April 18 2017: Last week,  digital security specialist Irdeto  and technology analyst Ovum,  shared results of a global study on trends  of TV distribution. Their conclusion:   the future of  the television set top box ( STB) lies  in the world's  dominant mobile phone operating system, Android.
The survey showed that  72% of all STB makers planned to build future boxes fueled by a version of Android.  Why? Because customers are so used to downloading Android apps on their phones, they demand the same ease  on their  Net-connected 'Smart' TVs -- to access   Hotstar, Netflix, Voot or YouTube.   Android TV has come and is here to stay.  India is  seeing a flurry of announcements pitched around Android-driven television services.
After Netflix launched an Indian avatar  a year ago --  Amazon Prime four months ago --  satellite dish operators , may have felt a bit threatened. Airtel  seems to have decided: If you can't fight 'em, join 'em.  Last week it launched  Internet TV for homes, with a hybrid DTH box powered by Android. It comes preloaded with Netflix, YouTube, Google Play Games,  its own  movie channel  plus easy access to the Google Play Store. The STB  has a built-in WiFi receiver, so all you need is to link wirelessly  to your home  broadband router.  In effect, it transforms any TV into a smart TV, ready, for  4K/Ultra HD content. There is also Bluetooth which is handy for  connecting the remote and  also  using Google's voice search feature to  speak-and-select the  channels of your choice.
However be warned that  watching Internet TV is not quite as simple as watching  dish TV channels:  Your home WiFi must provide a data speed of  4-5 MBPS at the least -- otherwise you will be plagued with  frozen screens. Videocon already has  a WiFi-driven STB. Other DTH operators  may  go the Android route in 2017.