MUMBAI: The price war on the HD front has begun. Soon after Tata Sky announced its aggressive entry pricing, market leader Dish TV has dropped the cost of its Tru HD box from Rs 5,990, when launched, to Rs 2,990.

Dish TV’s package includes the price of the set-top box (STB), LNB, Dish antenna and remote. The company is also offering two months subscription of Platinum/South Platinum Pack and two months subscription of HD Pack. Customers will have to pay an extra amount of Rs 200 for installation.
  
Direct-to-home (DTH) operators sense they can expand their up-end customers through their HD service offerings. Tata Sky had set the ball rolling with the launch of its High Definition (HD) service at a price of Rs 2,599.

Sun Direct is offering the HD set-top-box bundled with subscription package at Rs 9990, while Big TV‘s service comes at Rs 7,490 (HD with DVR technology).

On the content front, Dish TV’s HD pack includes Zee TV HD, Zee Cinema HD, Discovery HD and National Geographic HD. ESPN Star Sports has also extended its HD feed for the football World Cup and Wimbledon to Dish TV, Tata Sky and Airtel Digital TV.  
 
Indiantelevision.com had earlier predicted that DTH operators would start a cut-throat price war on the HD front.

The competition in the DTH sector is going to be fierce this year as the market is set for rapid expansion. DTH operators expect to add 11 million subscribers in FY’11 due to a spate of sporting events, the peak for any year.