Bharti Airtel launches IPTV services in Delhi, Gurgaon, and Noida

India's largest private telecom giants Bharati Airtel have announced their entry into IPTV services today. According to Wikipedia, IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) is a system where a digital television service is delivered using Internet Protocol over a network infrastructure, which may include delivery by a broadband connection. A general definition of IPTV is television content that, instead of being delivered through traditional broadcast and cable formats, is received by the viewer through the technologies used for computer networks.

With download speeds of over 8 mbps, Airtel had earlier mentioned that they could cater to IPTV services in India. Airtel is said to have already tested IPTV services through its soft launch in some of the cities in India.

Airtel’s service called 'Triple Play', which offers landline telephone connection, broadband Internet and television with video-on-demand, became available TODAY.

“With the launch of Airtel digital TV interactive, we offer a single unified bill for voice, broadband and TV,” Bharti Airtel’s telemedia services president Atul Bindal said.

In its first phase of roll-out, Bharti's IPTV services will be made available in Delhi, Gurgaon, and Noida. The service will offer subscribers 3 key facilities:

• Interactive 2.0: This makes complete online transactions on TV possible, for example, users can purchase food and even movie tickets through IPTV.

• Time Shift TV: This transforms TV viewing into a two-way experience, allowing the viewer to pause and rewind live TV as well as auto-record and store favorite programmes for 7 days.

•  Movies on Demand: 100 blockbuster titles that can be accessed on demand by subscribers at any time.

Airtel digital TV interactive services are available in 2 entry packs:

• A. Magic@ Home Pack (Triple Play Plan) at Rs. 999 per month, which gives access to 135 channels, 256 kbps broadband speed with unlimited download, and a landline connection.

• B. Combo Pack (IPTV and Broadband Plan) at Rs. 599 per month, which gives access to 117 channels and 256 kbps broadband speed with a download limit of 2.5 GB.

 The service will be backed by 24x7 customer care, says the company.

Hope they make it available to the entire country very soon.