MTNL kicks off IPTV, video calling in Mumbai

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State-owned Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) is all set to grab a big slice of the Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) services market in Mumbai. It has roped in Aksh Optifibre and UT Starcom to launch the services in the city.

IPTV is a technology that uses telephone lines to provide TV programming to viewers and MTNL, at this stage, has about 4 million landline subscribers in Mumbai and Delhi alone. It is also in talks with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) to take IPTV to other cities. Besides offfering 102 channels, MTNL’s IPTV will also provide telephone and broadband with unique facilities like timeshift television andvideo on demand.

It will also bring in ‘A tube’ that would open a space for video classified advertising and video yellow pages. The content will be sourced by Aksh Optifibre.

KS Choudhari, MD of Aksh said, “MTNL has 4 million landline subscribers. It will be difficult for private players to get into this space at this density because wireless is not the right medium for IPTV and laying down landlines in cities like Mumbai and Delhi can be an uphill task.”

MTNL will provide the services for Rs 499 per month without any extra charge for set top box and services. Choudhari further added, “IPTV will be more attractive than DTH and CAS because it will be a two-way interactive medium.”