The X Service

Developed by Valuable Group,of UFO Moviez the worlds largest digital satellite cinema network,Club X is an exclusive service that through satellite transmission powered by Gurgaon-based Hughes Communications provider of broadband satellite networks and services gives its members first-day,first-show access to films.

Whats unique,however,is that contrary to usual screening procedures,these films are brought directly to the members private theatres at home. Using a piece of equipment called the CineBlaster2,these new releases are transmitted directly to privileged homes.

But privileged here does not mean just anyone who has the ability to afford the service. Entry to Club X can be gained in only one of two ways by invitation or by referral from an existing member. Ameya Hete,executive director of Valuable Group,explains,Club X is a very niche service targeted towards the ultra-elite around the country celebrities,sportspeople,politicians. These people often wish to watch films when they are released,but may not be able to for many reasons,including security concerns.

So once an individual has been invited and subsequently inducted into the Club X family,he or she is assigned a dedicated Relationship Manager who then oversees the installation of the service. But before the installation is carried out,a site survey is conducted to determine whether the infrastructure,in terms of the home theatre system,suffices the service. We are very particular about delivering the service, says Hete. Before we authorise the installation,we go to every single location and check the infrastructure. We absolutely do not deliver it to televisions.

One may wonder whether such stringent regulations are necessary when the aim is to merely watch a film. But Hete insists that a theatre screen with appropriate speakers and sound quality are the only way to enjoy these high-quality,high-definition films.

The target audience he speaks of includes a host of well known actors,sportspeople and business men.

The delivery of the movies from the central datacenter to various locations happens on a store-and-forward basis through locations in the Valuable Media network. To make this happen,there is a fibre optic connectivity between the Valuable Media data centre and the Hughes uplink station. From the earth-station,the data-casting happens on high-speed satellite links in a secure IP multicast method.

From a producers point of view,the service is profitable as well. A producer may,through a members relationship manager,invite a member to watch new releases and get a cut from each screening. The member is charged individually each time he or she watches the film,and each film often ends up being watched a number of times in each house,Hete says. Priced at Rs 15,000 per screening,it is apparent that such privileges dont come cheap.

If any part of the movie file gets lost during transmission,it gets retransmitted by the datacast application. The end user must only keep his/her network and router on to receive movie files. The receiving location could be anywhere in India and there is no need to have a DSL broadband internet connection.

Club X also has the ability to screen 3D films,provided the home theatre has the infrastructure to support it. Haunted,for instance,the first mainstream Bollywood film to be made and released in 3D,was also ordered in 3D by a number of members of the service.

Launched in January this year,Club X has only transmitted Bollywood films so far,but Hete says they intend to begin transmitting Hollywood films in the coming months. However,unlike Bollywood films that are sent to members homes on the day of release and sometimes even before Hollywood films might take a day or two longer to be transferred to their servers.