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Our Bureau

Ties up with Aksh Optic Fibre to offer services

New Delhi , Oct. 13

Despite regulatory uncertainties, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd is all set to launch IPTV services in Delhi and Mumbai, which will enable subscribers to get TV channels using telephone lines.

MTNL has tied up with Aksh Optic Fibre to offer the services, which will be launched in Mumbai on Saturday and in Delhi on October 17. This will be the first IPTV deployment in India.

UTStarcom is the technology provider for the services that will allow users to pause, fast forward and rewind live and recorded content stored on a remotely located server by the service provider. The technology is being touted as the next big thing in broadband and is becoming popular in other countries.

The MTNL move comes even as the telecom regulator is going through a consultation process to formulate a policy for the service since it may infringe on the cable service providers business. Broadcasters have demanded that IPTV be kept under the Cable TV Act, while TRAI had earlier put it under telecom services. A number of other operators, including Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and Reliance Communication are planning to launch IPTV in a big way.

A consumer possessing a broadband connection and a television will be ready for the IPTV revolution. The set-top boxes will be available upon rollout of the technology in the area.

How it works

IPTV uses a two-way digital broadcast signal, sent through a switched telephone or cable network by way of a broadband connection and a set top box programmed with software much like a cable or DSS box that can handle viewer requests to access many available media sources.

The viewer's TV connects to a set top box that decodes the IP video and converts it into standard television signals. IPTV allows operators to deliver content to their subscribers using telephone lines through IP technology. So far, this technology was being used to deliver voice through Internet telephony. The services on IPTV include video-on-demand and digital video recording.

TV over telephone line is slated to be the next big application for telecom service providers. Even mobile operators are looking at technologies like the FLO and EVDO to broadcast live TV on cellular phones. It is predicted that by 2008, 20 million homes worldwide will subscribe to IPTV services.

More Stories on : Telecommunications | Entertainment & Leisure | Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd

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