I have been using the Reliance Big TV for family viewing & SUN direct with Basic pack for my mother on TV tuner connected to moniter of home computer, for over 4-5 months. Purchased BigTV for Rs. 3000 for 6 months of premium pack & SUN TV at a very attractive price of Rs.2000 with 10 months free basic subscription. Shortly I will be exhausting my free pack for my Big TV connection. From the rates that I find on all the channel websites, I find DTH is quite exhorbitant as compared to my good old cable who used to provide virtually all the channels including all the sports channels as per events at Rs. Rs. 220-250 p.m. To get similar channels on DTH I need to shell out not less than Rs. 450-500 p.m which is exhorbitant for the value we get. On top of it a couple of days back I have seen in news papers that TDSAT has set aside TRAIs enhanced rates, which is likely to see further rate increases.
I find Tata Sky at Rs. 260+Taxes and and DISH MAX packages at Rs. 310 are the best available bets that too excluding some sports channels.
RELIANCE BIG TV has basic packs which exclude all the reasonably popular & niche channels and placed them as Al a carte at exhorbitant rates. For e.g: NDTV 24 x 7 & Profit are for Rs. 28/- and again NDTV Good life is for Rs. 44/- and shell out another Rs. 28 for HBO, another Rs. 28 for kids pack another Rs. 28 for Zcafe & trends and it never ends. Keep adding Rs. 40s & 50s for Sports channels. My God it is the right royal way of milking the customer wallets, given that TRAI is really a paper tiger with no punishments FOR LACK OF ACCOUNTABILITY & ANSWERABILITY.
I DONT UNDERSTAND WHY NO DTH PROVIDER OFFERS POST-PAID PLANS WITH PROPER BILLING WHICH EXPOSES MISAPPROPRIATION OF VOUCHER BALANCES? THOUGH IT WAS BROUGHT OUT BY TRAI FOR CAS & DTH PEOPLE THE VESTED LOBBIES ARE INTO IT. NO WONDER TRAI PUBLICLY CONFIRMED ABOUT VESTED INTERESTS IN DELAYING MOBILE NUMBER PORTABILITY. SAME WITH DTH SET TOP BOX INTER OPERABILITY WITH OPERATORS AS WE LIKE.
RELIANCE BIG TV & AIRTEL DTH are cheap to OWN and exhorbitant to maintain with monthly payments. The response is THE WORST and NO ONE RESPONDS TO CUSTOMER E-MAILS IN CASE OF BIG TV, WORSE THEY EVEN MISAPPROPRIATED MY VOCHER BALANCES WITHOUT MY EXPLICT REQUEST FOR PACKS WHICH I NEVER ASKED FOR EITHER IN WRITING OR OVER TELEPHONE. Inspite of several followups there is no action. My friend who opted for AIRTEL have similar feedback on service & customer response issues.
FINALLY I DECIDED TO CALL MY CABLE GUY TO PROVIDE SERVICES AGAIN AND DISCONNECTING MY RELIANCE BIG TV(OF COUSE RUN MY SUN DIRECT ON SECOND TV TILL FREE PERIOD EXPIRY, THOUGH THEIR PACKAGING IS NO BETTER IN TERMS OF MONTHLY BILLING).
BIG TV IS OK PRICEWISE FOR LOW COST USERS WHO CAN GET IT FOR RS. 125+ TAXES, IDEALLY FOR SHOPS, SALOONS, HOSPTAL LOBBBIES ETC, WHO NEED SOMETHING FOR TIME PASS. DEFINETELY NOT FOR WHOLESOME HOME ENTERTAINMENT WHICH COSTS MORE THAN RS. 450-500 P.M.
MOREOVER NDTV GROUP CHANNEL VIEWERS AND SOUTH INDIAN VIEWERS WHOSE SUN PACK IS EXTRA RS. 55 AND ALSO MISSES HUGELY POPULAR DD-SAPTHAGIRI, DD POOTHIGAI & BHAKTI TV(BHAKTI TV AVAILABLE IN AIRTEL) & AIR RAGAM MUSIC CHANNEL, INFACT ALL RADIO MUSIC CHANNEL LISTENERS WILL BE AT A BIG BIG DISAVANTAGE WITH BIG TV & AIRTEL IS BETTER IS SOME OF THESE ASPECTS