Tata’s new service to stream live TV on broadband

Tata Teleservices Limited (TTSL), the telecom operator which owns the brands Tata Indicom and Tata Docomo, has launched a live TV streaming application for computers. The application, Photon TV, will allow Tata Photon Plus postpaid subscribers to watch live television channels on their PCs and laptops.
Tata Photon Plus is the wireless Broadband service of the company launched in 2008 in Tamil Nadu, and now available in 70 cities across 22 states in the country. It offers live video streaming, webcasts and online games. TTSL launched its first mobile Internet device, Plug 2 Surf, in 2007.
Subscribers to the new application can view live TV feed from various sports, news, entertainment and regional channels. They can also watch recorded TV shows, movies, music and videos on demand. Some of the channels available for streaming presently are ESPN, NDTV 24×7, CNBC TV18, CNN, Zoom, Pogo and Jaya TV. It is currently available with three subscription options – Rs 4 per channel per month, Rs 29 per month for My Combo (10 channels) and Rs 75 per month for all channels. Data charges will be applicable as per the subscriber’s data plan.
Talking to reporters at a press conference, Anil Sardana, managing director, TTSL, said, “We are not providing channels that have not passed the regulatory hurdle, for example Doordarshan. We will be running the service on 4.4 Mhz spectrum and will upgrade when 3G arrives,” he added.
TTSL has worked jointly with Apalya Technologies to launch the Photon TV application. Aplaya develops platforms for streaming video content to consumers by integrating mobile operators, content owners and mobile advertisers.