Kerala Fiber Optic Network Ltd (KFON), the Kerala government’s broadband Internet service, is set to introduce OTT packages for customers, as it touches the 1 lakh customers landmark. The number of below poverty line (BPL) families being provided free internet is currently at 11,000.
KFON managing director Santosh Babu told The Hindu that after a long-drawn-out tendering process, OTT aggregator Playbox has been chosen as the partner to roll out the various OTT platforms to the customers
“Currently, KFON is providing fibre and Wi-Fi internet services only. Adding more services will attract more customers. So, the plan is to provide a bouquet of services, of which the OTT packages will be a component. It will be offered as a separate package for KFON’s existing subscriber base,” he said.
KFON is also set to secure a Category A licence from the Department of Telecommunications, opening up the possibility of providing services in other States too.
“When banks or corporates which have their headquarters in other States call for tenders, most of them ask for ISP A licence as one of the requirements. We applied for the licence considering this requirement. As for starting operations outside the State, we would like to saturate the Kerala market before we enter other States,” said Mr. Babu.
Under the project, a total of 14,000 BPL households, spread across the 140 Assembly constituencies, were supposed to receive connections in the first phase. However, the service providers were either unable to locate the families due to insufficient address details or unable to register them due to technical issues in several cases. In some cases, the beneficiaries had done the registration in the name of their children, while there was spelling mismatch in the names in the official documents and the list provided from the local body. Without accurate details in the Customer Acquisition Form (CAF), the registration failed during the verification process.
To tide over this problem, KFON recently opened a portal for self-registration for BPL families (https://selfcare.kfon.co.in/ewsenq.php) using their ration card details. Those having pink and yellow cards can apply. The details are verified with the Civil Supplies department’s database.
After the opening of the portal, close to 5,000 more families have been provided free connections. KFON expects to provide connections to over 50,000 BPL families in the upcoming year when the State government’s allocation of ₹60 crore in the 2025 Budget is transferred to it.
Published – May 14, 2025 04:10 pm IST
