News & Media

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has said that free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channel services are TV channel distribution services. It also mentions that the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) may issue a reference to provide conditions for service authorisation for FAST, emphasising that these services need to be brought into an authorisation framework. This comes as a part of TRAI’s recommendations on authorisation of broadcasting services under the Telecommunication Act, 2023. TRAI mentions that FAST channels are a new development and do not currently have a definition. The broadcasting industry considers it a form of streaming that delivers content similar to satellite, cable, or traditional TV. In simple terms, think of the TV channels that are a part of platforms like Airtel Xtreme, Tata Play or other such platforms. However, it is not limited to live TV and also includes free on-demand content that users can view on any device.

The ‘Guidelines for Uplinking and Downlinking of satellite TV channels in India, 2022’ issued by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), containing the terms and conditions for TV broadcasting services, make it mandatory for the broadcasters to use satellite medium for providing their channels to the distribution platform operators (DPOs). The advancement of technology has made it feasible for the broadcasters to provide their television channels to DPOs terrestrially also i.e. using terrestrial communication technologies like wireline (e.g. cable/fibre, etc.) or wireless (e.g. cellular/microwave/Wi-Fi, etc.)/internet/cloud.

The National Commission for Women (NCW) has written to Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw seeking regulatory measures to check obscene content available on various Over-the-Top (OTT) platforms and social media streaming sites, an official said on Monday. In her letter, NCW Chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar said obscene content can be easily accessed by people of all age groups that has increased the possibility of negative impact on society, particularly on women and children, NewKerala.com reported.

The government has directed cable operators of the country to carry on a mandatory basis additional TV channels as part of certain compliances under the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995. In an advisory to the cable operators, including MSOs, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said that the additional TV channels to be carried are DD Assam (General Entertainment Regional), DD Odia (General Entertainment Regional), Sansad TV-1 HD (News and Current Affairs, Lok Sabha), Sansad TV-1 (News and Current Affairs Lok Sabha), Sansad TV-2 HD (News and Current Affairs Rajya Sabha) and Sansad TV-2 (News and Current Affairs Rajya Sabha).

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) yesterday issued a notification amending the Cable Television Network Rules, 1994 (the Rules) to streamline the local cable operator (LCO) registration process. Effective from yesterday, the LCO registrations will be conducted entirely online with the MIB as the registering authority, the government said in an official statement yesterday in New Delhi.

With the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) tariff regulations coming into effect, select pay TV channels have confirmed leaving DD Free Dish, Storyboard18 has learnt. According to TRAI regulation, a pay TV channel must convert to free-to-air (FTA) if it is on a free TV platform such as DD Free Dish. This is a requirement of TRAI’s new tariff regulation, which was upheld by the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) in December 2024.

The cable industry has called on the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to enforce ad-free programming on pay TV channels, arguing that subscribers are subjected to advertisements for 2596-35% of viewing time despite paying for the service. According to sources in the industry, in this background, pay TV subscribers in India shell out, on average, as much as ^19 per month per channel (plus taxes) for most of the popular channels. Yet, their viewing experience is inundated with excessive advertisements.

The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) has refused to grant a stay to broadcasters challenging the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's (TRAI) tariff regulation related to pay channels on DD Free Dish, according to media reports. With the refusal, the tribunal has given the tribunal has given two weeks to the broadcasters to file a new Reference Interconnect Offer (RIO). The order in this regard was passed by a TDSAT bench, comprising Chairperson Justice D. N. Patel and member Subodh Kumar Gupta. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for February 6, 2025.

Regulating over-the-top (OTT) platforms comes under the purview of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, Union Minister for Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia said, adding that one of the six advisory groups that he had established, had flagged the issue, highlighting concerns from the perspective of telecom service providers (TSPs).

The Indian broadcasting industry has long been a cornerstone of the nation’s media landscape, evolving significantly from its humble beginnings with Doordarshan in 1959. Over the decades, the sector witnessed seismic shifts—first, the liberalisation wave of the 1990s, which introduced private broadcast and cable networks, followed by the DTH revolution in the early 2000s. Most recently, the meteoric rise of Over-The-Top (OTT) platforms is rapidly transforming how content is consumed. However, this rapid growth has exposed glaring regulatory gaps, creating an uneven playing field between traditional TV distribution and OTT services.