Trai refuses bouquet system for CAS pricing

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has declined the request of broadcaster, Star India Private Ltd, to follow the bouquet system of pricing for TV channels while implementing CAS in the capital from January 1, 2007.

In response to Star India's petition before the Delhi High Court challenging the regulator's power to fix a ceiling of Rs 5 for every channel under the CAS scheme, Trai has filed a detailed affidavit stating that CAS has failed in Chennai and "by virtue of it being not sufficiently broad-based in terms of penetration, it cannot be adopted in other metros".