Conditional Access Systems:
Consumer Awareness and Channel Preference

Introduction

July 14th, 2003 would be a historical date in the Indian entertainment industry when Conditional Access System (CAS) would be implemented in a few metros. Much has been said in the media on the likely implications of the CAS implementation. In order to understand the viewers thinking, awareness and preferences, CyberMedia Research conducted a survey in Delhi, with the following objectives:

• To find the awareness level of consumers about Conditional Access System
• To understand the channels, households would subscribe to
• To find the preferred mode of purchase for set-top boxes
• To understand satisfaction and issues currently with the cable operators

A snapshot of the research is enclosed for ready reference.

Methodology

The dipstick survey was conducted in April-May 2003 in New Delhi targeting randomly selected 406 SEC A and B households; the Chief Wage Earner (CWE) or the Housewife being the target respondents. The sample was evenly distributed between SEC A and B and between CWE and Housewives. A structured questionnaire was used as a survey instrument. Table 1 below shows the sample spread of the survey:

Figure 1: Respondent Distribution

Base: 406 respondents

Consumer Awareness

Chief Wage Earners/ Housewives were asked if they were aware of the new system, which would enable them to select channels of their choice and also pay accordingly. Interestingly, the stated overall awareness was found to be a healthy 60%. However, the level of awareness drops sharply to just 22% on terms like Conditional Access Systems and set-top-boxes, implying that more needs to be done to enhance the level and quality of awareness.
As would be expected, the awareness level varied in different strata of the society and also by the type of respondent. Analyzed by SEC, awareness was found to be higher in SEC A followed by SEC B, while if analyzed by the respondent type, it was found to be higher amongst the CWE rather then housewives. The fact, that on an overall level, 40% respondents are still not aware and 78% are not sure about set-top-box indicates that much needs to be done in creating awareness on part of the government and broadcasters. Figure 2 below, shows the awareness about the CAS concept and about the set-top box by different categories of respondents:

Preferred Channels

The number of channels likely to be subscribed to, in the CAS regime by a household was found to be a function of the number of members in a family. Since majority of families in metros are nuclear with over 50% in the sample having 5 or less family members, 50% respondents stated that they would subscribe to just 5-7 pay channels while another 27% said that they would subscribe to 8-10 channels.
The respondents were asked for their preferred channels without the aid of any recall card to capture their top-of-the-mind recall as well as total unaided recall. They were then provided with a preference card that listed 54 channels and they were requested to choose channels. In this way, top-of-mind, total unaided and total preference (sum of unaided and aided preference), were captured in the study and analyzed.
Star Plus was found to have the highest top-of-mind as well as total preference, followed by Sony. Interestingly enough, the third most preferred channel is Aaj Tak. This indicates that the preference for news channels is increasing. Figure 3 shows Top-of-Mind and Total preference for top five channels.

The top three channels were from the stable of three different media houses. The government's decision of not allowing any media house to bundle channels would mean that revenue gains would be distributed over variety of media houses.

Perception On Current Cable Rental
Majority of the respondents perceive the current rent to be expensive. The current average monthly rent was found to be Rs. 233/-.

Base: 406 respondents

CyberMedia Research believes that the government's decision to implement CAS will redefine the industry, make it stronger and create further growth opportunities.