One of the satellite radio set models

Tired of inane DJ chatter and commercials cutting midway into the songs on FM? Satellite radio could help you rediscover your faith in the sound.

With the launch of WorldSpace Satellite Radio in Calcutta on Thursday, music-lovers can now tune in to over 40 radio stations beamed in crystal-clear sound quality with genres ranging from Bollywood to Bengali and Western Classical to Rock ?n? Roll.

The radio sets are priced between Rs 1,999 and Rs 8,100, while the annual subscription is Rs 1,800.

Diva, the basic model at Rs 1,990, includes a bundled subscription for three months.

?WorldSpace is trying to open up the satellite radio market in India, which has great potential,? said Arti Mehta, chief marketing officer of WorldSpace India. The service, according to the company, reaches around ?63 million? people in India.

Calcutta is the 10th city in the country where WorldSpace has officially launched its service. By the end of this year, the number is set to double, with a focus on the ?A and B-category cities?.

Around ?six million? consumers in Calcutta fall into the company?s ?target listener base?. City-based Tara Radio is the only Bengali station available on the platform currently.

?Our two most popular stations are Jhankaar and Farishta, playing Bollywood hits and old Hindi music,? said Mehta.

Other offerings include regional fare in Malayalam, Tamil and Punjabi, country, jazz and rock music and news stations like BBC and CNN.

The station count is also set to go up to 50 by the year-end, with more regional flavour and a talk channel.

This is WorldSpace?s second attempt at introducing satellite radio in India. The previous effort, a few years ago, had failed. There were no takers. ?We had started with a free-to-air service but this time it?s a subscription model,? points out Mehta. ?We?ll also launch aggressively wherever consumers want us to.?

The company is tying up with consumer electronics stores and music stores in the city where interested buyers can sample the music at ?listening posts?.