Cable operator eyes Orissa telecom pie

A cable operator offering you a landline connection at rock-bottom tariffs, where you don't pay for calls within the network, and fork out only a fixed monthly bill to call friends on other networks?

Sounds too good to be true? Well, Orissa-based Ortel Communications, which operates cable TV services in nine cities, is amongst the first cable companies in the country to apply for a licence to offer telecom services in the state.

The move is significant as cable companies are facing tough competition from direct to home technology, which offers cheaper tariffs, and need to offer value-added services (besides cable TV) to battle it out.

Jaggi Panda, managing director of Ortel Communications, pointed out: "We already offer cable TV, as well as broadband; now, we will offer telephony using the same infrastructure, but at much cheaper tariffs than what telecom companies offer. The reason is simple; our revenue streams come from cable TV and broadband."

The strategy was not to make money from voice telephony services, only to offer it as an add-on to the bouquet. The fee for an Orissa licence was Rs 5 crore, he added.

Customers within the Ortel network will not have to pay for voice calls. For calls outside the network, the operator will recover only the interconnect charges, which it pays to other operators, from customers.

So, the tariffs will be far lower than what BSNL or other telcos charge. That is why the company is also thinking of offering calls outside the network at a flat monthly charge.

Ortel runs services in nine cities, including Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Puri, Balasore, and Sambalpur. It has over 2 lakh cable subscribers.

The company has laid fibre optic backbone in the nine cities, with coaxial cable last-mile connectivity. It is also trying out Wimax as an alternative to reach the last mile to its customers.