The demand for making sports channels available to DTH operators at 50 % of the rates has been accepted by sports broadcaster ESPN Software India. The demand was made by the Telecom Regulatory of India (TRAI). Earlier, ESPN had been dragged to the court by the TRAI for not complying with its directives. The Delhi High Court had stayed criminal proceedings against ESPN for not adhering to the TRAI's direction related to channel pricing for the DTH service. As result of which, the sports broadcaster assured to make its channels accessible to DTH operators within three days.

 

Apart from it, ESPN also agreed to submit a fresh reference-interconnect-offer (RIO) to TRAI. The row between ESPN and TRAI began when the former declined to comply with regulator's order. TRAI accused ESPN that it has deviated from mandated rates that should be charged from carriage platforms like DTH operators. ESPN's repeated non-compliance had forced TRAI to issue a show cause notice to the sports broadcaster.

 

Earlier, ESPN had pleaded TRAI to make it mandatory for DTH operators to take all three channels it broadcasts - Star Sports, ESPN and Star Cricket - as part of its basic offering. TRAI declined broadcaster's offer and order it to modify things within 15 days. The regulatory body directed ESPN to provide DTH service providers the same bouquet which is being offered to non-CAS cable operators.