Mumbai (PTI): Cable and optical fibre manufacturer, Aksh Optifibre, has entered into a deal with state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL)for delivery of Interactive Personalised Television (IPTV) on its broadband network in the north Indian market.

As per the deal, the company needs to have 10,000 subscribers in the next nine months across 20 cities in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh (West) in north India, a press release stated here today.

BSNL has a total landline network of 40-million across India, and six-million in north India, which indicated the immense potential in the market for IPTV services, the release said.

The incremental cost for acquiring, creating content and subscribers is expected to be Rs 500 crore.

The project would be funded through resources raised from the international market, the release said .

In January, the company had concluded a global depository receipts (GDR) and foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCB) issue of USD 40-million to part finance the IPTV and Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services in Delhi and Mumbai, the release said.

Aksh-tel, Aksh Optifibre's IPTV delivers television programming, which comes with a high-quality reception and several unique add-on features.