Airtel DTH arm to stop STB imports by 2021-end; begins production in Noida

Bharti Airtel’s direct-to-home (DTH) arm plans to stop imports of high-definition set top boxes (STBs) by the end of this year, having started domestic manufacturing of the devices in Noida in partnership with Skyworth Electronics.

Airtel Digital TV has stopped issuing new import orders for STBs but will continue to see some shipments coming in under existing orders, which will end by December. Thus, by the end of 2021, it will transition completely to made-in-India STBs, including the high-end Airtel Xstream 4K Android TV Box. The Airtel Xstream Android 4K TV Box allows customers to access linear TV and OTT content.