India Begins Trial IPTV Services

BANGALORE, India — India's state-owned communications services provider, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd. (MTNL) will reportedly offer Internet Protocol TV services (IPTV) under the Tri-Band name, with trial services to soon start pilot runs in New Delhi and Mumbai.

To deliver the services, MTNL will enter commercial arrangements with broadcasters such as STAR TV, Prasar Bharati, Zee TV, Sony Entertainment and others, according to a report from The Financial Express in New Delhi Monday (July 31).

India currently has no policy for IPTV services, though the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has floated a consultation paper and proposed an amendment to the country's Cable TV Act to govern it.

Commercial IPTV services are to be launched in the two cities to begin with, targeting 200,000 subscribers. Besides MTNL, private communications services provider Bharti is conducting trial runs in Gurgaon near New Delhi, with test signals from private television broadcast firms in the country, the report added.