Government to offer 4,000 plus free movies with internet to attract users in remote areas

To attract first time internet users in remote areas, Common service centres (CSCs), or digital kiosks, are planning to offer a catalogue of more than 4,000 movies and other entertainment content to users.

As per news source, it is a mandate given to CSCs that it should offer last-mile internet connectivity through BharatNet to homes, through a system of pre-paid monthly coupons. These services can be either through Wi-Fi or direct-to-home fibre.

“Movies and entertainment seem to be a good proposition to get people to pay for the internet for the first time,” said a senior government official.

The official also said that consumers who buy the internet coupons will get free movies and entertainment content initially. “It’s a strategy to make people get a taste of internet before driving more use cases,” the official said.

Recently, Union Minister for Electronics and IT Ravi Shankar Prasad said that internet services offered by all CSCs will be free till March 2020.

Government’s high-speed broadband network, BharatNet is presently active in 125,000 gram panchayats and will cover a total of 250,000 locations in its second phase. The coupons will be priced differently for different regions and will be under Rs 500 per month after CSCs start charging for it.

CSCs have partnered with Zee-owned SugarBox Networks for the initiative, which will be run as a pilot in 100 locations and will be implemented by next month.

The Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY)-run CSCs have a network of over 360,000 centres across the country. The official said in many remote regions, private broadband services are not available and 4G mobile connectivity is patchy.

High speed broadband through BharatNet – which will enable fast streaming or downloads -- will give CSCs the edge over private players who may be offering mobile services in those areas.

RailTel has also chosen SugarBox to provide content on demand (CoD) services for the Indian Railways on trains and railway stations across the country.

The project is expected to be completed by 2022 and will be implemented in trains pan-India, including suburban rail networks.