please, see , India Gov is planning to give 2 MBPS internet to every one by 2009 free of cost , we are not talking about availability of technology right now , it may take couple of years to get mature , even think mobile took almost 5 years to get this stage. by that time i feel IPTV will replace the current traditional TV transmission only becsue the fetures and fecilities its going to offer.

so wait and see ,

• MTNL only offers ADSL
• 500K subscribers as of March 2006
• Another 500K planned in 2007

• IPTV trials by Oct 2007

• Quote “We also offer data communications services through our packet switched data network. This service allows the transmission of data on standard international data protocols and access via dedicated lines or dial-up facilities. We plan to expand broadband services on a large scale, based on the ADSL technology. The services include triple play of video (which we are just beginning to test), data and voice. Further, we plan to commission, an MPLS (Multi Protocol Label Switching) based core network to provide VPN (virtual private network) services to corporate users across the country”. ADSL means asymmetric digital subscriber loop, a technology that allows combinations of services including voice, data technology and one-way full motion video to be compressed and delivered over existing copper cables. We expect to experience significant demand for these high speed data services from large corporate, financial, media, public service and educational institutions. We launched broadband services using ADSL 2+ in January 2005. High speed internet access, video on demand and IPTV services shall be offered to broadband customers. The customer base as on March 31, 2006 is 211,935. The installed capacity to broadband ports as on March 31, 2006 is 458,380. MTNL has plans to install additional 500,000 broadband ports in fiscal 2007. Additional plans include- deploying broadband DLC 100 each in Delhi and Mumbai in the 2007 fiscal year; deploying FTTH (fiber to the home) in Delhi and Mumbai in the 2007 fiscal year; and deploying DWDM (dense wave division multiplex) system in Delhi and Mumbai.

• End quote”

I thought Sri Lankas’ broadband is the shittiest and most expensive. But just by read the comments of this story to see how bad it is in India compared to us. Most of the providers doesn’t even offer 512k unlimited connections…

I have experienced IPTV at 2 MBps. It has a long way to go. I think to get IPTV properly you need something like 10 Mbps.

You dont have to get 2Mbps line OR separate broadband account for IPTV.

2Mbps speed is required only from local telephone exchange to your home which is already setup, it would be similar to LAN (peer-to-peer). You dont need 2Mbps internet speed for that nor you would be able to surf internet using IPTV account. The IPTV account will not be based on data transfer (MB) obviously.

So its possible, why talk about bandwidth availability for IPTV?

With large scale production of Fiber Optic Cables in India, high speed FFTN and FTTH are already in place in major cities like Delhi,Kolkata,Mumbay and Chenni. Broadband is not yet a low cost reality on them, because these companies are over smart and want to milk the most out of us, and get max returns in the short term. No one in their right mind will download a movie even if for free, and Pay Rs 1500 for it( assuming movie is 1.5 Gb to the ISP, when you can go out and buy same on DVD for Rs 400 max. That is why broadband has not taken of in a big way in India. There was some noise made by BSNL a while back abut Telescopic charges like in Indian Railways, which would have been a geat idea. So only way to get more subs is to entice them with fancy sounding names like IPTV. MTNL’s IPTV may well be like DD DTH, a basic service, whose only, (yet most noble) purpose would be to act as a starter for the new industry, a guide for other private players to follow or learn from.