Dish TV and D2h on Friday removed the 30 days lock-in period that the operators placed on several bouquets including the free-to-air (FTA) packs and broadcaster packs. Additionally, the operator also removed the 30 days lock-in period on a-la-carte channels. However, the 30 days lock-in period continues to be enforced on the custom curated packs of Dish TV and D2h. It has to be noted that Dish TV removed the lock-in period for its channels and add-on packs in early 2019, however, the operator re-introduced the lock-in period by mid-2019.
Dish TV and D2h Removes Lock-in Period on Several Bouquets
The lock-in period prevents users from removing the individual channels or bouquets before the stipulated time period. As of press time on Friday, the 30 days lock-in period is currently not enforced on the broadcaster bouquets and Basic Service Tier (BST) packs of Dish TV and D2h. The broadcaster packs include Sony Happy India, Zee Prime Pack and Colors Hindi packs that are available for subscription on both Dish TV and D2h. Similarly, the 30 days lock-in period is also not applied on the BST packs consisting of FTA channels on both Dish TV and D2h. The removal of lock-in period on the BST and broadcaster bouquets will aid subscribers in saving money as the user can drop channels and bouquets as per their needs. Dish TV and D2h currently enforce a 30 days lock-in period on its custom curated add-on packs that serves the “specific entertainment needs” of a user. Several custom curated packs including the Best of Tamil, Best of Marathi and Best of Bengali packs on D2h currently have a 30 days lock-in period. Under the lock-in period, the operator does not enable the user to drop or modify the packs.
Tata Sky Enforces One Day Lock-in Period
The lock-in period usually varies with the Direct-to-Home (DTH) operator with Airtel Digital TV and Sun Direct having a zero day lock-in period while Tata Sky specifies a one day lock-in period. It has to be noted that the users will be charged for one day even in case of zero day lock-in period. However, the users of Airtel and Sun Direct can drop the channels only on the following day of the user subscribing to a pack.
