I am a master in India

Chapter 292 Solar Television
ATN’s broadcasting center is located in the Juhu district and occupies only a few acres, about 10,000 square meters.

On the roof of the six-story office building, a large number of extra-large pot lids were densely packed together.

From a distance, they look like newly sprouted white mushrooms, one after another, growing backwards.

Television signals are transmitted via these dish antennas to satellites above the equator, and then relayed to designated locations on Earth.

Zhuhu District doesn't have many high-rise buildings, has an open terrain, and Bollywood is nearby, making it a great location for a TV station.

Of course, cheap land prices were also a factor; Stava didn't have enough funds when he started the television station.

"This land, this building, and all sixty-five employees are yours from today onwards." He said this in a relaxed yet regretful tone.

“I’ll take good care of this place, I promise.” Ron shook his hand.

"Karuna, from now on you'll be working with Mr. Sue!" Stava waved his hand.

"Goodbye, sir!" A young man in his thirties raised his hand in response.

His name is Karuna. He was originally a Bollywood commercial producer, but was later recruited by Stava and joined ATN.

He was responsible for the daily operations of the television station, including broadcast times, program scheduling, content planning, and internal management.

“Mr. Sue, ATN is saved!” Karuna looked very happy.

"How so?" Ron looked around the small broadcasting base.

"Because you're here, everything will be alright."

“I can’t make satellites in the sky obey me,” Ron laughed.

"You are Mr. Suer, you can save everything." Karuna clasped his hands together, his face full of flattery.

A person's name, a tree's shadow—Ron's name has become a panacea in Mumbai.

We have money and manpower; there's no reason why we can't manage a small satellite!

Yes, that's what Karuna thinks.

"Let's check out the broadcasting center first," Ron chuckled.

He beckoned Mary and the others to follow, as the two were getting information from another key figure in the ATN—Zangief.

He was in charge of the English channel of the television station and was previously a freelance reporter for the Mumbai Express.

Sanjiv and Mary know each other, as do Karuna, though they're not that close.

We're all in the media industry, so we see each other all the time.

Although ATN has stopped broadcasting, there are still many employees moving around in the office building. Some are on the phone, while others are carrying scripts and hurrying to their offices.

The staff break room at the end of the corridor was filled with water storage tanks, all of which were used for water storage.

As soon as the water tank on the roof starts working, the cleaners will time it perfectly to fill the taps with water.

Unfortunately, Mumbai is facing a water shortage, with most areas receiving less than three hours of water per day.

There are always a few bottles of mineral water next to the coffee pot in the TV station's break room, in case the water supply is suddenly cut off and everyone has nothing to drink.

It's not just the water that's frequently shut down, but also the electricity.

Ron was standing right outside Karuna's office when he saw a handwritten power outage notice posted on the wall.

There was also a program schedule on the side, all of which were clearly marked.

This is not because ATN is too poor to pay its electricity bill, but because the Mumbai Municipal Corporation is issuing regional power outage notices.

Ironically, before 91, power outages in Mumbai were not that frequent.

At that time, apart from residential needs, there was little industrial electricity consumption.

Household appliances are mostly low-energy-consuming appliances like light bulbs and fans; there are very few air conditioners and washing machines.

However, after the economy was liberalized, electricity consumption surged, and all kinds of factories and fancy household appliances emerged one after another.

As a result, India's domestic power generation capacity has grown slowly, so power outages are commonplace.

The Mumbai municipal authorities publish daily notices in the newspapers announcing power outages in certain areas the following day, and in other areas the day after that.

Without electricity, nothing can be done; you can't make phone calls, fax machines won't work, and satellite signal transmitters will naturally stop working.

Even worse, power outages sometimes occur without any prior notice; they just stop abruptly, and you never know when the power will be restored.

To cope with such emergencies, ATN also has several diesel generators on the first floor.

Ron could smell the diesel fuel mixed in the air even while standing in the corridor.

Fortunately, the power supply for the Sur Industrial Park is directly transmitted from the Vasay River Dam in northern Mumbai; otherwise, it would be difficult to start construction stably.

“I’ll call the municipal company, and this street won’t have power outages anymore.” Ron winked, and Anil stepped forward and tore up the power outage notice.

"I told you, everything would be alright when Mr. Sue came!" Karuna shook her head happily.

Several employees who were gathered nearby were also overjoyed, as they no longer had to worry about the food in the refrigerator going bad.

“Let’s talk about the suspension of broadcasting first,” Ron and his team walked into the office and sat down on the sofa. “What’s the most urgent matter?”

“Satellites, and the copyright dispute with Zee TV,” Karuna replied.

"Copyright isn't that important; Zee TV can't do anything to us."

"Yes, but the newspapers have been talking about this lately, which might affect our reputation."

“I’ll work on that, but the satellite is the top priority. What are your thoughts?” Ron turned to Mary and the others.

“We checked that satellite agency, and they’ve had a lot of technical problems this year, supposedly due to orbital changes.”

Mary and her companions had special status, and were better informed about news from the Russian side than the average person.

“Then we’ll have to find another one.” Ron shrugged.

“Mr. Sue, ATN’s service with them hasn’t expired yet, and renting another transponder would cost a lot of money,” Karuna cautiously reminded them. “Without a stable satellite signal, how can a TV station grow? Mary, do you have any suggestions?”

“PanAmerican Satellite and Singapore Telecommunications can provide the services we need.” She handed over the documents she had prepared beforehand.

Since deciding to buy ATN, Mary and Lena have been gathering intelligence on the matter for the past month. They are very proactive and highly enthusiastic about their work.

Ron glanced around and roughly understood. Pan Am's PAS-4 satellite had just been launched in March of this year, and its signal could cover 87% of India.

Singapore Telecom is slightly weaker, only able to expand to 77% of the population's residential areas. Of course, you get what you pay for; the annual service fee in the US is quoted at $500 million, while in Singapore it's only a little over $300 million.

“Call Pan Am. We need to move our satellite channels there within a month.” Ron immediately chose the most expensive option.

“No problem, darling.” Lena smiled and wrote it down in her notebook.

Karuna and Sanjiv, who were standing nearby, were dumbfounded. Two hundred million rupees had been spent in just one sentence.

“Zee TV only has 81% audience reach, right?” Ron looked at them.

"Yes." The two were puzzled.

"Then I'll be the best, even better than them. I just want to be number one!"

"Understood." The two nodded hastily; this new boss was much more radical than Stava.

"Now that the hardware issues are resolved, let's talk about content. ATN has too few channels and the content is not rich enough, not even enough to support 24-hour broadcasting."

“Mr. Suer, we are working hard to prepare for the new program,” Karuna explained awkwardly.

"The speed isn't fast enough, and there's no professional team to coordinate things. Let me tell you my decision first: Sun TV, okay. We'll talk about the name change later."

In short, ATN will be renamed Sun TV and will have three channels. The English channel will continue its previous content, primarily targeting domestic elites and overseas users in neighboring countries.

The Hindi channel is divided into two parts. Sun TV is positioned as a comprehensive channel and is also the television station's flagship channel. It selects the most authoritative and high-quality content for news, dramas, variety shows, and major events.

Sun Video is a movie channel, primarily featuring Bollywood films, music, and entertainment news. These three channels must broadcast 24/7 within six months; I don't care how the content is sourced, it simply cannot stop.

Now it is 95 years later, and the effects of economic opening-up are beginning to show. Mumbai has become more prosperous to the naked eye.

Television sets are rapidly entering thousands of households, and the audience is expanding rapidly.

If it continues to develop at the same leisurely pace as before, how will it compete with Zee TV?

Karuna and Sanjiv looked at each other, hesitant to speak.

"Let's talk about the general channel first. Sanjiv, you're in charge of the news segment. Any questions?"

“Boss, intelligence is crucial for producing high-quality news, but the information we gather is usually inaccurate,” Sanjiv said, shrugging helplessly.

This is a staple of Indian media, and the news they publish is usually riddled with errors.

Indian journalists and editors also do not pay enough attention to the accuracy of facts. For the same car accident, 10 journalists will often write five or six versions of the casualties, making it difficult to tell which one is the most accurate.

Some even skip the investigation process altogether, relying entirely on their own imagination.

If Sun TV truly wants to become a flagship channel, then its news and current affairs must be of exceptional quality; relying on shoddy content will only lead to a rapid loss of its valued users.

“The Times of India will provide you with reliable intelligence from now on,” Ron said, resolving the issue with a single sentence.

"Huh?" Sangiev didn't understand.

“I know people, but you need to quickly build your own intelligence network. Especially your informants; you need to maintain long-term relationships with them.”

“With the help of the Times of India, our journalism will definitely be better than before.” Sanjiv suddenly felt confident.

"Let's talk about viewership. How many subscribers do we still have?"

"Due to the suspension of broadcasting, only five or six million viewers may remain," Karuna replied.

“That’s a bit too little.” Ron frowned slightly.

“We are working hard to resume broadcasting and try our best to salvage the users we have accumulated,” Karuna explained.

“Don’t worry too much, don’t forget what Suer TV does.” Ron chuckled.

The people in the office had a sudden realization: "That's right, Suhr televisions are now the national television in India!"

It has a huge user base, surely it can do something about it?

"We'll talk about the users later. Let's get the TV station up and running first. Mary, the drama series is in your hands now."

"No problem," she readily agreed.

TV dramas require much less investment than movies, and the filming period is also shorter.

Sun Entertainment could easily produce their own film; they have readily available actors and crew members.

If we're pressed for time, we can always buy a few already-made shows from Bollywood to tide us over.

"Karuna, you're in charge of the variety shows. I have a few ideas here, we'll talk about them later."

The film and television channel will initially use its existing stock of copyrighted movies, broadcasting 21 films per week, free for the first three months.

“Boss, ATN has its own cable TV network, and many users are already accustomed to paying for it,” Karuna said.

"Huh? Doesn't the TV station broadcast via satellite?"

"Yes, but Mr. Stava started out running a cable television network before switching to satellite television."

"So, you're saying we still have this network?"

“There are about 300,000 subscribers in Mumbai. During the ATN shutdown, the company was supported by cable TV subscription fees.”

"Show those Bollywood movies?"

"Yes, it saves trouble, no need to produce other programs."

"It seems the expansion behind the solar television will be faster than we imagined," Ron thought to himself.

(End of this chapter)