What happens when Channel prices are increased?

[bappaditya]

This is my first post here. I found this site off late after searching on more clarity on the new Cable/DTH policy, and find this to be very useful.

I am on Airtel DTH and dont watch a lot of Cable, though have the cable line specifically for my parents.

I have a very specific question - When the Channel/DTH says that the price of a Channel is, say 1/- Rs or it is free, what is the time period of that price. What happens when they want to change the price? Is the price automatically increased and you keep on paying the increased price without knowing it has gone from 0 to 22 all of a sudden? How it is/would be communicated?

As I said, my family memebers watch a handfull of pay channels. Since they dont add up to 100, I can throw in a few free channels into the mix. But I dont want to do that if those channel prices can be arbitrarily increased and I end up paying for them without even knowing that they have increased.

 

[Chetan Shukla]

No, if the broadcaster wants to change the price of any channel then they will have to give the notice before 30 days to do so.

 

[Sumanth]

I have a very specific question - When the Channel/DTH says that the price of a Channel is, say 1/- Rs or it is free, what is the time period of that price. What happens when they want to change the price? Is the price automatically increased and you keep on paying the increased price without knowing it has gone from 0 to 22 all of a sudden? How it is/would be communicated?

Regardless of the rules in place, given your scenario, you are most likely to miss the notification (if any) of a price hike. How it could be communicated would be is on that specific channel showing the price. Unlikely there'll be an SMS or email. This said, I don't think there'd be an increase in prices given the pricing they have doled out currently.

Welcome to DDF.

 

[Iffy54]

MRP is showing on every channel so you will know when price is changed

 

[bappaditya]

Thanks.

My worry is not regarding current pay channels, as I am already selectively adding them. But the worry, at large, is about free channels. And I think this applies for most customers too.

Say to make up the 100 number, you added 40 free channels. You are paying nothing apart from thr 153/- NCF. Now say few of those channels, say 20, increase there price to 22. I am not saying this is practical, but I dont really trust Channel owners - given the high pricing they have for many of their channels which you would have thought as - who would watch them at that price!

Now all of a sudden your monthly bill increases by 440 without you even knowing (or you have been sent communication and you have missed). And this will keep on getting deducted from your balance.

I think the TRAI exercise is at, at heart, noble. But they have not though through the myriad ways businesses in India manipulates customers and does fraud.

 

[bappaditya]

MRP is showing on every channel so you will know when price is changed

If you are subscribed to 100 channels, it would be very cumbersome to check each one of them every month if their prices increased.

 

[Sumanth]

Say to make up the 100 number, you added 40 free channels. You are paying nothing apart from thr 153/- NCF. Now say few of those channels, say 20, increase there price to 22. I am not saying this is practical, but I dont really trust Channel owners - given the high pricing they have for many of their channels which you would have thought as - who would watch them at that price!

Won't claim I can fore-tell the future but extremely unlikely the free channels will be made paid. Even if they are maybe 1 or 2. And if made paid, will be less than 5 rupees. This forum will definitely have the info if any such thing happens though.

But if you really concerned, you could just avoid the junk free channels and just take the channels what you want for your parents

 

[Sarkar]

Regardless of the rules in place, given your scenario, you are most likely to miss the notification (if any) of a price hike. How it could be communicated would be is on that specific channel showing the price. Unlikely there'll be an SMS or email. This said, I don't think there'd be an increase in prices given the pricing they have doled out currently.

Welcome to DDF.

dpo will still send SMS if any changes is price