In May 2015, Sky Cable Corporation applied with the National Telecommunications Commission for the roll-out of its DBS service with plans of spending at least 252 million pesos for the purchase of equipment and working capital. On December 23, 2015, Sky Cable was granted a provisional authority by the NTC to operate and maintain a DBS service in 251 cities and municipalities for 18 months. Sky Cable plans to get 49,500 subscribers in the first year of operations and increase it to 864,600 subscribers in 10 years. NTC approved the application of Sky Cable to offer DBS services despite opposition from 14 companies from the cable and television industry. In January 2016, Sky Direct began the trial period for its prepaid service in three areas through authorized dealers in Metro Manila, province of Cavite and Quezon. Sky Direct had a soft launching on March 18, 2016 by releasing the television commercial advertisement with endorser Kris Aquino. The Sky Direct prepaid subscription package includes a satellite dish antenna, set top box and remote control. Sky Direct uses the DVB-S2digital television broadcast standard in the Ku band to provide standard definition and high definition TV broadcasts. For the conditional access, it uses the Verimatrix encryption system to scramble the data and protect its content from signal piracy. On May 24, 2016, Luxembourg-based satellite owner SES S.A. announced a multi-year, multi-transponder capacity agreement with Sky Cable, Sky Direct's parent, to broadcast DTH television channels via the SES-9 and New Skies NSS-11 satellites at 108.2 degrees East. SES-9 is expected to be operational middle of 2016.
Sky Direct broadcast
In December 2015, Sky Direct began its test broadcast using SES NSS-11 satellite. But in May 2016, Sky Direct moved its full broadcast using SES-9 Satellite.
The entry of Sky Direct in the DTH service was being opposed by various groups citing violation of the anti-monopoly law, including Cignal and its sister company TV5 Network under the PLDT group, Dream Satellite TV, and the Philippine Cable Television Association. In a filing with the NTC, PMSI said the DTH players in the Philippines are expected to continue incur losses due to tougher competition with the entry of Sky Cable. From 2009 to 2013, Cignal TV incurred an accumulated deficit of 5 billion pesos, Dream with 1.1 billion pesos, and GSat with 173 million pesos. In February 2016, TV5 Network, Inc formally filed a motion for reconsideration with the NTC asking the regulator to dismiss Sky Cable's application to offer DBS and reverse its order from December 2015 that allowed Sky Cable to offer both wired and wireless cable network services nationwide. TV5 argued that DBS or wireless cable service is beyond the scope of Sky Cable’s franchise and articles of incorporation. According to TV5, Sky Cable's amended articles of incorporation states that it can establish and operate a cable television which is wired in nature and not a wireless service like DBS. The regulator emphasized in its December 2015 order that DBS service is within the scope of Sky Cable's congressional franchise. On June 29, during the joint hearing by the House Franchises and Good Government committee, regarding on their operations of ABS-CBN TV Plus, Sky Direct and it's blocktime deal with AMCARA Broadcasting Network, the Federation of International Cable TV and Telecommunications Association of the Philippines, National Chairperson Estrellita Juliano Tamano has urged the to stop their operations, because of their expired franchise. After that, Telecommunications Commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba announced that Sky Direct will cease operations, despite their objections made by Rodante Marcoleta, which he asked him to resign as commissioner and Boying Remulla's threat to face graft charges before the Ombudsman against him.
