Consumers to get converged networks soon: TRAI

NEW DELHI, INDIA: Finally TRAI is getting ready to offer converged networks to the customers. R N Prabhakar member Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) recently at the inaugural session of IPTV India 2009, the 4th International Conference on IPTV, in New Delhi, said that intellectual property rights issue regarding converting broadcasts into content for IPTV will be resolved in the near future in the best interest of all the parties concerned.

“The recommendations for converged networks that would provide consumers access for different type of sernote address vices on a single network will be announced soon and the spectrum for 3G, IPTV and other services would be settled very soon.” he further added.

According to Prabhakar, the other issue which has been hampering the growth of IPTV in India is the encryption issue, which is being resolved as it required security clearances. On the technological front, accessing IPTV facilities do not require broadband connectivity, the service can also be delivered over ADSL access on telephone wire, said a press release.

The one day seminar was organized by New Delhi-based BE Exposition Pvt. Ltd.

Few of the other issues discussed at the conference included combining video and interactivity.

“Service providers in India have realized the importance of shifting from voice-centric model to an IP centric model in which, video and other content rich interactive services play an important role. IPTV in India is all set to unleash the potential of fundamentally transforming the experience of watching television by bring in two-way interactivity, storage of content and greater control over the television experience,” said Shashidharan, managing director, BE Exposition Pvt. Ltd at the inaugural session.

IPTV would also help reduce dependence on information via Internet as information on video could be reached out to the masses, the release added.