The Tatas and Star will together apply for permission to begin DTH services early next week, having inked the Rs 300 crore (Rs 3 billion) joint venture in which the Indian corporate house will hold 80 per cent stake.

The duo has appointed investment banker Merrill Lynch as the financial advisor for this deal, sources said in Mumbai on Wednesday.

After the government rejected Star company Space TV's application for DTH late last year, the Rupert Murdoch-owned media group had been scouting for an Indian partner to offload majority 80 per cent stake.

The joint venture between Tata Sons and Star TV, a Rupert Murdoch-controlled company, would be the third entity to enter the DTH arena after Prasar Bharti and Subhash Chandra's ASC Enterprises.

Neither Star CEO Peter Mukerjea nor Tata Group officials could be contacted for comments.

Designed for around 100 channels, Star claims to be putting in place state-of-the-art technology to run its DTH services targeting metros initially and later other cities.

The dish and set-top box required for Star's DTH may cost around Rs 5,000 and the monthly subscription could be around Rs 300-400.