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Court Upholds Dec 31 CAS Deadline
Techtree News Staff, Dec 21, 2006 1245 hrs ISTThe Delhi High Court has refused to extend the December 31 deadline for implementation of CAS in Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata.
According to reports, the Delhi High Court has refused to extend the December 31 deadline for the implementation of Conditional Access System (CAS) in Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata.
In its orders on two separate CAS related petitions, the Delhi High Court has said there will be no stay on implementation of CAS, postponing hearing on the two petitions to January 10.
The High Court has asked multi-system operators (MSOs) to adhere to the cut off date to enable viewers of satellite TV channels to have access to the channels of their choice.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice M K Sharma and Justice Hema Kohli, said that considering the facts and circumstances of the case, they are of the opinion not to alter or vary the July 20 order in this regard at this stage. They, however, hold that extra time could not be granted as the scheme is to be implemented by December 31, 2006.
It is learnt that CAS would give cable TV viewers the option of picking and watching channels of their choice through a set-top box, and pay only for those channels. And to avail the technology, viewers are required to buy the set-top box, which costs about Rs 3,000.
However, the Bench has given Star Broadband Services, an MSO and one of the petitioners, the liberty to approach the government for reconsidering its plea. Star Broadband Services, along with an NGO, Shakti, have filed applications seeking extra time on the grounds that they are working on the necessary infrastructure - as in - laying out of the fiber optic cable for implementation of CAS, which has not yet been completed.
The Delhi High Court also said the other MSOs could go ahead and meet the CAS deadline. Meanwhile, Star Broadband Services will be given a hearing in January.
Earlier, the High Court had on July 20 directed the Centre to implement CAS in Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai. And the High Court had granted 22 weeks' time to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry to implement CAS in three of the four metros, as CAS is already operational in Chennai.
According to industry sources, the latest judgement is incremental as it is in the interest of consumers. With CAS now ensured from December 31, those who wish to see only free-to-air channels can do so, while affluent consumers can buy a set-top box. So, consumers can choose between DTH and CAS, and pay for the channels they want to see.
In its orders on two separate CAS related petitions, the Delhi High Court has said there will be no stay on implementation of CAS, postponing hearing on the two petitions to January 10.
The High Court has asked multi-system operators (MSOs) to adhere to the cut off date to enable viewers of satellite TV channels to have access to the channels of their choice.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice M K Sharma and Justice Hema Kohli, said that considering the facts and circumstances of the case, they are of the opinion not to alter or vary the July 20 order in this regard at this stage. They, however, hold that extra time could not be granted as the scheme is to be implemented by December 31, 2006.
It is learnt that CAS would give cable TV viewers the option of picking and watching channels of their choice through a set-top box, and pay only for those channels. And to avail the technology, viewers are required to buy the set-top box, which costs about Rs 3,000.
However, the Bench has given Star Broadband Services, an MSO and one of the petitioners, the liberty to approach the government for reconsidering its plea. Star Broadband Services, along with an NGO, Shakti, have filed applications seeking extra time on the grounds that they are working on the necessary infrastructure - as in - laying out of the fiber optic cable for implementation of CAS, which has not yet been completed.
The Delhi High Court also said the other MSOs could go ahead and meet the CAS deadline. Meanwhile, Star Broadband Services will be given a hearing in January.
Earlier, the High Court had on July 20 directed the Centre to implement CAS in Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai. And the High Court had granted 22 weeks' time to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry to implement CAS in three of the four metros, as CAS is already operational in Chennai.
According to industry sources, the latest judgement is incremental as it is in the interest of consumers. With CAS now ensured from December 31, those who wish to see only free-to-air channels can do so, while affluent consumers can buy a set-top box. So, consumers can choose between DTH and CAS, and pay for the channels they want to see.
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jatin
,delhi, on Dec 22, 2006 02:26 PM
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