Almost all the Cable TV and DTH subscribers are now waiting for the new changes which Trai is set to introduce to the tariff mandate. To recall, the Trai tariff regime became fully effective on April 1 and it changed the entire dynamics of the industry. A lot of subscribers started opting for OTT subscriptions, instead of paying for their standard TV connection. As part of the changes, Trai is expected to bring some tweaks to the Multi TV policy. Right now, DTH and Cable TV operators can choose the NCF amount they charge from the users, but Trai is expected to change that and announce fixed NCF for Multi TV connections as well. NCF charges for Multi TV connections differ with every operator and Airtel Digital TV is charging Rs 80 for every secondary connection a customer has.
Pricing of Airtel Digital TV Multiple Connection
The crucial point to note about the Multi TV connections after the Trai mandate is that whatever discount the subscribers will enjoy will be on NCF only. There will be no discount for the consumers on the content charges which the respective channel owners levy. As such, Airtel Digital TV has announced that it would charge Rs 80 plus taxes for 100 SD channels as Network Capacity Fee (NCF) for all multiple connections getting activated under the same account. Additional NCF of Rs 20 will be charged for the subscribers for the subsequent slot of 25 channels which is the norm for standard first connection over the 100 channels.
Differences Between Multi TV Policies
Now that we have noted the pricing of Airtel Digital TV’s multiple connections, it is essential to understand the there is some underlying difference between the policy of Airtel Digital TV and D2h regarding secondary connections. While Airtel Digital TV is not allowing any ‘mirroring’ of channels, D2h grants it with the connection, but this can be advantageous to the customers in case they want to activate different channels on the two connections. In case D2h subscribers want to do the same, they will end up paying more. On the other hand, the obvious advantage to D2h’s multiple connections is that the provider is charging a flat NCF of Rs 59 as network charge meaning that no matter what, how many channels you add, you won’t pay more than Rs 59 as NCF.
On the other hand, in case Airtel Digital TV subscribers add more than 100 channels, then they will pay Rs 128 after the Rs 59 discount instead of the base NCF of Rs 80 which is the price set by Airtel Digital TV for multiple connections. Summarising, in case you have an Airtel Digital TV multiple connections then turning off the additional channels would be a wise choice.
Tata Sky is Charging Rs 153 NCF for Every Multi TV Connection
As noted, the Multi TV charges differ with every DTH and Cable TV operator. For example, Dish TV and D2h are charging just Rs 50 NCF from the customers for every secondary connection they own. On the flip side, Airtel Digital TV is second on the list with Rs 80 NCF charges. Cable TV operators like Hathway and DEN Networks are also charging Rs 50 NCF from the customers for secondary connections.
However, Tata Sky is a bit different as it's the premium DTH service provider in the country. Tata Sky is charging the standard Rs 153 NCF for every Multi TV connection a customer has. Tata Sky users can avail a total of four Multi TV connections, and for each one, users have to shell out Rs 153 NCF every month even if they choose just one a-la-carte channel.
