News Broadcasting
Malayalam channel Indiavision gets earth station
MUMBAI: The long-in-gestation Malayalam satellite TV Indiavision is gearing up to launch its earth station on 3 January. The ribbon cutting will take place at the hands of film star turned politician and Union minister of state for health, Vinod Khanna.
Promoted by its chairman MK Muneerr, who is also the leader of the state wing of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), the channel was first expected to launch in 2001 but has since been delayed. The company had announced partnership deals with Sony Entertainment then.
A note sent out by Indiavision resident director Jamal Farooquee to indiantelevision.com, says that Indiavision should launch “anytime now” with the flagging off of the earth station.
According the Faqoouee, the earth station, situated at Tutu’s Tower on the bye pass road, cost about Rs. 27.5 million to build. “Though it can uplink two channels for now, it will be possible to uplink many more channels with a potential to earn revenue due to its strategic location in Kochi – the Information Gateway of India,” he adds. “Also, Indiavision shall have the unique distinction of being the first private television channel in India to launch from its own earth station.”
A function to mark the occassion of the inauguration of the work station is to be held at the Le Meridian Convention Centre, Maradu, Ernakulam, at 7.30 pm on 3 January.
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI:Â Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
