There are a lot of questions people ask when they look for an IPTV service from BSNL. Being a regular user for more than two years, I’ll share my experience and answer the most common questions related to BSNL’s IPTV services in this blog.

What is BSNL IPTV?

BSNL provides the facility to watch TV channels via their fibre internet plans with the help of IPTV (stands for Internet Protocol Television) technology. They introduced IPTV services in Kerala on 27th August 2020, to deliver television content through fibre internet cables without data consumption and no set-top box. BSNL is providing IPTV service by collaborating with Cinesoft in Kochi.

Is IPTV cheaper than Cable?

In India, IPTV services are not cheaper than cable, because the charges are regulated by TRAI. BSNL operates their IPTV service, similar to the cable TV business model. You need to pay more when you add multiple devices for streaming. I’ve covered more about pricing-related information in this section.

I was one of the luckiest people who got an opportunity to be a part of the BSNL IPTV pilot program. During the initial days, the service was free for everyone (maybe for testing purposes). Later, they started charging for the service apart from the internet charges.

I’ve been using BSNL’s IPTV service for more than two years since its launch. Still, I’m satisfied with their service.

How to get IPTV services from BSNL as a new user?

BSNL IPTV will only work if you have a fibre internet connection (FTTH) from BSNL. So you need a BSNL Fibre internet connection to avail the IPTV services.

To get a BSNL fibre internet connection, you can either visit a BSNL office near your place or contact a franchisee operator in your local area. I’ll add my service provider details in the last section of this post. You can also apply online by visiting Bharat Fiber (FTTH) booking page.

Before proceeding to apply, I would suggest you review BSNL’s Fibre Internet Tariff to decide whether the plans are affordable to you.

How to get IPTV service for BSNL’s normal internet users?

IPTV is a feature that comes along with Fibre internet (FTTH) broadband connection. If you are using BSNL’s normal cable internet connection or by looping from your landline phone, then IPTV will not work for you. In that case, you need to get a fibre internet connection(FTTH).

With a fibre internet connection, your normal internet cables will be replaced with optic cables along with a new modem that supports IPTV services.

When I took an internet connection from Kochi, my operator (eNet Communications) provided a single-band modem, but later I came to know that they were providing dual-band modems too.

BSNL recommends using a Dual Band modem (2.4 GHz & 5 GHz) for better performance, but from my experience, I could say the IPTV services will work with single-band modems too.

How to get BSNL IPTV for existing Fibre Broadband users?

If you are already using a FTTH connection from BSNL, the procedures are easy to enable IPTV service on your connection. You can either register online or proceed offline by visiting your nearest BSNL office or contacting your franchisee operator to enable IPTV services for your connection.

How to register for BSNL IPTV Online?

Online registration is a recently announced service from BSNL. As of writing this blog, online registration is only available to customers from Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, who has a Bharat Fibre (FTTH) or Bharat Air Fibre internet connection.

Follow the below steps to apply for BSNL IPTV online.

1. Visit this link https://fms.bsnl.in/iptvreg to register for IPTV service
2. Select your state from the dropdown.
3. Enter your land phone number in this format (0484-1234567) and click on validate phone
4. An OTP will be sent to the mobile number linked to your internet connection.
5. Select IPTV Vendor & Choose Yes to Android TV / Android Box option
6. Check tick if you agree with the terms and conditions and then click Submit.
7. Now you will receive an SMS with a registration number.

Once you receive your customer ID, proceed to recharge with a basic plan to activate the IPTV services on your account. Please note that the IPTV customer ID will be different from your internet account number and land phone number.

Can we watch TV channels on BSNL fiber?

Yes. You can watch TV channels on BSNL fibre if you have Bharat Fibre or Air Fibre internet connection. You need to pay extra for the TV channels apart from the internet charges. An android app has to be installed on your TV to watch these channels over IPTV. I’ve added more details about how to check whether your device supports IPTV service.

Does BSNL IPTV use internet?

No. BSNL’s IPTV service will not consume your internet data for their television services, but you require an active internet Plan to watch IPTV channels on your TV. In short, if you only recharge IPTV it will not work. You need to recharge your broadband connection also.

You can also watch live TV like at the same time your browse the internet or have VOIP calls via the land phone connected to your modem.

How to check if my TV supports IPTV?

To watch channels over IPTV, you need to install an android app on your TV and connect it to the internet. For internet connectivity, your TV should have Wi-Fi or an ethernet port to plug the network cable.

If your TV is not an android device, then you can install the app to your Android-enabled set-top box or Amazon Firestick to access IPTV channels from it. You don’t need a separate normal-type set-top box to get IPTV service. All you need is a device to install their app.

Is BSNL IPTV free with an internet connection?

No. You need to pay extra charges every month to avail the IPTV service from BSNL. The billing cycle goes like this; if you recharge the IPTV on the 10th of this month, you can watch channels until the 10th of next month.

You can recharge BSNL IPTV through an online portal or by contacting your franchisee operator. The IPTV payment will not be included in your monthly internet bill. You have to recharge separately for the IPTV. So, the billing dates for the internet and IPTV will be on different dates as per your recharging pattern.

Bsnl IPTV Plans, Packages and Rates in Kerala.

BSNL offers various Plans for their IPTV service in Kerala. As the TRAI regulates the cable tariffs, there’s no point in expecting a reduction in the cost. However, you can expect the number of channels available in the free channels pack.

A minimum of 100 Standard Definition should given to the subscriber for a monthly payment of Rs.130+18% GST (153.40 Rupees including GST). However, the providers can decide to include more channels in the basic plan.

Source: Consumer Booklet – TRAI

Here are the IPTV Plans & Packages for Bharat Fiber (BSNL FTTH) Customers

Note: Add-On packages & Pay per View channels are not applicable to HD Starter Basic & HD Bonanza Basic IPTV plans.

The information mentioned in the above table is based on IPTV Plan detail available on the BSNL website, IPTV Payment Page and a list of Channels given by the Cinesoft team.

How to recharge BSNL IPTV?

To recharge your BSNL IPTV online, follow the below steps:

Step 1: Visit the online portal https://portal-bsnl.cinesoft.live/payment and enter your customer ID.

Step 2: Add a Basic package, choose the appropriate package name and device count as per your needs. It is mandatory to add BSNL FTA Basic in order to get channels on add-on packages.

If you want a group of channels, choose Add-on and select Pack 1 or Pack 2.

If you only want single channels other than free channels, you have to choose Pay per View.

If you’re choosing HD Starter Basic or HD Bonanza Basic, you don’t need to add any Add-On packages.

Step 3: Now click Proceed to payment and go through the payment process.

Personally, I purchase a Basic Plan & Flowers TV. The total cost for both will be ₹165.20

How to add channels in BSNL Fibre IPTV ?

Now you can watch channels on your TV. If you’re not getting channels even after recharging, try restarting your TV. It will work.

List of channels included in the BSNL IPTV connection

As on September 2022, BSNL’s IPTV Channel list includes 164 FTA Channels, 53 pay channels and 162 pay-per-view channels including HD channels.

Here’s the list of all channels available on the Basic Plan and Add-On packages in Kerala.

List of Malayalam channels available in BSNL IPTV [Updated on Sep 2022]

My review after using BSNL IPTV for 2+ years

It has been more than two years since I’m using BSNL’s IPTV service in my home. Live TV is accessible once you open the application installed from the Play store. The picture and sound quality are good. The user interface is good and easily operated by grandparents and children. As there is no set top box, you can control TV channels with TV remote itself.

A disadvantage I felt is that, they only notify us via email prior to the expiry date of the plan. Also, as of writing this blog, it is not possible to charge BSNL IPTV for a full year at once. You need to do the payment monthly. It is not possible to use this IPTV service like normal cable tv. Apart from the IPTV charges, you need to pay for the internet too.

For better performance, you need internet connectivity to stream channels. If there is no internet connectivity, you will not get tv channels too.

⚠️ Friendly warning: If something happens to your internet cable, your TV, WiFi and land phone will not work.

Is BSNL IPTV good?

Personally, I would say BSNL Fibre internet and IPTV service is good for me. However, to some extent, it depends on the quality of your vendor too.

In my locality, our vendor is providing good support to maintain the services and treating customers very politely. We also have a WhatsApp group to report issues related to the internet or IPTV.

The customer team will respond to those messages quickly and ensure the issue got resolved in the group itself.

If you’re living in Vytila, then you can contact my service provider eNet Communications (a BSNL authorised franchisee) to know more about latest plans, new connection procedure and feasibility to your area.

eNet Communications contact number: +919447667165

That’s all about it. I hope I covered most aspects related to BSNL IPTV service in Kerala. Feel free to leave a comment if I missed anything, or if you want to know more.