NEW DELHI: NDTV today announced the launch of the `opt-out’ technology in Kolkata starting with Durga Puja and the onset of the festival season.

This initiative will enable the viewers of Kolkata to watch region-specific news and special programmes on NDTV 24x7. With this launch, Kolkata becomes the fourth location to have the opt-out technology, according to an official statement from NDTV.

Earlier this year, NDTV had launched the opt-out technology for its viewers in the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka.

The viewers of Kolkata will be able to watch the 30 minutes `opt-out’ programming at 10.30 pm everyday, which started on 25 September and will last till 2 October.

The new technology will enable viewers in Kolkata to watch special programmes, catering to the taste of local viewership during this festive season.

Opt-out works on a technology, which is an innovative step in the broadcasting system. The process involves automatic satellite transmission without any manual intervention.

There are individual boxes that are programmed to receive and switch frequency at the desired time to opt-out of the regular feed and again switch back to the main feed when the opt-out is over, with a two second changeover interval between the switch.

NDTV plans to expand its coverage for the `opt out’ service to other states also in the near future and this will be executed for all its three channels, NDTV 24X7, NDTV Profit and NDTV India.