Mangaluru, January 01: The dead line given to install set-top boxes for television (TV) viewers with cable connections was December 31st – 2015. As the day was ending, many houses across the city were seen getting the set up box installed.
The Dakshina Kannada district administration had said that all the cable connections without set-top boxes will be disconnected at midnight of December 31st and that the deadline could not be extended. Since 2011, the digitalization process has been going on. This is the third phase of digitalization and cities like Mangaluru and Udupi were part of this phase and the deadline to install set top boxes in these cities was December 31st.
So far only 80 % of cable TV consumers have fixed set-top boxes in Udupi and Mangaluru cities. 20 % of the consumers are facing disconnection today.
The district administration said, while they are aware that the connections will disconnected, they do not have any control over the same. Only ministry of broadcasting and information has the control over the disconnection of cable TVs and extension of the deadline. State government had made a request to the ministry for which there was no positive reply.
Though many wanted to install the set-top boxes, some people could afford to it as the price of set-top box was Rs 1,700. Those who could afford to it, could not do it due to long holidays. The cable operators were very busy in fixing thousands of set-top boxes in houses across the city.
Cable operators said, during the last ten days around 1 lakh set-top boxes were in demand while they had a supply of only 65,000. Remaining 35,000 set-top boxes are yet to be fixed.
Cable operators say they need at least three months to install set-boxes in all the houses in Udupi and Mangaluru.
