TDSAT adjourns WAVES case to October 28 after 66 broadcasters seek time

MUMBAI: The WAVES case has hit another pause button, but the dispute is far from over. The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) on Monday adjourned the matter challenging Prasar Bharati’s WAVES platform to October 28, with the hearing largely turning on whether all 66 newly impleaded broadcasters had been properly served with the petition and related documents.

The matter was heard by TDSAT Member Dr Sanjeev Banzal, while Chairperson Justice D.N. Patel was on leave.

The All India Digital Cable Federation (AIDCF), which filed the petition, told the tribunal that copies of the amended memo of parties, the tribunal’s order and the petition had already been emailed to the broadcasters. Its counsel referred to an affidavit of service filed before TDSAT and said the documents could be sent again to any broadcaster that had not received them.

That assurance came after lawyers representing some of the newly added respondents said they had not received copies of the petition and needed more time to obtain instructions before filing their replies.

The sheer number of respondents also created a coordination problem. Counsel pointed out that several of the 66 broadcasters are smaller entities and are not members of industry bodies such as the Indian Broadcasting and Digital Foundation (IBDF) or the News Broadcasters & Digital Association (NBDA).

Dr Banzal suggested that the broadcasters could consider appointing a coordinator to streamline communication and help organise their responses.

Broadcasters’ counsel sought time to understand the proceedings and the reliefs sought by AIDCF before responding.

The 66 broadcasters were impleaded earlier after AIDCF argued that channels being streamed on WAVES made their respective broadcasters necessary parties to the case. TDSAT had noted that the reliefs sought by the cable operators’ federation could affect the rights and interests of broadcasters whose channels were already available on the platform.

The NBDA also sought to file an intervention application during Monday’s hearing. The tribunal indicated that a separate permission was not required and that the application could be filed before the registry.

Meanwhile, AIDCF pushed for an early hearing, arguing that the continued availability of private broadcasters’ channels on WAVES was directly connected to the reliefs sought in its petition.

At the heart of the dispute is Prasar Bharati’s decision to distribute private television channels through WAVES, its digital platform. AIDCF has challenged the move, arguing that putting linear television channels on an OTT platform could disrupt the existing television distribution framework and affect the cable television ecosystem.

Prasar Bharati, on the other hand, has maintained that WAVES is a digital public service platform intended to broaden access to television, radio and digital content.

For now, the legal stream has been paused. The WAVES case will return before TDSAT on 28 October, when the tribunal is expected to take the responses and the next stage of the proceedings forward.