Reliance BIG TV Review

Welcome to BIG (BUG) TV, India’s Best (Worst) DTH Service Provider!

The DTH war among BIG companies is up in India. There are already half dozen players on the market and soon there would be more. While the competition made DTH affordable for consumers, about 50% DTH users are completely dissatisfied. The reason is all the companies are competing with each other by providing WORST possible service quality and pathetic customer care.

India’s most trusted companies like TATA and Reliance have been losing their reputation by selling cheap, imported China made TOYS in the name of “Latest & Greatest Technology”. (Think about Reliance and TATA’s mobile phones, and Internet service)

In the past I used both companies’ mobiles phones, Wireless Land-line, Internet data card and USB internet modem and thrown those useless toys to dustbin and promised myself NOT to buy anymore toys from these two companies. So when TATA in association with UK’s Sky tech started their DTH service in India in the name of Tata-Sky I didn’t go for it besides getting plenty of special offers from Credit card companies…and I’m glad that I didn’t buy TATA-Sky.

But I had to buy Reliance BIG TV when my wife fell into BIG TV’s BUZZ & Hype…after all, just pay Rs 2,200 and get one year subscription free…more than 150 channels. I’m paying Rs.200 to local cable service provider just for 80 channels. So BIG TV launch was undeniable offer.

As a result, on 10th September 2008 I bought BIG TV though I was little skeptical. Initially BIG TV had installation problems due to huge demand and it was acceptable. So I had to wait for 20 days before my BIG TV got installed and had to make countless calls to customer care jokers.
BIG TV finally got installed!

And I was told by the installation guy that I should wait up to 24 hours for my account to get activated. He asked me to keep my Set-up-box switched on for 24 hours and left… I anxiously waited for 24 hours…nothing happened…48 hours …nothing…1 week…2 week…1 month…

It’s been 2 months since I’ve bought BIG TV and still my account is not at all activated! During this period I made countless calls to BIG TV’s illiterate morons called customer care executives who just don’t know what they are talking about!

(See the picture above; my account is not activated. Though I’ve subscribed it’s asking me to subscribe again!)

Around 20 days back I called CC and finally warned them that I’d go for Airtel DTH. But CC guy begged me NOT buy Airtel DTH and promised me that my BIG TV would get activated within 24 hours -101% sure. He also told me that there is no problem from Reliance end, he blamed and scolded their IPO. Nevertheless, I waited another week and finally bought Airtel DTH which was installed and activated in less than 3 hours after I bought (though I was told that it would take upto 3 days)

Well, that’s my case. I’ve observed lots of interesting facts about Big TV in my area.

My apartment house has 16 flats. While most of the houses are using local cable operator’s service, there were 3 Dish TV’s, 1 Tata-Sky and 1- Sun TV. When BIG TV was launched 2 Dish TV and 1 Tata-Sky customer bought BIG TV. So BIG TV managed to hijack their competitors’ customers. In my opinion both DISH-TV and Tata-Sky lost at least 30-40% customers to BIG TV through-out in India.

But here is the shocking NEWS.

In my apartment alone BIG TV lost 2 out of their 3 customers to Airtel DTH in less than 2 months! Within a year BIG TV would lose 50% of their customers to Airtel unless they improve their services incredibly, which I doubt. (Because Airtel has millions of satisfied customers though it is little expensive) If there is a company in India, other than Maruti Udyog Ltd, committed to great customer experience then it’s Bharti-Airtel. (I’m talking about Indian Companies- Not foreign companies like “Vodafone”)

Of course, to reduce cost Airtel too outsourced their customer care department to some third-class company which they must improve. Currently Airtel DTH’s CC is no better than Reliance, TATA or Dissh-TV’s CC. The difference is Airtel’s CC executives are reasonably well trained and their technical department is being handled by their own staff.

I’m really wondering how long TATA and Reliance would sustain if they continue to provide WORST services. (Both companies have already started selling another useless CRAP called Wi-Max broadband internet) They Bribe politicians and get favorable policy; they bribe both print and TV media and make sure that negative comments about them are not published. They are spending so much money for acquiring a customer…but doing nothing to retain them. How long this strategy will work?

Just now my wife put down BIG TV STB and Remote to dustbin and asked me to throw it away! (See the pic) I’ll sell both Big TV Dish and STB to local scrap collector and keep the cable with me. That 20 meter cable is worth at least Rs 500. Because, Reliance would never refund your money.

In 2004 I returned their useless Wireless Land line and asked them to refund my security deposit. They collected the phone and told me that I’d get a cheque from them within 3 months…it’s been 4 years and I still haven’t received my refund…WOW. So, if your Reliance toys are not working don’t return it to company. Because you won’t get refunded; instead sell them to scrap collector and make few bucks.

Now Reliance partnered with Microsoft to offer IPTV. I’m sure that Reliance would use and heavily abuse Microsoft’s brand name to fool millions of Indian techies.

Feel free to share your experience with BIG TV