consumer awareness on tata sky (final)
TRANSCRIPT
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A PROJECT REPORT ON(CONSUMER AWARENESS ON TATA
SKY)
SUBMITTED BY(AKIL SHETTY)
FOR THE DEGREE OFTHE BACHELOR OF MANAGEMENT
STUDIESUNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI
UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF(MR.ABHISHEK NIKAM)
S.K SOMAIYA COLLEGE OF ARTS, SCIENCE & COMMERCE
VIDHYAVIHAR(E), MUMBAI – 400022ACADEMIC YEAR 2010-2011
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ACKNOWLEDEGEMENT
I would like to express my gratitude and sincere thanks to my Project Guide (Mr. Abhishek Nikam), S.K Somaiya College Of Arts, Science & Commerce for instilling confidence in me to carry out this study and extending valuable guidance and encouragement from time to time, without which it would not have been possible to undertake and complete this project.
I also wish to extend my appreciation, specially to our Principal Mrs. Parvati Venkatesh, and also the BMS Co-ordinator Mrs. Mrs. Aparna Jain for their kind co-ordination and support. Last but not the least my colleagues for their valuable comments and suggestions for making this a cherishable experience for me.
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Index
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Serial Particular Page Nos.
1 Executive Summary 5
2 Introduction 6
2 History of DTH in India 7
3 DTH INDUSTRY – An Overview 11
4 DTH Market
a. Entry barriers in Indian DTH Industry
b. challenges faced by the DTH Industry
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5 Company Profile – Tata Sky
a. A Birds view of Tata Sky
b. Vision
c. Achievement
d. Milestone
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6 1. SWOT Analysis 20
7 Product Matrix
a. Productb. Pricec. Placed. Promotion
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8 Market Segmentation 32
9 Porter’s 5 forces 34
10 PRODUCT COMPARISON
a. TATA SKYb. RELIANCE BIG TVc. AIRTEL DIGITAL TV
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11 Product Differentiation 41
12 Objective of The Study 43
13 Research Methodology 44
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
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This project i.e. “Consumer Awareness on TATA SKY” is purely focused on how tough awareness is going in the current market. Nowadays, more and more companies are coming up with their new DTH services to entertain the people in their life.
The introduction of the industry includes some vital detail about the history of DTH service. Soon after the beginning of the DTH service, in the opening only DD direct plus and Dish TV was successively doing their business but at the moment TATA SKY is also second-hand as DTH services.
The introduction of the company includes the details of the TATA SKY, its milestones, its new schemes and services etc…..
The objective of the project report is to conduct a survey to find out the awareness of the consumer or people towards Tata Sky.
I used the simple random sampling research design for the project as I tried to know the awareness of consumers while using the DTH service as their entertainment. I have collected primary data by filling questionnaire which have analyzed; tabulated and meaningful conclusion are drawn out of it.
The sample size used for conducting the field survey was 60 respondents. I will try my best in preparing this project report, still there may be some obstacles that comes in the way and stop me to 100% accurate result.
Analysis and findings includes tables and graphs which were followed by meaningful interpretation.
Conclusion of the project includes the expression expressed by various respondents from whom the data are collected.
Introduction
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With the Indian economy booming at a GDP growth rate of 8.7%, there is sense of growth prevailing everywhere. The average Indians disposable income and purchasing power has risen to never before levels. The Indian Entertainment & Media industry is also not far behind. It is currently estimated at a worth of Rs. 450 billion with a CAGR of 18% over next 5 years. Terms which were alien to Indians like DTH, Digital Cable, and IPTV are suddenly finding presence of country’s journals.
India would overtake Japan as Asia’s largest DTH by next year and be Asia’s leading cable market by 2011 and the most-profitable Pay-TV market by 2015. This growth presents a lot of interesting scenarios.
With the 'CAS' issue not yet resolved, there's 'DTH' coming up to muddle things up for you and me.
Doordarshan launched its Direct-To-Home telecast from April 1,2006 Broadcasters like Star and Zee are now leaders in DTH Industry.
So what is this DTH all about? How, if at all, does it help the customer? Is it good?
Let's show some detail for DTH service.
What is DTH?
DTH stands for Direct-To-Home television. DTH is defined as the reception of satellite programmes with a personal dish in an individual home.DTH does away with the need for the local cable operator and puts the broadcaster directly in touch with the consumer. Only cable operators can receive satellite programmes and they then distribute them to individual homes.
The History of DTH in India
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DTH services were first proposed in India in 1996. But they did not pass approval because there were concerns over national security and a cultural invasion. In 1997, the government even imposed a ban when the Rupert Murdoch-owned Indian Sky Broadcasting (ISkyB) was about to launch its DTH services in India.
Finally in 2000, DTH was allowed. The new policy requires all operators to set up earth stations in India within 12 months of getting a license. DTH licenses in India will cost $2.14 million and will be valid for 10 years. The companies offering DTHservice will have to have an Indian chief and foreign equity has been capped at 49 per cent. There is no limit on the number of companies that can apply for the DTH license.
How does DTH really differ from cable TV?
The way DTH reaches a consumer's home is different from the way cable TV does. In DTH, TV channels would be transmitted from the satellite to a small dish antenna mounted on the window or rooftop of the subscriber's home. So the broadcaster directly connects to the user. The middlemen like local cable operators are not there in the picture.
DTH can also reach the remotest of areas since it does away with the intermediate step of a cable operator and the wires (cables) that come from the cable operator to your house. As we explained above, in DTH signals directly come from the satellite toyour DTH dish.
Also, with DTH, a user can scan nearly 700 channels!
Why DTH is is being discussed now?
Doordarshan plans to launch its DTH telecast from April 1. The government has said it will provide 10,000 dishes free across eight states for increased community viewing of the DTH service. The government is estimated to be investing over Rs 300 crore (Rs 3 billion) in this DTH venture.
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There are four serious contenders for DTH services in India: Doordarshan, Star, Zee, and Data Access.
DTH superior to cable TV?
Yes. DTH offers better quality picture than cable TV. This is because cable TV in India is analog. Despite digital transmission and reception, the cable transmission is still analog. DTH offers stereophonic sound effects. It can also reach remote areas where terrestrial transmission and cable TV have failed to penetrate. Apart from enhanced picture quality, DTH has also allows for interactive TV services such as movie-on-demand, Internet access, video conferencing and e-mail. But the thing that DTH has going for it is that the powerful broadcasting companies like Star, Zee, etc are pushing for it.
So why are broadcasters pushing for DTH?
In DTH, the payments will be made directly by the subscriber to the satellite company offering the service.
A big problem that broadcasters face in India is the issue of under-reporting of subscribers by cable operators.
Consider the cable operators pyramid. Right at the top is the broadcaster. Next comes the Multi Service Cable Operator (MSOs) like Siticable, In Cable, etc. Below themare the Access Cable Operators (ACOs) or your local cable guy who actually lays the wires to your house.
The local cable operators or the ACOs then allegedly under-report the number of subscribers they have bagged because they have to pay the MSOs something like Rs 30-45 per household. Showing a lesser number of households benefits ACOs.
With no way to actually cross check, the MSOs and the broadcasters lose a lot. Broadcasters do not earn much in subscription fees and are mostly dependent on advertisement revenue to cover their costs, which is not sustainable and does not offer high growth in revenues for broadcasters.
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The way out of this is to use a set-top box so that it will be clear how many households are actually using cable or going for DTH where broadcasters directly connect to consumers and can actually grow revenues with a growth in the subscriber base.
Why do Doordarshan, Zee, Star think DTH will work in India?Today, broadcasters believe that the market is ripe for DTH. The prices of the dish and the set-top box have come down significantly. Overall investments required in putting up a DTH infrastructure has dropped and customers are also reaping the benefits of more attractive tariffs.
The major thing that DTH operators are betting on is that the service is coming at a time when the government is pushing for CAS (conditional access system), which will make cable television more expensive, narrowing the tariff gap between DTH and cable.
Will DTH be cheaper than cable or more expensive?DTH will be definitely more expensive than cable as it exists today. A set-top box is a must for DTH. Earlier, when CAS made set-top box mandatory for households, the costs between DTH and cable would not have been too wide.
But CAS on the backburner now -- which means no set-top box (a must for DTH), the price gap between DTH and cable, will be wide.
In Oct 2002, Siticable, which is owned by Zee, said that the cost of the installation equipment, which includes the receiver dish and the set-top box, would be priced at around Rs 3,900. Siticable is looking to rope in 1 million subscribers in 15 months.
Other estimates say that digital cable set-top box may cost Rs 4,000, a DTH decoder dish is unlikely to cost less than Rs 7,000.
DTH's minimum subscription could be priced around Rs 500 per month.
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Some reports say that an entry level DTH STB will cost about Rs 7,000 (including taxes and installation cost at consumers end). A more advanced STB with value addedfeatures like PVR (Personal Video Recorder), PSTN connectivity, Gamming console, channel management system, etc. may cost as much as Rs 15,000.
So, what's the buzz? Will DTH finally be the one that rules?The cable system is well entrenched in India and is showing quite rapid growth. If DTH had come to India in 1996-97 (like Star had originally attempted), then it could have made a significant breakthrough.
Europe is an example of this. DTH developed there before cable and now controls nearly 80 per cent of the total satellite television subscriber base. But in US, cable rules because it came before DTH.
DTH will definitely cut into the existing cable user base. It will make the local cable operator less important and take business away from him. It will give consumers greater choice.
But it is likely to be an up market premium product and most middle class households will stick to cable.
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DTH INDUSTRY – An Overview:
DTH services were first proposed in India in 1996. But they did not pass approval because there were concerns over national security and a cultural invasion. In 1997, the government even imposed a ban when the Rupert Murdoch-owned Indian Sky Broadcasting (ISkyB) was about to launch its DTH services in India.
Finally in 2000, DTH was allowed. The new policy required all operators to set up earth stations in India within 12 months of getting a license. DTH licenses in India cost $2.14 million and will be valid for 10 years. The companies offering DTH service will have to have an Indian chief and foreign equity has been capped at 49 per cent.
Today, broadcasters believe that the market is ripe for DTH. The prices of the dish and the set top box have come down significantly. Overall investments required in putting up a DTH Infrastructure has dropped and customers are also reaping the benefits of more attractive tariffs.
The major thing that DTH operators are betting on is that the service is coming at a time when the government is pushing for CAS (conditional access system), which will make cable television more expensive, narrowing the tariff gap between DTH and cable.
Some of the features of DTH service are as following:
DTH offers better quality picture than Cable TV.
DTH can reach remote areas where terrestrial transmission and cable TV have failed to penetrate.
DTH has also allows for interactive TV services such as movie-on-demand, Internet access, video conferencing and e-mail.
In DTH, the payments will be made directly by the subscriber to the satellite company offering the service.
In DTH, the payments will be made directly by the subscriber to the satellite company offering the service.
India currently has 6 major DTH service providers and a total of over 5 million subscriber households.
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I. Tata group and Star network owned Tata Sky
II. Zee group owned Dish TV
III. Sun network owned SUNDIRECT DTH.
IV. Reliance owned BIG TV
V. Bharti Airtel’s DTH
VI. DD Direct Plus
DTH Market
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The DTH industry in India can be categorized as an OLIGOPOLY. The HHI index and the market share of firms indicate the amount of competition among them.
OLIGOPOLY: Oligopoly is a Greek word which means “for few entities with the right to sell”.It is a market structure in which the market or the industry is dominated by a small number of large players who are called “oligopolist”.
In this type of market the degree of market concentration is very high, with barriers to entry in the market.
Important features of Oligopoly Market:
Small number of large players dominates the market.
The oligopolists produce branded products.
There exists interdependence between firms.
Each oligopolist is aware of the actions of the others.
There are significant entry barriers in this market.
Entry barriers in Indian DTH Industry
The Indian DTH industry is a high tech industry requiring huge capital investment. The initial cost required for setting up the company is very high as it requires transponders and other hi tech equipment.
Following entry barriers exist in the DTH Industry.
DTH Industry is a high volume low margin industry: Any new entrant in the DTH industry has to make sure that it builds significant customer base as soon as possible to ensure its profits.
High set up cost of satellite, transponder and other high
techequipment: the huge initial cost of setting up the business acts as a
huge entry barrier for the new entrants.
High Cost of the set top boxes
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Long gestation period and high break even period
Multilingual & Multicultural differences in India.
High Cost of the set top boxes.
CHALLENGES
The challenges faced by the DTH Industry are: High License Fee Organization of taxation regime , particularly state levied entertainment
tax Technology Neutrality as a policy needs to be consistently followed by
the Government Content differentiation through bringing in a Self regulatory regime
and technological controls Control of Content Cost for DTH to make it a level playing field
There exist sales and distribution challenges in India. Although India is a very big country, the trade is relatively unorganized. Products go into tens of thousands of shops in large geographies, and getting set-top boxes and remote controllers in good shape across the length and breadth of India is a significant challenge
Massive logistical challenge.
COMPANY PROFILE
TATA SKY
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Introduction
Type Joint venture between Tata Group (80% stake) and STAR TV (20% stake)
Founded 2004Headquarter Kirloskar Business Park, Bangalore,
IndiaIndustry DTH Pay TVProducts Direct broadcast satelliteSlogan ‘Isko laga daala, toh life jingalala’
Website www.TataSky.com
COMPANY ANALYSIS – A Birds view of Tata Sky:Tata Sky launched its services pan-India in August 2006. It resulted as a joint venture between the TATA group and the STAR group. Within a short span of time it garnered a subscriber base of nearly 2.5 million (Aug 2008). It has over 147 channels to choose from. Tata Sky has launched an entry-level subscription plan called ‘Super Hit Pack’ at Rs. 99 per month with a bouquet of 53 channels.
Tata Sky recently launched Tata Sky Plus which uses the personal video recording (PVR) technology that allows consumers to record live. It is available at a price of Rs. 8999/-Tata Sky, though a late entrant created a mark as a first mover in the minds of the customers, as it was the first DTH service to be advertised in India. Few salient features of the company are:
Strongly innovative product offerings – Tata Sky has taken the responsibility on itself to invest in more interactive services to differentiate it from other service providers. It was the first DTH company in the world to offer its subscribers interactive VAS under the umbrella
Kick started the category advertising - Although it was the 3rd player to enter the market it sought to create consumer education about the category with focused advertising.
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Focus on heritage – Tata Sky latest campaign features superstar Aamir Khan. The focus of the campaign was to establish the lineage of Tata Sky and inform potential customers about Sky.
Low cost packages to increase penetration - Tata Sky has recently introduced a Rs 99-a-month low-value pack for 53 channels to increase penetration of Tata Sky in smaller towns of the country.
Tata Sky has also gone a step further and enhance the service delivery by introducing an electronic program guide (EPG) in Hindi especially for people in small towns who are more comfortable with Hindi. This is the new quality standard for Indian pay TV against which other companies as well as future entrants will be judged.
Tata sky, in order to increase its rural penetration, has tied up with ITC e-Choupal and Godrej Aadhar.
For Effective distribution Tata Sky has tied up with ITC international Business Division.
With the adoption of 360 degree marketing campaign which includes television, print, outdoor, radio, on ground activities, Tata sky has been able to pursue marketing on a digital platform.
Tata Sky's satellite service brings home a whole new entertainment experience with its direct-to-home (DTH) television service. Subscribers can now choose from a variety of popular and new channels and enjoy interactive features. Some of the highlights of the service are:
Entertainment and Media channelsTata Sky offers subscribers popular channels such as STAR group channels, Sony, Discovery, Disney, MTV, NDTV, ESPN STAR Sports, National Geographic, Eenadu, TV Today, Asianet and many more.
Digital – quality serviceThe service provides viewers with DVD-quality picture and CD-quality sound enhancing their viewing experience.
Television goes interactive
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Ever thought of playing interactive games on your television? Or getting weekly channel schedules right on the TV screen with synopses of programmes? Interactive features on Tata Sky make all this and more possible.
Features like Active STAR News, Active Newsroom and Active Khabar allow viewing multiple channels on a single screen. For kids there is a special Active Wiz kids learning service. With parental control functions it's also easy to lock channels with special PIN numbers.
Customer service and infrastructure supportTata Sky has set up a pan-India distribution network of popular consumer electronic stores and mobile phone outlets that retail its hardware and prepaid recharge vouchers. The company has also tied up with LG, ITC International Business Divisionand Indian Oil Corporation to support its distribution network.
Tata Sky undertakes installation and servicing of hardware at subscribers' homes, ensuring high levels of customer service. The company has engaged a field force of qualified professionals complemented by multi-lingual customer service associates adequately trained to solve all customer problems.
Vision
Tata Sky plans to launch its DTH service with top-of-the-line infrastructure and revolutionize Indian entertainment through its superior DVD quality picture and CD quality sound. The service envisions to:
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‘Connect every television homeEmpower every television viewer
Revolutionize home entertainment’
Achievement
Within a span of one year, Tata Sky has:
Established itself as the fastest growing Pay TV platform in India. Established Tata Sky as a trusted and premium brand: achieved 87%
brand awareness within the first six months of launch. Expanded its product offering from 55 television channels at the
time of launch to over 120 channels and interactive services (Active Games, Active Sports, Active STAR News, Active Khabar, Active Newsroom and Active Wiz kids).
Launched Active Wiz kids, the first-of-its-kind education based interactive service in the world that teaches children through learning games.
Set up state-of-the-art digital infrastructure including an uplink centre in Gurgaon and three high-end 24x7 call centres in Hyderabad, Mohali and Pune supporting 11 languages (English, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi, Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, Telegu, Oriya and Bengali).
Expanded its distribution network from 300 towns and 10,000 dealers at the Time of launch to 4,500 towns and 30,000 dealers across the country and operating through 245 exclusive distributors.
Simultaneously trained 5000 people in a span of 6 months across 180 cities (the largest corporate training initiative in India).
Become the gold standard in customer service: achieved globally best-in-class (durable and telecom industries) customer satisfaction scores.
Introduced first-time ever interactive television promotions across popular television channels including Sony (Indian Idol highlights on-demand), STAR.Current Situation - SWOT Analysis
Milestone
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2005 TATA - STAR DTH venture signs lease agreement with ISRO
(Indian Space research organization)
TATA - STAR DTH Venture Receives Ministry's Clearance
2006 Tata Sky selects NDS systems to create India's most advanced digital
and interactive DTH service Tata Sky launches ACTVE WIZKIDS - a unique edutainment service Tata Sky launches pay-per-view service - SHOWCASE Tata Sky Launches ACTVE SPORTS on ESPN STAR Sports Television finally becomes interactive with Tata Sky Tata Sky Satellite Television Service Launches Across the Country Zee-Turner channels now on Tata Sky
2007 Tata Sky introduces three new interactive services: Active Darsan,
Active Learning and Active Stories Tata Sky expands offering to 140 channels Tata Sky crosses 1 million marks in record time Unparalleled World Cup cricket viewing experience on Tata Sky Tata Sky launches three new channel packages Watch ICC World Cup on Tata Sky with Hrithik Roshan Tata Sky offers 5 months of free viewing
SWOT Analysis
1. Strengths
1. Leveraging on brand TATA and High brand recall
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2. Technological expertise with Newscorp’s DTH arm Sky
3. Superior Picture quality
4. Leads in introducing new packages & Services
5. Customer service
6. Rural penetration through ITC E-Choupal and Godrej Aadhar7. Interactive channels and program guides
8. Innovative Product offering Tata Sky Plus
2. Weaknesses
1. Second Mover after Dish TV who captured Market Share
2. Cannot match free service like DD
3. Currently Does not offer free Set Top Box like Dish TV
4. Litigation due to issues related to sports channels which it lost
5. Dependency on broadcaster and had issues with Sun TV
3. Opportunities
1. Larger disposable incomes with India
2. Tapping niche markets with Better service and Product offering
3. Expansion of distribution network through exclusive store
4. Interactive advertising – Tie up of with Samsung
5. Increase in number of TVs sold
6. Increase in the geographical boundaries with Rural Market untapped
7. Growing demand for quality of service in the form of DTH over Cable
8. CAS being made Compulsory would encourage switch 9. Value Added Services are gaining steam.
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4. Threats
1. IPTV provides superior technology if implemented
2. Cable Set top Boxes provide easy switching due to negligible switching costs
3. Increasing Competition internally
4. Dependency on CPE suppliers to some extent
5. High dependence for transponders on ISRO
6. Dependency on broadcasters for their channel content and thus increase in cost
7. Videocon may enter DTH by building its own set top boxes.
8. No Exclusivity in Content and Rule of ‘Must Carry’
9. Cap on Investment (20%)
10. Interoperability Regulations
11. Cap on foreign Investment (49%)
Product Matrix
TATA Sky’s target customers include various strata of the society, with different service packages available to each one. To improve its performance in the competitive DTH market, TATA Sky management should assess its brand positioning among its target segment by establishing a distinctive image for the company compared to competing companies.
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But these initiatives presents challenges, which TATA Sky is currently facing squeezed by rising costs, sporadic nature of demand, and relentless downward pricing pressure due to competition. Adding to it, slackening of demand, and higher interest rates are not welcome signs for it. With this in mind, TATA Sky should try to be rapid-paced and highly competitive.
To counter these challenges and still be profitable, we have tried to suggest various strategies based on what will suit demands in the Indian market and its consumer behaviour to increase TATA Sky market share.
Current situation
Tata Sky crossed the two million connections mark in a period of 20 months, thus retaining its position as the fastest growing direct-to-home service provider across the globe.
The marketing budget that TATA Sky begun with was 15% of sales. This included around 5% for advertisements, 7% discounts and promotions and 1% sponsorships.
Currently TATA Sky has roped in Aamir Khan as its brand ambassador. Aamir Khan would feature in all TATA Sky brand and product communication, including advertisements in TV, print and radio.
Further, tie ups with ITC E-Choupal and Godrej Aadhar give it wider rural reach. Also for its distribution, TATA Sky has a tie up with ITC International Business Division.
The 24X7 guru.com has joined hands with TATA Sky to provide content for Active Learning.
Tata Sky has adopted a 360 degree marketing campaign approach that encapsulates television, print, outdoor and radio along with on-ground activities and marketing on the digital platform.
Tata Sky plans tie-ups with Sony Pictures, Fox for content- Pay per View service for exclusive events.
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1. Product
Tata Sky launches itself as a DTH services requiring a Dish, A set top box and network access card per television. Later variant like Community dish for entire building were launched. Latest the Tata Sky Plus with Personal Video Recording technology has been launched. Various services provided by
TATA Sky include:
Active Services
Active Cooking
Active Stories
Active Newsroom
Active Darshan
Active WizKids
Active Sports
Active Learning
Active Games
Active Astrology
Parental Control
Search and Scan Banner
Guide (including Hindi Display)
Customer Service- 24 x 7 help. Support in 11 languages
Factors Affecting Consumer buying Behaviours:
1. Price: Tata Sky has offered competitive pricing but has been on the higher end and its due to promotional campaigns it has added in incentives leading to increase in customer base. In search of newer
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audiences in smaller towns, DTH operator Tata Sky is introducing a new Rs 99 package — Super Hit Pack
2. Customer Services: Tata sky offers an excellent website and dedicated customer line. They have the concept of registered mobile number providing easy communication. But their Customer service lines are always busy and the waiting period is usually very long. This may be an irritant for existing customers.
3. Reception: The reception is usually excellent in comparison to existing cable TV. But during monsoons and Cloudy days they are affected. The rate of signal distortion is more for Community dishes in comparison to Individual dishes. This technical problem should be sorted.
4. Program Choices: After litigations, Tata sky is able to offer huge bouquet of channels but it is still less compared to the Cable TV. They should ensure extensive program choices to induce switching from Cable to DTH
5. New Technology: Tata sky Plus is an initiative in this direction. Various services under Active are part of this Technology game.
Being a interactive and dynamic offering would increase its appeal.
6. Technical Support: Technical support system of Tata sky is well establishes. If a 24 hrs limit can be provided for all complaints and work on ‘holidays’ when people are generally home could be sold as a USP.
Tata Sky as a product has evolved from the time to inception. Further to enhance the product, newservices and technologies can be imbibed like:
1. Common Dish per house for Multiple Television sets
2. Combined Product with Television - Rural Areas , especially and Niche Segment Targeting if Combined with LCD’s
3. Connectivity with other digital Monitors like Laptops for Commercial Usage
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4. Guide can be displayed in Multiple Regional Languages
5. Voice over in Multiple Languages (Currently limited availability in for some programs)
6. Interactive Video Games (with consol)
7. Inclusion of Radio Reception. Development of Visual Radio service.
8. Variety in Movie Listing with Bollywood, Hollywood and Regional Channels
9. Special channels for Songs Request like Jukebox could be launched
10. Stock Market related interactive service on Active
2. Price
Competition has increased may fold with completion providing freebies and slashing prices. The following price related strategies could be adopted, which may lead to a short term loss but a medium term break even and profit:
1. Free Set Top: Following the line of Dish TV, Set top Boxes can be given free while ensuring lock in by providing base pack free for limited time duration, thus inducing update to next level.
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2. Lock in of 1 year: Ensure long term lock ins by providing incentives for pre payment of long term charges. Continue with current strategy of providing 2 months free on payment of 10 months services.
3. Multiple Connections: Provide discounts for consumers buying second Tata Sky Connection (up to 50% off)
4. Encourage References: Provide discounts on Monthly charges if reference from existing consumer becomes a new customer.
5. Regional Disparity: Provide free regional packs in local areas to ensure switch from Cable TV to DTH service, i.e. provide free south Jumbo pack for customers in all Southern States.
6. Community Dish: Provide Incentives in the form of Free Months charges for first 3-6 months and reduce the Installation charges per flat.
7. Payment Options: Allow multiple points of payment, ensuring timely payment and convenience to the customer – Credit Card through Website (implemented), Pre Paid cards from Retail shops to be activated using Telephone (Implemeneted) and Drop Boxes at Societies.
8. Postpaid: Some clients depending upon few background check criteria can be given Billing service i.e. Payment at end of Month
3. Place
States Share (%)Maharashtra 12.1
Gujurat 10.5Karnataka 7.2
Uttar Pradesh 6.9
Tamil Nadu 6.6
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Punjab 6.4
Orrisa 5.3
West Bengal 4.7
Kerala 4.6
Andra Pradesh 4.6
Rajastan 4.5
Assam 4.0
Madhya Pradesh 3.8
Others 18.8
Total 100
Clearly, there is a lot of scope of increase in the number of customers across all the states. Looking at the current distribution system that Tata Sky has adopted:
Including the local cable operators as distributors would be an extremely useful way of reaching out to the target market:
a. Staff of cable operators be made the distributors for Tata Sky
(familiarity with people)
b. All distributors be given a status of Tata Sky employees
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c. Attractive options be given to them to become distributors
Another focus could be the rural market. A snapshot of the rural market:
a. 199 million total household in India
b. 119 million (60% of total house holds) TV households
c. 50 million are having Cable
d. 55 million TV sets in rural area
e. Rural TV households growing by 3-4 million each year.
f. Only 2-3 % of rural household have access to Cable
g. Growing focus towards more satellite channels
Strategies for the rural sector can be:
a. Customizing offering
b. Combination of various national channels with regional channels
c. Educational Package
d. Appointing the village head as Distributor and the promoter as the villagers tend to listen to village head
e. This can be supplemented by giving the connection to village head free for initial period
Another avenue that can be explored is Mini – Theatres (Class B towns)
a. Setting up Mini – Theatres in rural sector to promote the Product
b. Events like Cricket matches, movies etc.
c. These Mini – Theatres can be the Point of Sales for Tata Sky
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4. Promotion
The promotional strategies suggested are:
1. Packages for Special Events like the cricket World Cup
2. Targeting Tata employees could be a useful way PR promoting the product
3. Give the option of instalments and other promotional schemes to the new users
4. Tie up with real estate developers to target the new constructions
a. The number of old buildings being demolished and being reconstructed are also on the rise. This could be a major target for promotions
5. Door to door marketing should be used to heighten the awareness levels as well
6. Local Games Sponsorships can also be used to increase the awareness levels
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7. Another way could be using the prominent part of the Building for placing Hoardings of Tata Sky Ads:
a. Finding the strategic building in the locality b. Consideration can be in form of cash payment to the Housing society c. Providing free connections to Households in these buildings
8. Another new avenue that can be explored is the railway stations:a. Posters on railway station roofsb. Tickers at Major suburban Railway stations
9. Use of Internet- Applications which involve sharing of videos on how one consumes TV, benefits of DTH over cable TV, etc. across social networking sites like Orkut, ibibo, etc.
10. 'Ek-pe-Teen and Do-pe-Paanch' the offer entails three months of free subscription on the purchase of one connection, and five months of free subscription on purchase of two or more connections.
11. Tata Sky launched an interactive game quiz featured around MS Dhoni to coincide with the Twenty20 World Cup. In the past, the DTH operator has been test-piloting feature by running several contests around programmes and the interactive features were made available to its customers.
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MARKET SEGMENTATION
Geographic segmentationIn terms of geographical location, North India and Western India together contribute over 8 million DTH subscribers, while the southern market contributes 3 million. The states of Maharashtra, Goa, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan are the leaders in DTH subscription, contributing over 6.5 million DTH connections to the overall base.
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Urban and Rural:In order to cater to the diverse taste and needs of both urban and rural people operators provide entirely different range of services and offerings. In rural areas, fleet of vans for demos, installation as well as selling hardware and pre-paid vouchers are being used. Most players are building up their subscriber base by targeting viewers outside the big cities, which suggests that about 60 per cent of DTH subscribers reside in rural areas and towns with a population under a million.
Region and States:DTH service providers give special offers where regional and sports channels are viewed the most. Silver subscription available in Tamil Nadu, Kerala Karnataka & Pondicherry only, ultimate sports bonanza offer - Rs 2490 with 12 Months of Silver subscription available in Andhra Pradesh only.
Demographic segmentationAGE and GENDER:Most of the players in DTH offer niche channels to create a unique and exciting offering for its viewers of every age and gender segment. DTH industry mainly concentrates on women who don’t like missing their daily soap and news more ever women are able to learn English speaking which is a very special feature of DTH. DTH also concentrates on children also by providing them games, dictionary, some discovery videos specially inbuilt, math’s, and science and social knowledge. It also focuses on old people as it has updated videos of various holy and religious places. Example- Dish TV recently launched ‘Children Films Festival’ with a bouquet of over 25 super-hit films across various categories priced at Rs. 25/- per movie. thus targeting the children segment. Besides this value added services like Games Active, Bhakti active services etc carters to needs of customers from various age groups and gender.
INCOME:DTH service provider gives various recharge options to consumer according to the income like silver pack, golden pack, diamond pack etc.
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Behavioural SegmentationOCCASIONS:DTH operators come out with new offers of channels or new buyer schemes at relatively cheaper rates on occasions of festivals or major sports events. For example it offers benefits to customers like: In a cricket match choosing the language of the commentary, camera angles, know player statistics and watch match highlights at our will
Porter’s 5 forces
orces
Bargaining Power of Supplier – HighDTH relies on three major suppliers: Customer Premise Equipment – Satellite dish, Set top box and Access card, Ku Band Transponder and content. Bargaining power of DTH operator with CPE supplier has increased due to supply. Transponder is provided by Astrix, ISRO hence dependency exists and due to no regulations in channel pricing, DTH operators are at mercy of Broadcasters.
Bargaining Power of Buyer-HighConsumer has the power to choose in this industry with variety. Unless players can differentiate against each other, the market shall remain mostly homogeneous. Customers will have high bargaining power and will beinfluenced by costs versus services.
Threat of Substitutes- MediumDTH faces major competition from Terrestrial, Cable & IPTV.
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Doordarshan is world’s largest Terrestrial broadcaster with over 1400 transmitters and covering 88% of India geographical area. They offer Digital service in collaboration with BBC resources. This wide reach and low cost approach are offset by its lack of attractive content.
Cable TV operates in 2 modes: CAS<Metros>which requires separate set top box and Non Addressable system. The cost varies from Rs. 100 – Rs. 350 to customers depending upon location. Due to its phenomenal reach, there is bound to be a resistance from Local Cable operators.
IPTV is service where television signals are digitally sent over Telecommunications line. MTNL & BSNL plan to tap this line. Even with strict regulations (not yet enforced) it is a considerable threat due to its newlevel of interactivity.
Threat of New Entrants- LowWith 7 players in the DTH space, threat of new entrants is relatively low due to enough competition. Getting a license is relatively low but issues related to pricing of CPE and getting required transponders. Also first mover advantage exists in this industry.
Competitive Rivalry- MediumWith 7 players established in the market inter firm rivalry is intense.
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DD offers free service but has a very small bouquet of channels. Dish TV got first movers advantage and has a highest market share in the market. The new players have very big brand names and have started with extensive publicity. There is also competition with respect to acquiring content. There are also regional discrepancies.
Threat of New Entrant
LOW
DTH market is already crowded with 7 players
Bargaining power of Suppliers
VERY HIGH
Transponders – Very High
CPE Suppliers – Low
Content – Very Low
Bargaining power of Buyers
HIGH
Lots of opinion & substitutes
Price sensitive buyer
Inter Firm Rivalry
VERY HIGH
Price Wars
Litigations
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DTH Industry – Five Forces Model
PRODUCT COMPARISON
1. TATA SKY
Tata Sky Features:
Joint venture with International DTH Brand-Sky, famous for its exquisite technology.
Uniform volume level across all channels
Stable set-top-box with less bugs or issues
Provides good Customer service and after-sales support
Exclusive access to some authentic international channels like BBC entertainment, Ceebebies Tata Sky Product Review Tata Sky has made constant innovation and technology enhancements which are the
Threat of Substitutes
VERY HIGH
Cable TV – Very High
IPTV – High
Terrestial - Low
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main reasons that the company could provide a very stable set top box.
As a result its customers have to worry less about the maintenance issues regarding the Set-Top Box.
Another important feature which can be of great value to the customer is - the uniform volume level across all channels.
This feature ensures that the customers don’t have to waste time on adjusting the volume levels as they surf the channels.
Tata Sky has customized its packages which enable the customer to choose and pay for onlythose channels which they require.
Tata Sky provides excellent picture/audio quality.
Tata Sky also provides installation services within 24 hours of the purchase of the product
2. RELIANCE BIG TV
Reliance BIG TV Features:
Reliance Big TV uses MPEG-4 technology which can carry more number of channels
Good picture and audio quality The company makes its packages cost effective by providing lots of
channels in base pack itself.
It also provides a feature of viewing 12 channels at a time on single screen
Good performance even during the monsoon season. Reliance Big TV Product Review
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Reliance BIG TV is a cost-effective service whose base package comes with large number of channels.
The customers get to select regional package based on their language/regional/cultural preferences.
This entitles the customer to get an option to make a package having base package and any one of the regional
languages like kannada, malayalam, telugu, hindi/Punjabi or oriya/Bengali Packages
. The set-top box of Big TV is little unstable. This acts as a disadvantage for the customers
For the installation of the set-top box the customer has to wait for 3-4 days from the time of Purchase
3. AIRTEL DIGITAL TV
Airtel Digital TV Features:
Airtel digital tv has good DVD Quality picture and CD quality
It provides a universal remote which works both with TV and Set top box
One of the major features of Airtel digital is that it exclusively offers World-space satellite radio channels.
The set-top box provided by Airtel Digital is Sleek and stylish
It provides better connectivity as provides a larger dish antenna
Airtel Digital TV Product Review:
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Although Airtel Digital is a late entrant in DTH space it has come up with a completely flawless DVD quality picture and sound.
At the time when the other players were providing different remotes for set top box and television , Digital Tv has completely undone that issue by coming up with universal remote.
It provides a sleek and stylish looking set top box.
It also provides exclusive access to World-space channels
While Airtel Digital tried to differentiate its product from the rest the high cost associated with it acted as a big negative aspect for the company
The are many other players in the market providing lots of channels at a lower price, Digital TV by Airtel stands out as a lot costlier.
Few Inferences from the above comparison:
Tata Sky is the only DTH which provides uniform volume level across channels.
Tata Sky and Big TV are better choice for rainy areas because of bigger antenna size.
Incase the customer is very selective about channels, Tata Sky is the best fit as it has lots of small packages and add-on packages so that the customers can customize the package as per their needs.
To start enjoying DTH experience from today, go for Tata Sky because that’s the only DTH which will be delivered and installed the same day after you place the order
.
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PRODUCT DIFFERENTIATION
Tata Sky launches itself as a DTH services requiring a Dish, A set top box and network access card per television.
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Tata Sky as a product provides to its customers a large bouquet of channels at different pricing packages. These packages are formed according to ensure user convenience. Customers can select any of the various attractive package of channels available.
Thus Tata Sky has all features to compete well with the existing players in the market. However Tata sky recently launched a new variant called Tata Sky +. This product contained some additional features over the original Tata Sky. Tata Sky+ is a premium set-top box with a personal video recorder that allows you to record up to 45 hours of live TV. Tata Sky+ gives you the power to record one program while watching another, pause a live telecast and even rewind a TV program that you are watching. Thus Tata sky gained an edge over its customers by adapting Product Differentiation. To protect its existing customer base using Tata Sky, it also introduced a special offer of up gradation to the premium product at reasonable cost.
For its new customer the cost of Tata Sky Plus is given as below:
Tata Sky Plus Cost
Rs 8,999 for the hardware (Digicomp) + Rs 1,000 installation & activation charges + Rs 50 per month Tata Sky+ usage fees + Cost of the channel package.In order to stay ahead of its competitors, Tata Sky has always followed an aggressive promotion strategy. When Tata Sky was about to be launched, it earmarked approximately Rs
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1.5 billion for marketing the DTH service across all platforms, traditional and non-traditional.
They invested not only in the pilot MDU (multi-dwelling unit) projects in some cities of Indiabut also planned to educate an average Indian about the advantages of a DTH service supported by the Tata’s and Star.
A major part of the Rs 1.5 billion marketing budget was planned to be spent during the festival season in India, starting late September and lasting till Christmas-New Year, when consumers have a tendency to splurge on goodies.
Meanwhile, apart from Zee Turner family of channels, most other major TV channels found a place on the Tata Sky platform
OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT
It is obvious that every task has some objectives. My objectives behind working on this project are:
I. Primary Objective
The main objective of this project is making the consumer aware of His/Her rights.
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To understand penetration of various DTH and cable operators in Kalwa & Thane
II. Secondary Objectives
To understand preferences of TV Viewers of Kalwa & Thane regarding DTH and Cable Services
To understand purchase criteria of customers for selecting DTH or Cable Services
To understand competition between various players
To Find Out Opportunity & Threats In Indian DTH Industry.
To Study The Reason Behind Growth Of DTH Market.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
1. ORIGIN & FORMULATION OF RESEARCH OBJECTIVE
It is the first and the most important stage in applied research. The objective of the project is to know the consumer awareness is making the consumer aware of His/Her rights. It means that consumers not or
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are aware of products or services, its characteristics and the other marketing P's (place to buy, price, and promotion).At this stage, I will try to define following one thing;
Time & Space boundaries:-In this project, the time period is 1st January, 2008 to 5th march, 2008. The study is to be carried out part timely.
2. FORMULATING OF RESEARCH DESIGNResearch design specifies the methods and procedures for conducting a particular study.
Research design is a plan, structure and strategy of investigation so as to obtain answer to the problem.
Research designs are mainly three types.
Exploratory Research Design:Exploratory research design focuses on discovery of ideas and generally is based on secondary data.
Descriptive Research Design:Descriptive research is more rigid than exploratory research and seeks to describe users of a product, determine the proportion of the population that uses a product, or predict future demand for a product.
Descriptive research study is undertaken when the researcher wants to know the characteristics of certain groups; gender; education level; income; occupation etc.
Causal Research DesignCausal research is undertaking when the researcher want to study the cause and effect relationships between two or more variables. It accomplishes this goal through laboratory and field experiments. I am applying Descriptive Research Design; it means a type of conclusive research that has its major objective descriptive of something. In this
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Descriptive research, I use longitudinal research to Study my project, as I m collect one time information from the unknown sample.
3. SELECTION OF SOURCES OF DATAThe choice of the source of data should be according to the objective and suitability to the information required. There can be two main classifications of data sources.
Primary data
Secondary data
Primary data means the data, which is collected by the research for the first time; in this project I am using this method by conducting a field survey.
The secondary data is collected from article from the internet site. The detail regarding secondary data is mentioning in the bibliography.
4. DECISION ON DATA COLLECTION TECHNIQUES
Once the decision in the favors of collection of primary data is taken, the researcher has to decide the made of collecting data. There are two modes of collecting data.
Observation Method
Survey Method
To collect information through the survey method, I had to select the tool through which I would gather information one choose the questionnaire.
I am using survey method as the data collection form. The data were collected through survey method by personal interview.
Hence Data collection tool is Questionnaire.
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PERSONAL SURVEYI am using this survey because of its suitability to my project, personal survey is suitable to my research and I will get an opportunity to meet consumer face to face.
The description regarding designs the questionnaire is as follows:-
Types of information to be collected:I have decided to collect the information regarding the consumer awareness on tata sky.
Types of question:I have used open-ended, Rating, Dichotomous (yes/no), Single choice, Scaling and multiple choice question in questionnaire
Phrasing question:I have used simple language while formulation questionnaire so that the respondents do not confused.
Order of question:The simple questions were put in the starting to make the respondent familiar with the subject and to gain his interest to fill up the questionnaire.
Layout of questionnaire:I have prepared the questionnaire which can be read and interpreted easily. The questionnaire as prepared using the front “Times New Roman” with front size “14” with 1.5 line spacing.
5. SAMPLE DESIGNLooking at the vast geographic area of the Thane city, I have selected the simple random sampling method for conducting survey. (convince method to access easily.
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The sampling method that I will be choosing is the probability. The sample size for the survey is 60 (20 from each section)
6. ORGANIZING AND CONDUCTING THE FIELD SURVEYAfter preparing the questionnaire and taking the sample decision the next step is to organize and conduct field survey. There are 2 aspect related to survey which have to be considered. .
Interviewing
Supervision of field work
Interviewing:- As I am collecting the information from the people. I am using field survey for collect the data, it is very necessary to supervise the fieldwork as the time providing. At some place I got responses after 4 to 5 visit as in starting.But this also helped me to remove my fear of meeting people.
7. ANALYZING THE COLLECTED DATAOnce the field survey is over and the questionnaire have been received, the next task is to aggregate the data in to a meaningful manner to bring out the main characteristics of the data collection. It is necessary to interpretation of data because faulty and improve data analysis will not give proper insight into the research object.
This phase is divided in three as below;
EditionThe first task in data processing is edition. It is the process by which the data are prepared for subsequent code after review of questionnaire with the object.
Coding
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It is the process of classifying the answer to question into meaningful categories. The symbol used to indicate these categories are code which is systematic.
TabulationTabulation comprises of sorting of the data into different categories and counting the number of cases that belong to easy categories. I have used different types of tabulation and frequency distributions and different types of graphs for analyzing the data collected for and used for the percentage method and CHI square test for findings.
8. PREPARING THE RESEARCH REPORT I have used charts and tables are prepared using different colors and texture so that the finding & analysis can be interpreted with less effort. The typical content of the research report are formulated in a standard format which is as follow:-
Executive summary Introduction of industry and company Objective of the project Research methodology Limitation of the project Analysis Findings of research Bibliography Annexure
Limitations
The sampling plan was based on non-probability method and no scientific methods were adopted.
Data collected may not be 100 % reliable. The universe selection and sample size is not sufficient to represent
the whole population.
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Due to time constraint the survey has been done on the basis of convenience.
The data is been restricted to only Kharegaon, Manisha Nagar, and Karwalo Nagar.
ANALYSIS OF DATA
The analysis is required to come on any conclusion. This analysis is made from the data collected from the Questionnaire, which is filling up by various consumers who are aware and not aware about TATA SKY.
Q-1. Do you watch TV?
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About asking this question I got the result as follow.
ANSWER RESPONDENT PERCENTAGE
Yes 95 95
No 5 5
So from this survey I have found that 95% of people are watching TV and just 5% of people are not watching TV.
Q-2 How frequently you watch the T.V.?
About asking this question I got the result as follow.
ANSWER RESPONDENT PERCENTAGE
Regularly 45 45
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Rarely 21 21
Once in week 21 21
Twice in week 13 13
So from this survey I have found that 45% of people watch TV regularly and 21% of people watch TV rarely. Whereas 21% & 13% of people watch TV Once in week & Twice in week respectively.
Q.3 Which connection you use for your entertainment?
About asking this question I got the result as follow.
Answer Respondent Percentage
DTH 40 40
Doordarshan 5 5
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Cable Connection 45 45
Internet 5 5
Other 5 5
From this survey I have found that 45% of respondents prefer Cable Connection but 5% of respondents still prefer Doordarshan.
Q.4 Which DTH connection do you have?
About asking this question I got the result as follow.
DTH Services Percentage
Tata Sky 42
Dish TV 35
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Big TV 13
Videocon D2H 5
Sun Direct 5
InterpretationTata Sky is the market leader with 42% of market share, followed by Dish TV and Big TV with 35% & 13% of market share respectively.
Q-5. From which sources you comes to know about Tata Sky ?
About asking this question I got the result as follow.
SOURCES PERCENTAGE OF USERS
Advertisement 71
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Hoardings 12
Newspaper 2
Mouth Publicity 15
Thus by these analysis of Tata Sky, I have found that 71% of people know about the Tata Sky company through an Advertisement, and 12% by Hoarding or Banner. There 15% of people is having awareness by Mouth publicity or communicating with other people.
Q.6 Where did you obtain/ take the connection from?
About asking this question I got the results as follows
LOCATION PERCENTAGE OF USER
Company Shop 50
Exclusive dealers 25
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Vendor shop 25
As people are more trusted towards company shop so they would like to get connection from company shop. And survey also tells that 50% connection was taken from the company shop while 25% of connections were taken from exclusive dealers.
Some people are taking connection from retailers or Vendor shops; they believe that from retailers they will get selected numbers. Also I have seen in too many cases that they were got the selected numbers from the retailers which were not found in the company shop.
Q.7 .How long did it take for your service to get activated and function?
About asking this question I got the results as follows
TIME IN HOUR PERCENTAGE OF USER
02-06 74
06-12 19
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12-24 04
Above 24 00
Not sure 03
Most of the services has been activated within 02-06 hours of purchasing. But in case of late submission of documents or misplaced of documents it might take more then 12 hours. Research also suggests that 74% of services had been activated within 02-06 hours of purchased and it was functional properly. And only 19% were taken more than 06 but less than 12 hours to get functional. Whiles as I said that sometimes documents might be misplaced so might take more time. And that 4% suggest that because of misplaced of documents the activation might be delayed, and 3% of customers was not sure or they forgot about there activation period.
Q.8 If yes, then for what period you have used the Tata Sky service?
About asking this question I got the result as follow
PERIOD RESPONDENT RESPONDENT
Less then month 00
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1month to 6 months 04
Up to year 16
Above years 38
As per these analysis one think which is clear about Tata Sky that there out 58 customer 38 customers are using these service from more than year or we can say 3-4 years, and 16 customers are using Tata Sky service up to year, thus the Tata Sky has maintain there good service against the customers, that’s why the customers prefer this Brand.
Q.9 Rate the following parameter of Tata sky to other service provider?
About asking this question I got the results as follows.
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PERCENTAGE OF USERS
PARAMETERS VeryGood
Good Average Poor VeryPoor
Coverage 98 02
Value Added Services
55 40 05
Customer Services 90 08 02
Brand Image 90 10
Tariffs & Schemes
65 25 10
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In case of coverage, Tata sky customer’s satisfaction is highest. There 98% of customers finds that the coverage or network is very good of Tata sky, and just 2% of users of Tata sky think that the coverage for Tata Sky is good.
In case of Value added service of Tata sky 55% of customers finds that the Value added service is very good of Tata sky , 40% of customers find that the Tata sky is providing a good Value added service and just 5% of users of Tata sky think that the Value added service for Tata sky is Average.
In case of Customer service of Tata sky 90% of customers finds that the Customer service is very good of Tata Sky, 8% of customers find
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that the Tata sky is providing a good Customer service and just 2% of users of Tata sky think that the Customer service for Tata sky is Average.
In case of Brand Image, Tata sky customer’s satisfaction is highest. There 90% of customers finds that the Brand Image is very good of Tata sky , and 10% of users of Tata sky think that the Brand Image for Tata sky is good.
In case of Tariffs & Schemes of Tata sky 65% of customersfinds that the Tariffs & Schemes is very good of Tata sky , 25% of customers find that the Tata sky is providing a good Tariffs & Schemes and 10% of users of Tata sky think that the Tariffs & Schemes for Tata sky is Average.Q.10 What’s the reasons for which you are not using Tata Sky?
About asking this question I got the results as follows.
REASONS PERCENTAGE OF USERS
Poor Service 02
Expensive Service 58
Poor Network 00
Other Operator 40
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Thus by this survey or research I have found some negative points of Tata Sky that its service is little bit expensive then other operating service in Thane. There here another drawback is that company’s like Airtel, Reliance and Dish TV is also providing good service in the market, so 40% of customers are grab by other operating service.
Findings On survey
Maximum Person keep Tata Sky kit and recharge facility.
Awareness of new connection and new recharge offers of Tata Sky is similar to Dish TV and Airtel Digital.
There is a communication gap between the company and the customers. This doesn‘t seem to be the case with other DTH providers.
Availability of vouchers lie between price ranges from Rs 100 to 1000.
Availability of voucher is one of the major issues among Tata Sky dealers, approximately 40% of persons in Kharegaon,
Manisha Nagar, and Karwalo Nagar facing this problem. For small amount of recharge they use vouchers, but use other modes of recharge for large amounts. Due to the shortage of stock they are not able to retain their customer for long time.
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EPRS system seems to be the most troublesome recharge option for Dish TV.
Customer care service is considered to be very poor as dealers often complain of problems in recharge process managed by Tata Sky.
Many persons say they recommend Tata Sky because they get the installation done much faster in comparison to Dish TV & competitors with Tata Sky, it takes up to 2-6 hrs.
The company have been able to keep up the promises made to the customers, like installation and activation commitments are often not met.
Connect between the Call Center and the Service center is good.
Customer Care is reachable on Toll-Free easily, waiting time is comparatively less on toll-free numbers
Dish TV changes the price plans and offers more frequently as compared to other DTH providers. This along with improper communication confuses customers which beings down the consumer satisfaction levels.
There has been a growing trend of Dish TV customers and dealers being shifting to other major brands like Tata Sky and Airtel Digital as they provide better value added services like after sale service, recharge facilities and customer care.
Other DTH brand provides best support facility, quick recharge and installation facility, which provides them with the competitive advantage.
Good thing which i found in Dish TV according to dealer feedback is offer, dealers and customer like their but same time they shows un satisfaction with frequent changes in offer.
Specific Comments By customers:-a) Due to the bad EPRS system of Dish TV, they are not able to
recharge higher amount and as they face such problems frequently, they try to recommend other DTH brands to their customers.
b) The dealers mostly prefer to sell Tata Sky and Airtel because their installation system is very fast. Also if dealers are committed to their
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customers regarding any specific time limit, the other DTH brands never let them feel down, which helps the dealers to keep good relation with their customers.
c) The dealers generally sell recharge vouchers of Tata sky worth Rs 1lac per month, but in case of Dish TV they only sell vouchers worth Rs 5-10k. The main reason behind it is lack of availability and also poor EPRS system. It took long time to recharge. So dealers push its customer towards Tata sky and Airtel Digital.
d) There has been problem on the behalf of the distributers front, distributer have been setting there own price and negotiating
according, this has been matter of loss for the dealers in most the case the profit got is not up to the mark.
RECOMMEDATIONS
The following price related strategies could be adopted, which may lead to a short term loss but a medium term break even and profit.
1) Increase awareness: Since there is lack in communication channel, it should be tackled with care and dealers should be constantly made aware about the offers and new plans through meetings with company executives at regular intervals.
2) Improve processes and techniques: In order to make recharge or activation process more transparent and user friendly, the EPRS technology needs to be upgraded consistently.
3) Give more value added services: Since Tata sky and Airtel have clear edge over value added services like free installation DTH needs to mend its strategy to face these competition. One way of doing this would be to offer at least the same service as these two competitors are trying to eat the market share.
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4) Improvement in after Sales Services: Arrange proper training for customer care executives as Dish TV lacks proper after sale service.
5) Standardized the price plans and avoid frequency changing Frequent changes in price and offers is proving no good for Dish TV as it is in way frustrates the customers with changes in offers without being informed about it. So Dish TV needs to watch out for this and should pre inform the customers about the offers and changes well in advance. This in a way, I feel would create more brand loyalty and preference.
6) Voucher Availability Make proper channel of Distribution of voucher.
7) Visibility Danglers create more impact on customer mind, it always visible and promote offer and help to recall brand resonance.
Also,
Free Set Top: Set top Boxes can be given free while ensuring lock in by providing base pack free for limited time duration, thus inducing update to next level.
Multiple Connections: Provide discounts for consumers buying second Tata Sky Connection (up to 50% off)
Encourage References: Provide discounts on Monthly charges if a reference from existing consumer becomes a new customer.
Payment Options: Allow multiple points of payment, ensuring timely payment and convenience to the customer Credit Card through Website, Pre Paid cards from Retail shops to be activated using Telephone and Drop Boxes at Societies
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Annexure
Questionnaire
Q 1 Do you watch the T.V.?
Yes No
Q 2 How frequently you watch the T.V.?
Regularly Rarely
Q.3 Which connection you are use for your entertainment?
Dish T.V Cable connection
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Door Darsan Internet
Any other _____________
Q.4 Which DTH connection do you have?
Tata Sky Big TV Sun Direct Dish TV Videocon D2H
Q.5 From which sources you comes to know about Tata Sky?
TV Holdings Relatives
Advertisement News papers
Q.6 Where did you obtain/ take the connection from?
Company Shop
Exclusive dealers
Vendor shop
Q.7 How long did it take for your card to get activated and function?
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02-06 hrs Not sure
06-12 hrs Above 24 hrs
12-24 hrs
Q.8 For what period you have used the Tata Sky service
Last 1 month Less then 12 month Last 6 to 12 month More than 12 month
Q.9 Rate the following parameter of Tata Sky to other Service
Provider?
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PERCENTAGE OF USERS
PARAMETERS VeryGood
Good Average Poor VeryPoor
Coverage
Value Added Services
Customer Services
Brand Image
Tariffs & Schemes
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Q.10. What’s the reasons for which you are not using Tata Sky?
Don’t want to change with regular service
Poor service
High price
Low signals
Additional facility provided by other operator High rent per month
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Bibliography
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_in_India http://www.indiandth.in/ www.sundirect.in/mediaDetails.php?mediaId=1 http://realinfo.info/index.php?topic=810.0;topicseen http://www.media-partners-asia.com/mpanews120809.asp http://www.mumbaispace.com/dth/airtel-dth.htm www.simplymalayalees.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=696 http://www.televisionpoint.com/news2009/
newsfullstory.phpiid=1252499760 http://www.coolavenues.com/mba-journal/marketing/outdoor-ooh-
changing-faceoutdoor- advertising-india http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Analysis-Of-The-Media-
Industry-In- India/995277 http://www.tatasky.com/why-tata-sky.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tata_Sky
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http://teck.in/dth-direct-to-home-tv-in-india-features-and-price-comparison.html
http://www.tatasky.com/why-tata-sky.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tata_Sky