Mumbai: Tata Sky, the Satellite Television from Tata and Star, has launched Actve Sports service for cricket enthusiasts coinciding with the England-Pakistan one-day cricket series that commenced telecast on ESPN Star Sports, on August 30 and run on till September 10, 2006.

With its Actve Sports being an interactive channel, Tata Sky promises to revolutionise television viewing in India through the recall and play back function of portions that are of interest to individual viewers, and as Tata Sky says, "the superior digital quality picture and sound" that will be transmitted on the 12 Ku-Band leased transponders on ISRO''s INSA T 4A, considered the most advanced and high-powered KU-Band communication satellite in the region.

"Tata Sky will be a forerunner in providing customers with cutting edge technology and on-demand services," said Vikram Kaushik, managing director and CEO, Tata Sky, while announcing the launch in Mumbai. He added, "Actve Sports is a new milestone in Indian sports entertainment. It is a precursor to several new innovative services that we will be introducing shortly. For the first time in the history of television in India, enthusiasts will be able to enjoy interactive cricket through our Actve Sports service."

With its interactive features, cricket enthusiasts will no longer have to wait for the broadcasters to provide match highlights, player statistics or shots of the ball trajectory. These can all be accessed at the press of a button on the remote, at any point during the match. Additionally, viewers can receive the commentary in multiple languages, expert analysis and a 3-dimensional graphical representation of the match on Tata Sky''s virtual stadium. Initially these interactive elements are being on the sports and news channel.

R C Venkateish, managing director, ESPN Software India Pvt. Ltd said, " India is a nation that thrives on cricket. We are absolutely delighted to partner with Tata Sky to bring the unique interactive experience of watching live cricket on Actve Sports to millions of cricket fans across the country."

Earlier on 8 August, this year, Tata Sky launched its satellite television service across the country. Tata Sky says that it aims to become India''s largest entertainment platform by offering viewers a variety of programming choices and interactive features in DVD quality picture and CD quality sound. So far, Zee''s Dish TV has been the only satellite TV service provider in the country, offering 88 channels, 31 free to air. Kalanithi Maran''s Sun TV has also announced plans to enter the satellite TV segment.

Subscribers will be required to pay for the digicomp equipment costing Rs2,999 and Rs1,000 for a one time installation, activation and a 12-month warranty. Tata Sky will install the hardware and take responsibility for after-sales service. It will also retail its hardware and prepaid recharge vouchers costing Rs200 through a wide array of popular retail points in urban areas and in the rural areas through ITC''s e-Choupal.

Tata Sky is offering STAR, Sony, Discovery, Disney, MTV, NDTV, ESPN STAR Sports, National Geographic, Eenadu, TV Today, Asianet, among its package of 58 channels to start with. Talking to this reporter, Kaushik said, Tata Sky was already in talks with others to enhance the channel offering.

Tata Sky Ltd., an 80:20 JV between Tata and Star and ESPN STAR Sports is a 50:50 joint venture between two of the world''s leading cable and satellite broadcasters, ESPN Inc. and STAR.