also serves as a home
banking terminal. The card was developed by Zero a consortium which
develops solutions for smart card payments. RBI and SBI have given
the product their consent. The card has money on the chip itself,
which ensures that the money only travels locally. It can also work
as a credit and debit card by accessing your bank account. Once
the transaction has been authenticated the card returns to its original
place.
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