New Delhi, Aug 29 (IANS) Direct to home (DTH) service provider Dish TV Monday launched Dish Freedom, a conditional access module (CAM) device that will allow customers with set-top boxes of other service providers to switch to Dish TV services.


"TRAI mandates interoperability in the DTH licensing norms and it is obligatory for all operators to offer interoperable set top boxes. Being the trend setters in the industry, we are proud to launch the country's first CAM device that will be a momentous landmark in the Indian DTH chapter," said Jawahar Goel, managing director, Dish TV India.

The device, being launched in select key markets, is priced at Rs.990 and has been combined with an annual subscription of the Dish Freedom pack of 95 channels and services worth Rs.600.

By plugging the device into the common interface slot of the set top box, consumers can instantly begin receiving all of Dish TV channel and entertainment offerings. Dish Freedom will work on all kinds of DTH broadcast technology formats, including MPEG2 and MPEG4.

According to the company, about 20 percent of the 33 million DTH subscribers in the country are estimated to be inactive. "This is a substantial dormant market segment that we will target as our customer base for Dish Freedom," said Salil Kapoor, chief operating officer, Dish TV India.

"Being the only player offering CAM services, we aim to add the inactive base in metros and smaller cities to our over 11 million strong family. We feel that the attractive pricing plus ease of installation will be very attractive to these consumers," he added.