For the first time in the country a census of Cable TV Households is being conducted by the Delhi-based Centre for Media Studies (CMS). The first report of CMS C&S (cable & satellite) census is expected in the first week of May. This census establishes actual number of cable connections and actual availability of channels. 

The census of Cable TV households will help streamline cable television operations in the country as an industry. The report acquires added relevance in the context of recent proliferation of pay channels, a CMS release says. 

Even more, once the census report is available the present subscription rates, both at household and cable operator levels, are likely to be rationalised and fixed more transparently. 

A presentation of the initial report of CMS census will be made mid-May 2002 to all stakeholders - operators, channels, advertisers and agencies and IRD manufacturers. This report could also be used to validate the figures on subscribing households.

This census will also help bring out more reliably the penetration of television channels among households and help reach the currently "unreached" households. The CMS census of C&S households will hopefully remove some of the friction between Cable TV operators and channels.

"Cable TV operators in India deserve all-out praise for their initiatives and enterpreneurship. In fact, without their adventurous role, India would not have been where it is today in terms of growth and spread of television," said Naveen Surapaneni, project director of CMS Census operations, while announcing the census recently.

CMS is a pioneer in India in media research in the country including Cable TV. CMS researchers were involved in the early years in developing methodologies for NRS, TV Viewership ratings in India. CMS had earlier conducted studies on Cable TV operations as a part of it larger study on communication infrastructure in the country. 

The CMS census of Cable TV households aims to serve the television industry in same way as the ABC report for the circulation of newspapers.