TRAI issued the consultation paper on 16 August.

MUMBAI: Major broadcaster Discovery Communications India has filed a petition against Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) recent consultation paper floated on 16 August. The broadcaster has prayed for quashing the consultation paper terming it “illegal and arbitrary”.

TRAI issued a consultation paper on tariff-related issues for broadcasting and cable services, seeking stakeholders’ responses to 27 questions which covered different aspects related to the new tariff order (NTO), which came into force from 1 February 2019.

The petition by Discovery also asks to prohibit TRAI from proceeding or taking any further steps pursuant to the paper without following the due process of law. According to sources, the petitioner has served a copy to TRAI on Wednesday and hopes to get a listing on Thursday, 29 August 2019, before the Delhi High Court.

Amid several ongoing speculations on the change in NTO, TRAI chairman RS Sharma recently clarified that the regulatory body does not have any plan to revise the pricing framework. He also added that it is only trying to fine-tune it due to certain issues consumers are facing.

Last time when FDI norms in media were relaxed was in November 2015

MUMBAI: As the cabinet government amended the foreign direct investment (FDI) policy, it has also given the nod to 26 per cent overseas investment in digital media with government approval.

"The extant FDI policy provides for 49 per cent FDI under approval route in up-linking of ''news & current affairs'' TV channels. It has been decided to permit 26 per cent FDI under government route for uploading/streaming of news and current affairs through digital media, on the lines of print media," an official statement said.

While the FDI policy has not touched digital media for a long time, the cap has been introduced along the lines of print media where 26 per cent FDI is allowed through government approval route.

“The scope of the impact will be determined by the wording of the provision in the FDI policy. News and current affairs are present on social media platforms, on digital platforms that are subsidiaries of foreign brands etc. How would you differentiate between TV channels which have 49 per cent and their online streams, which will effectively have 26 per cent?” Eros International group chief marketing officer Manav Sethi commented.

The previous time when FDI norms in media were relaxed was in November 2015 to attract overseas funds. The FDI limit in news channels and private FM radio was raised to 49 per cent,up from 26 per cent, while 100 per cent foreign investment was allowed in entertainment channels.

TRAI released the recommendations back in 2013

MUMBAI: In the face of rising dominance of certain multi system operators (MSOs) and local cable operators (LCOs) in several states, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) had released recommendations on “Monopoly/Market dominance in Cable TV services” back in 2013. The regulatory body was requested by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) to provide its recommendations on this issue. Presently, the recommendations have been considered by MIB.

Indian National Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari sought a response from MIB about status of the regulatory body’s recommendations, monopoly in cable TV services, reasons behind the government making recommendations to Competitions Commission of India (CCI)and whether this violated the TRAI act and also if the government agrees with TRAI on curbing monopolies.

One of the TRAI recommendations included Herfindahl– Hirschman Index (HHI) to be used for measuring the level of competition or market concentration in a relevant market. Tewari also asked if the government has an issue with the recommendation while MIB responded that it has also been considered by the committee.

Despite positive reports, a few industry connoisseurs feel the TV universe has gone down after the NTO regime. BestMediaInfo.com speaks to industry experts to clear the perception.

After the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI)’s new tariff regime (NTO) was implemented, speculation was rife on the future of the broadcast industry and the relevance of television as a medium in the consumer’s household.

But a recent IRS study conducted after its implementation shows TV homes have continued to rise. According to IRS 2019 Q2, TV homes registered a growth of 1.04% to reach 194 million against 192 million TV homes in IRS 2019 Q1.

The fact that India is still primarily a single TV household is a key factor behind the growth of TV homes. Even BARC’s Broadcast India (BI) 2018 survey had shown an increase of 7.65% growth in TV homes compared to B1 2016 data. According to BI 2018, there are 197 million TV homes over 183 million TV homes in B1 2016.

A TRAI report https://main.trai.gov.in/sites/default/files/PIR_10072019.pdf also says DTH players such as Tata Sky, Dish TV, Airtel Digital, Sun Direct and Reliance Digital TV recorded a growth of 2.8% in their subscriber base in the first quarter of 2019 compared to only 1% growth in the previous two quarters.

Despite the positive reports, some people, on the basis of reports by distribution platform operators (DPOs) given to broadcasters, are claiming that the TV universe has gone down after the new tariff regime.

BestMediaInfo.com spoke to a few experts to understand the claim.

An expert said the NTO offered consumers the right to choose the channels they want and as a result there was a fall in channel subscription but this doesn't mean a slump in the TV universe.

The future of platforms such as Quartz India, Huffington Post, Vice India, VCCircle, Dailyhunt and Bloomberg Quint that have raised substantial foreign investment or have 100% foreign ownership is unclear. The impact on OTT platforms is also not clear. The industry has sought more details from the government.

Announcing a regulatory framework for foreign investment in online media, the government on Wednesday allowed 26% foreign direct investment (FDI) in digital media platforms through government approval route.

Till now, there was no regulatory framework in place for foreign capital raised by digital media. Platforms and aggregators such as Quartz India, Huffington Post, Vice India, Dailyhunt, VCCircle, Bloomberg Quint among others have raised substantial foreign investment or have 100% foreign ownership.

After the decision, the future of news streaming services on social media platforms such as Facebook and Google is also not clear or whether foreign digital news websites that can be accessed in India will continue to be available or not. 

The government already has 49% FDI in place for broadcast content services and 26% for print (both through government approval route).

Mumbai: Global comedy superstar Russell Peters announced his return to his home and native land, India as part of his brand-new Deported World Tour. The Emmy®, Gemini® and Peabody® award-winning comic will perform his unique brand of humor in the home country once again. Peters’ new show features all-new material including plenty of Russell’s signature audience interactions.

Peters will perform in India at Supermoon, an IP launched by ZEE LIVE which promises to bring leading international entertainment acts from comedy, music, theatre and many more, to India. In its very first edition, Peters’ will perform in Bangalore on May 29 at Manpho Convention Centre, followed by one in Delhi on May 31 at Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, and shows in Mumbai on June 2 and 3 at NSCI Dome. Peters will also be recording the Mumbai shows for his new stand-up special, so these shows are not to be missed!

Peters said: “Going to India is always at the top of my list of favorite things to do… Going to India to perform is even higher on that list!!! I’m so excited about bringing my Deported World Tour back to MY motherland!!! This is my 30th year as a professional comedian and what better way to celebrate it than in the place that gave me parents, culture and an identity!! I can’t wait to see you all there and I sincerely hope you like what I’m bringing!!”

The Deported World Tour started in February 2018 in Perth, Australia and has been seen by over 300000 fans in 40 cities across 20 countries.

Swaroop Banerjee, COO, ZEE LIVE, said: “Supermoon is a dream project. We’ve curated this property with an ambition of bringing the magnificent talent from across the world closer to the fans in India. We want the Indian audiences to experience the larger than life performances which are fulfilling to the soul. I promise the audience will be enthralled with our upcoming events under the Supermoon flagship.”

He also added “In our very first edition, we are thrilled to bring the most celebrated comedian to India. A few years back, India’s comedy scene was dominated by Bollywood or established TV stars. Today, we see a new generation of comedians who are consistently churning out original content. With Supermoon, ZEE LIVE is supporting the growth of stand-up in India.”

Infotainment and English news genre were the other two gainers in week 34

MUMBAI: Youth genre became the top gainer in week 34 of Chrome Data Analytics and Media data. The genre grew by 0.59 per cent. In this genre, MTV channel gained the highest OTS with 86.3 per cent in HSM excluding less than 1 lakh markets.

OTS is the actual census-based.

DTH Operators have shared their views on TRAI’s consultation paper on the issue.

MUMBAI: DTH operators believe that there is no need to change the KYC process for set top boxes (STBs) as the current process is well-equipped to meet the requirements and the DTH industry is already adhering to a comprehensive KYC process, which has been working effectively till date.

The DTH operators have commented on TRAI’s consultation paper on ‘KYC and e-KYC of DTH Set Top Boxes’. Dish TV commented, “We are of the strong opinion that initial KYC done by the company is adequate enough and no further KYC is required thereafter.”

“Broadcasting of channels through DTH involves unidirectional communication only i.e. broadcast through satellites and does not involve any inherent risk or misuse by the customers. In view of the same, introducing any additional measures for KYC other than what is being currently followed, would only aggravate the financial stress on the industry and will consequently lead to higher prices for the consumer, without yielding any benefits,” Bharti Telemedia commented.

It further explained that during the provisioning of a new connection, a CAF is filled by the customer which captures details like registered telephone number of the subscriber, Name And Address for installation etc. These details are then entered into the systems. Only after these processes are completed, an engineer is assigned, who visits the customer premises for installation and demonstration. Thus, in any case, the present system already meets the KYC requirement of capturing the customer’s identity and address.

One of the objectives stated by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, in its reference to TRAI, is to stop the illegal smuggling of set top boxes to other countries. The operators believe that even this objective cannot be met by introducing additional KYC requirements.

MUMBAI: Odisha Television Ltd (OTL), the owner of Odia channels like OTV, Tarang, Tarang Music, and Prathana, has increased its net profit for FY19 to Rs. 9.16 crore compared to Rs. 8.31 crore in the previous fiscal.

The company posted an operating income of Rs. 122.74 crore compared to Rs. 104.28 crore in FY2018.

Advertising revenue grew by 20% in FY2019 on the back of an increase in advertising rates. Differentiated content, which resulted in higher viewership and in turn greater advertising demand, was the primary driver for the same. Ad revenue contributed approximately 77% to the company’s operating income in FY2019.

Subscription revenues, which accounted for around 23% of the company’s operating income in FY2019, continued to be supported by increasing digitisation, recording a 9% growth during the year.

ICRA has reaffirmed OTL’s credit rating while the outlook has been revised to Stable. The rated amount has been enhanced to Rs. 39.90 crore from Rs. 31.04 crore.

MUMBAI: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) new tariff order (NTO) offers freedom to customers to pick and choose channels and pay for only those channels that they want.

However, a recent report by KPMG notes that the pre-defined channel packs or bouquets are taking away some of the freedom that the NTO was intended to bring in. It further stated that the channel packs and bouquets are more economical than the higher-priced a-la-carte.

It is pertinent to note that the TRAI has issued a consultation paper to examine issues like heavy discounting on channel packs while keeping the a la carte price of popular channels closer to the price cap of Rs 19.

“As per the new TRAI regulation, the consumer has been granted complete freedom to choose what to watch and pay only for that. Yet, ultimately, subscribers are again being presented with pre-defined channel packs or bouquets, choosing which is significantly more economical than the relatively higher-priced a-la-carte channels, which in essence takes away some of the freedom that the NTO was intended to bring in,” KPMG said in its recent report on the M&E sector.

The report that the TRAI had recommended a 15% cap on the discounts that a broadcaster can offer on its bouquet of channels over the sum of MRP of all the pay channels in that bouquet. “This essentially meant that the price of bouquet would only become marginally lower than the sum of à la carte prices of driver channels. This would encourage subscriber choice through à la carte offering and also prevent skewed a-la-carte and bouquet pricing,” it stated.

With the TRAI choosing not to implement the 15% discount cap, the broadcasters continue to offer significant discounts on pricing of bouquets in comparison to the a-la-carte pricing of pay channels, a move which the report said is likely to compel subscribers to choose the channel bundles or bouquets offered by Distribution Platform Operators (DPOs) or broadcasters.

“The bouquet and a-la-carte pricing thus is being thought of in a manner, which makes it attractive for the customers to choose bouquets over the a-la-carte channels. This dilutes the core objective of consumer choice to a certain extent– with entities, especially the larger players in the value chain continuing to bundle channels as they did pre-NTO,” the KPMG report said.