NEW DELHI: Union minister Anurag Thakur on Monday stated efforts are being made to have actually satellite tuners pre-installed in television sets, a relocation that may make set-top boxes redundant.Referring to the massive growth of general home entertainment channels on free dish antenna, which helped bring in crores of viewers, Thakur stated, I have actually gone back to square one in my department.
If your television has a built-in satellite tuner, then there will be no need to have a different set-top box.
One can have access to more than 200 channels at the click of the remote, he said.In December 2022, Thakur had written to electronic devices and information technology minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, asking him to direct TV makers to embrace the requirements issued by the Bureau of Industrial Standards for built-in satellite tuners.Television sets with integrated satellite tuners will make it possible for reception of free-to-air television and radio channels by mounting a small antenna at an ideal place such as at the rooftop or side wall of a building.
At present, tv audiences need to acquire a set-top box for viewing various paid and totally free channels.
Audience are required to use a set-top box even for the reception of free-to-air channels (non-encrypted) transferred by Doordarshan.
The ministry of electronics and infotech is yet to firm up a choice in this regard.
Thakur likewise said his ministry has acted upon PM Modis instructions to start the SWAYAM Prabha channels for classes 1 to 12 in record time during the Covid-19 pandemic in order to guarantee that kids in rural and remote locations have access to education.