DishTV hikes price of set-top box by Rs.100

The country's leading direct-to-home (DTH) service provider DishTV Monday hiked the price of set-top boxes (STB) by Rs.100 each, passing on a rise in customs duty to customers.

Now the STBs will cost Rs.1,590.

"It was a necessary step due to increase in input cost as there has been an escalation in the cost of STBs due to 5 percent increase in customs duty on the import of STBs," said Salil Kapoor, chief operating officer of DishTV.

The government imposed a 5 percent customs duty on STBs in the union budget for 2009-10.

"The business model of DTH is based on subsidy and the component cost has also gone up considerably due to the rise in dollar exchange rate in the last one year," Kapoor added.

Dish TV to raise Rs 270 crore by selling 5.8 pc stake

Dish TV, leading DTH company, has said that its founders have sold 5.8 per cent stake in the company to raise Rs 270 crore.

The shares were sold at Rs 49 per share, Company sources said, adding that the raised amount will be used for getting hold of more customers for the next couple of years to face the high competition in the sector.

In May, the company had approved raising USD 200 million by foreign currency convertible bonds.

The shares in Dish TV today fell by 15 per cent, ending at Rs 45.50 at Bombay Stock Exchange, brokers said.