The Subhash Chandra-promoted direct to home television broadcasting venture Dish TV has signed a deal with ESPN Star Sports for carriage of the sports channels on its platform.
 
According to sources, the deal was signed last week. Dish TV has been in discussion with various broadcasters to bring them on board as well as to enhance the channel offering on the DTH platform.

Both Dish TV executives as well as ESPN Star Sports executives confirmed the move. However, details such as the subscription channels for the sports channel as well as deal details are not known.

ASC Enterprises, India's first direct-to-home television broadcaster, is targeting 1.5 million subscribers for its DTH service by December 2004. Dish TV was launched on October 2 and had logged about 15,000 subscribers within the first two weeks of its launch.

Sources also said that the company is in talks with other broadcasters to get their channels on its DTH platform. "We want to add additional content to our platform. We are adding new channels on our own as well as in negotiation with other broadcasters to bring them with us," said a source.

Value-added services such as video games, personal video recorder, pay-per-view, near video-on-demand, are also being offered by Dish TV. The company is also launching five international channels exclusively on its DTH platform.

The DTH service offers old Hindi movie channel Golden Cinema, comedy channel Smile TV, action movie channel Action Cinema and English action films channel FX channel. These channels will be available over an above the basic bouquet that is presently being offered for Rs 100 plus tax as an introductory offer.

The DTH service also offers general entertainment channels such as Zee TV, SABe TV, Sahara Manoranjan, DD National, DD Metro, Zee News, Aaj Tak, Sahara Samay, NDTV India, Headlines Today, NDTV 24X7, CNN, BBC, CNBC, Alpha channels from Zee bouquet, ETC Punjabi, DD Regional, Asianet, Maa, Jaya TV, Zee Cinema, DD Sports, Ten Sports, Trendz TV, ZEE Music, ETC Music, MTV, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon and Splash TV, Zee English, Reality TV, Care TV and Zee MGM.