Tata Sky+ (Plus) … Is it worth its price?

Now who hasn’t seen the umpteen ads of Aamir Khan and Asin on the TV, advertising Tata Sky + with their cheeky acts that almost push you to the brim of buying one for yourself. I too would have fallen to one of these extremely well produced ads and spent a good Rs. 9000 (erstwhile) and now Rs 5000 for a Tata Sky + box, but for my sane wife who was steadfast in her refusal to do anything with it. Her reasoning was simple. “When all channels re-broadcast their programs, why does the world need a Tata Sky +?”

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(For the novice, a Tata Sky + box is a regular DTH set top box rolled along with a 160 GB hard disk that enables you to record TV programs when you are unable to watch them and then lets you play them back. The same feature also allows real time rewind and playback. It is basically a PVR (Personal Video Recorder)…Sounds great eh?)

This happened twice, I fall for it and my wife pulls me back. I decided to do a Cost-Benefit analysis myself keeping her common sense logic apart.

  1. Rs. 5000 for a just the recording facility of 160GB is way too much. A 160 GB hard disk costs you no more than Rs 2500 today and the price is falling still. The rest of it is just your regular set top box with software patch to record and replay from your PVR.
  2. Even in the US, PVRs cost downwards of $100 that translates to Rs 4500 or less. However the US market DTH market is deregulated to the extent that you need not buy the set top box from your Satellite TV provider which means that the basic TiVo service that allows you to record and replay programs is about $15 a month. Tata Sky on the other hand is planning to hike the price back to Rs. 9000 post Diwali.

And the benefits?

  • I get to record, replay and pause

Well that’s the only benefit. There is no other benefit.

  1. You cannot burn the recorded shows into a DVD or a Blu Ray Disc yet.
  2. Once you reach your 160 GB limit, you need to erase past shows.
  3. You will look like a fool playing a Matrix movie from your Rs 5000 (or Rs. 9000) PVR when your neighbor just waited for 8 hours and watched the re-telecast by selecting the remind feature on his set top box.

Don't lose heart yet. Maybe the Cost Benefit analysis is different for those ladies (or even gents) who have to compulsively obsessively watch the 9:00 PM soap on both Zee TV and Star Plus. These are the kinds who can’t wait for the re-telecast the next day coz they wouldn’t have enough gossip material otherwise during their social circle meetings.

However, if you are like me or my wife, JUST YOU WAIT. Prices of PVRs will crash as soon as the other DTH players bring their versions into the market. Even then , I am doubtful if my wife would let me have one coz this according to her is only a “Nice to Have” gadget but not a “Must Have” whatever the price point. Hopefully I can convince her at the Rs. 2000 mark

Comments

Bit Hawk said…
Yeah, does not make any sense to go for Tata Sky Plus. Same holds good for their Showcase, where each movie costs 50-100, whereas you can rent out the original DVD for 20 from your neighborhood DVD shop and watch at your convenience!
Saurabh said…
Yes That is Absolutely true, Tata Sky + is first even after reducing price is very costly and i don't think its worth having, As their is no feature for burning the recorded stuff in your CD or DVD.
Saurabh said…
Tata Sky Posted Net aggregate loss of Rs.806cr

Tata Sky Ltd, the direct-to-home television services provider, had a net aggregate loss of Rs806.36 crore.

Source: Livemint.com

Whereas, Dishtv is only DTH company who is EBITDA Positive for consecutive 2 quarters.




Commenting on the Q1 results, Subhash Chandra, Chairman, DishTV, said, “It is heartening to note that despite a weaker economic climate, the direct to home (DTH) segment, which was pioneered by DishTV in India, continued to grow at a strong pace. Digitisation of Indian television has gained irreversible momentum, while driving higher quality and a superior offering to the consumers.”

He further said, “We have extended the momentum gained during the last fiscal into the first quarter of FY10. Our revenues grew exponentially to Rs 2,521 million, a growth of 53 per cent over last year and I am glad to report that we achieved positive EBITDA for second successive quarter. These results are a direct outcome of our business strategy that is tuned to the needs of our customers.”

Jawahar Goel, Managing Director, DishTV, said, “The Q1 results testify to the resilience of our business model. DishTV continued to consolidate its leadership position in the market through record customer additions every month. The outlook for the industry remains positive and the year ahead promises to be an exciting one for DishTV.”


Source: Exchange4media
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