MUMBAI: It is teeing once again and it surely is good news for golf lovers and players. 24 hour Zeel group golf channel Ten Golf, will now be available in India on both DTH and cable TV as part of  high end packages. It is close to announcing deals with three DTH players and some MSOs. The channel which is available at an a la carte subscription fee of Rs 200 per month for subscribers will now see a significant shift in pricing on both DTH and cable TV.

The first among the three DTH operators is Airtel Digital TV which now has Ten Golf as part of its Ultra pack. “We are now a part of a package for which the DTH platform charges anywhere between Rs 400- Rs 500 a month," says Ten Sports CEO Rajesh Sethi. Close to half a million viewers on Airtel Digital have signed on to the service, he says.

There's a shift in pricing strategy on the anvil he reveals. “On 1 September we have made a filing with the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) for price revision. We are looking at a reduction in rates to both promote golf and make it available to larger viewership base,” says Sethi. "I am looking at reaching out to 1.4 million subscribers once we get on the high end offerings like magnum, platinum packs etc on the other two DTH platforms. This should happen by October,” informs Sethi.

Ten Golf was initially targeted at avid golf players, and hopes to address  aspirational golfers with its expansion in distribution and price lowering. “Aspirational golf players are mostly corporate executives and they are huge in number. Also Ten Golf today is seen as a lifestyle channel. People not only watch the channel for the sport, but also for the beautiful landscape it offers. All this called for a bigger reach and lower subscription fee,” he adds.

Sethi is also hopeful to get advertisers to use the channel as an advertising platform.   “The positioning will help us with more advertisers. The channel has its own unique niche value and there are partners and corporates who want to advertise.”

Ten Golf will in the next six to eight weeks be also clubbed together in high end packages offered by major MSOs like DEN, Hathway and Siticable, reveal industry sources.  “The subscription fee for the channel on the package provided by the MSOs will be much lower as compared to the DTH players. All this will take traction in next six to eight weeks,” informs Sethi.

Shall we say fore?