Tata Teleservices has launched DIALOG, a unique product that can convert your mundane TV into a full-fledged Internet device.

The DIALOG kit includes a set top box that connects to your TV directly and enables it with browser and photo viewing abilities. This set top box also has USB ports (four, actually) so you can plug in your pen drives and watch videos and listen to movies right on your TV screen. The USB port can be used to plug in a Tata Photon Plus EVDO modem, thereby bring Internet access to your TV.

The DIALOG will be available in two options – with Photon Whiz at Rs. 6,699 and Rs.7,699 with Photon Plus. As of now, the service is restricted only to the Chennai and the Kolkata circles. It will see a gradual roll out across India in the months to come. Apparently, the current service is in the Test Run period and this would continue for the next three months.

The Tata DIALOG could turn out to be the easiest way to go online since computer penetration remains low across India. The Television, on the other hand, has sizable presence across the country and for this very reason; this could prove instrumental in bringing the Internet to the masses. One thing that might detract people from using this is the relatively high price for the set top box and the usage. At the aforementioned prices of Rs. 6,699 and Rs. 7,699, this certainly isn’t for the villages. Once it goes down considerably on the price ladder, the DIALOG could be the solution to India’s low Internet penetration issues.

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Vodafone Essar has unveiled its very own application store in India in what is thought to be a muted launch. The service, according to Vodafone, was already operational since last month. However, the company chose to officially reveal it to the world only now – after they crossed the figure of just over 10,000 downloads.

The Vodafone app store comes in a few weeks after arch rival Airtel launched its own app store. Reliance too is in the contention with its app store which is expected in the not too distant future. The Vodafone app store currently has a little over 800 applications on offer across various genres. The most popular ones are entertainment, utility, finance, social networking and games. Like most other app stores, it has a search function too so you don’t need to browse all the applications to find the ONE app you were looking for.

Over 25 percent of the apps are free. The prices of the paid apps range from Rs. 5 to Rs. 30. This puts even the paid apps under the affordability barrier. Vodafone is also in the look out for more VAS partners so that the app store can be enhanced with even more apps in the future. If you happen to be a Vodafone subscriber, all you need to do is to send a message APP to 111 (toll free) and also access the store through the portal Vodafone live by clicking a link on the home page.

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Discovery Communications has unveiled India’s first high definition channel, Discovery HD. The channel is available on Sun Direct as a 24 hour, ad free service with about 85 per cent of the content premium to the channel. All the programmes on the show will be produced in HD to give unique experience to the viewers.

“The emergence and growth of digitisation in India is critically dependent on the broadcasters’ competence to offer differentiated, credible and entertaining content. Discovery HD brings the network’s thrilling factual content to life – sound effects are more realistic, images larger than life and situations more gripping than ever before,” says Rahul Johri, senior vice-president and general manager, India, Discovery Networks Asia Pacific, in a public statement.

Discovery HD will feature programming on the wonders of the world ranging from culture, science and natural history to travel and lifestyle themes. The high definition programming will be offered in 1080i, along with 5.1 surround sound.

“We believe HD is the future of TV and the change is as big as the shift from black and white television sets to coloured television sets,” says Johri.

The channel will have programmes such as Green Paradise, Postcards Australia and Nature’s Keepers, that will engage viewers in natural treasures and their protection. Our Plant is a show that will tell the story of wildlife events. Also, there will be unique shows such as Space Station, Sunrise Earth, Moments in Time, Monumental Vision and Destination Wilderness. It will also have India specific content.

The channel is currently ad-free and on a revenue-sharing model with the DTH service provider.

To truly experience the superior quality of HD, consumers will not only need HD television sets but also HD set-top boxes and programmes made in HD.

However, a high definition channel consumes bandwidth that is equivalent to the bandwidth of four standard definition (SD) channels and involves about three-four times more cost than a SD channel.

While Sun Direct’s set top box will cost only Rs 999, with the starting price range of about Rs 46,000 for a LCD screen HDTV, consumers may have to shell out a lot more to get the complete experience.

The channel is currently available only on Sun Direct, which is the sole provider of high definition set top boxes in the country. At Rs 25 per month, the channel is the most expensive offering on any DTH platform.

As per its website, Sun Direct reaches approximately 5.3 million homes, whereas Tata Sky has a subscriber base of more than 4.5 million and Dish TV has about 6.5 million subscribers.

Discovery HD was launched in 2002 in the United States and is currently available in 60 countries across the globe and 16 countries in Asia.

The company has been on a roll since the beginning of the year. To further strengthen its presence in India, it launched two channels – Discovery Science and Turbo in January. It also introduced a series on superstar Shahrukh Khan, called Living with a Superstar, which went on air on February 26.

Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, Travel & Living, Discovery Turbo and Discovery Science reach about 118 million subscribers in India cumulatively. Discovery Channel is currently aired in three languages (English, Hindi and Tamil); Animal Planet is aired in two languages (English and Hindi); while Travel & Living, Discovery Turbo and Discovery Science are telecast only in English.

As per the TAM Media Research, Discovery Channel leads the pack with about 56 per cent market share, followed by National Geographic at 23 per cent, Animal Planet at 17 per cent and Fox History & Entertainment at 4 per cent in the infotainment genre.

Other DTH providers such as Dish TV, Reliance Big TV and Tata Sky also plan to start offering HD set top boxes and Discovery is also in talks with them to make available the new channel. Discovery, along with Sony and IMAX, also plans to introduce the 3D channel by next year.

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BARCELONA: Nokia, the global leader in the mobile handset industry, announced the launch of the world’s first money transfer platform through mobiles in India as it enjoys the market leader’s hip and a wide distribution network in the world’s one of the fasting growing handset market.

Niklas Savander, executive vice-president, services at Nokia, told a press conference that the pilot project has been launched in Pune last week in partnership with Yes Bank and Obopay, which runs mobile payments platform.

He, however, did not divulge the time of the commercial launch of the project.

Nearly 30 handset makers are battling it out in India’s telecom handset market. Brands like Nokia, Samsung, LG, Sony Ericson and Blackberry dominate 85-90% of the Rs 20,000-crore market. Nokia is the leader by far with a 57% share while Samsung is the distant second with an 8% share. LG is ranked third with a 5% share.

Christened as Mobile Money, the service will enable a customer to transfer money to other individuals, pay utility bills as well as recharge pre-paid SIM cards by using their mobile devices. The service will also be available on non-Nokia handsets.

Consumers will also be able to pay merchants for goods and services through their mobile devices. This is a first-of-its-kind service providing customers the ability to initiate mobile payments through multiple channels such as SMS, IVR, WAP, JAVA and FIRE.

D Shivakumar, VP and managing director, Nokia India, said the service will “create a financial ecosystem which is inclusive, sustainable and scalable”. The service will compete with cash and not with plastic money, he said, adding that it will grow the size of e-transfer of money in India.

He said the potential of the service is “enormous” as mobile phone users outnumber the bank account holders. India has nearly 500 million mobile phone users and 200 million bank account holders. There are nearly 80,000 branches of banks across the country.

Suresh Sethi, group president of transaction banking group, Yes Bank, said the service will enable educational and government payments to create an ecosystem for financial inclusion. “This service eliminates the dependence on the physical presence of a branch or availability of internet banking services and will successfully ride on the deeper penetration of mobile services in India.”

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