Jayalalithaa govt to revive Arasu Cable TV network soon

CHENNAI: Signaling a move to break the monopoly in the cable network business, chief minister J Jayalalithaa on Tuesday said her government planned to revive the state-run Arasu Cable TV Corporation started in July 2008 by the previous DMK government. "We will revive the Arasu Cable Corporation soon," she told reporters. Her remarks were not unexpected as several private TV channels had made representations to her before the elections seeking her assistance to end the "dominance" of some cable companies.
A senior IT official told TOI that the government has appointed a committee to review the status of the Arasu cable, started by then chief minister M Karunanidhi to counter the Maran brothers in the wake of a family feud.The committee will look at the financial health of the corporation and formulate a plan to infuse fresh life into the company. Arasu cable TV operators association president N Yuvaraj alleged that though the government had set up digital control rooms in Thanjavur, Coimbatore, Tirunelveli and Vellore, operations came to a near stand-still in recent times, resulting in a loss of about Rs 100 crore per annum.
The state government had advertised in a leading newspaper on July 13, 2008, explaining that the cable TV corporation would offer connections at a cost lower than Rs 100. Control rooms were put in place in Thanjavur on July 15, 2008 and Coimbatore on August, 2008 besides in Tirunelveli and Vellore in September, 2008. Over thousand cable TV operators linked up with the corporation. However, operators alleged that the Sun network was refusing to give its channel signals to the corporation leading to the then chairman of the corporation, C Umashankar approaching the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal in December 2008. In May 2009, the state government withdrew a case before the Tribunal against the Sun network. Officials from the cable TV corporation told the tribunal that both sides were ready for a settlement. "The state government has digital control rooms but they are not functional. Hence government should take steps to save the livelihood of cable TV operators in the state," said Yuvaraj.