MAM
BARC expected to commence TRP reports from July 2013
NEW DELHI: The Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) to be set up by the Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) will commence publication of television and radio ratings from July 2013.
This has been conveyed to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry by the Foundation, which had been forwarded the report of the Mitra Committee on the subject early this year, sources told indiantelevision.com.
The Committee headed by former Secretary General of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) Amit Mitra had said that even as self-regulation is the best way forward for the broadcasting industry, it expressed “the fear that in case significant progress is not made within defined timelines, the Government may be left with no option but to step in, primarily because of the nature of public concerns that have been raised and debated across many platforms”.
The Committee established by the I&B Ministry had said “it is our emphatic preference that all the stakeholders collectively create institutions and corrective mechanisms to improve the accuracy to television audience measurement. The media as a key pillar of democracy must remain independent and free”.
The 75-page report noted that the present sample size of both Tam (8150 homes) and A-MAP (6000) is very inadequate for a country of India‘s size with 129 million TV households.
It suggested an increase to 15,000 urban and rural TV households in the next two years and then to 30,000 in three years. The rating system should keep pace with the new emerging technologies, and the recommendations of Trai about mobile people‘s meters and so on should be studied, the TRP Committee said.
It also said to avoid conflict of interest, there should be no cross-holding between the rating agencies, broadcasters, or advertising agencies. Furthermore, the frequency of the TRP reports should be weekly, and the BARC which has been formed by broadcasters, advertisers and advertising councils should have the discretion to change this to fortnightly if it so desires.
MAM
Paramount set to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in $81 billion deal
Shareholders back merger, combined entity could reshape streaming and studios.
MUMBAI: Lights, camera… consolidation, Hollywood’s latest blockbuster might be happening off-screen. Shareholders of Warner Bros. Discovery have voted in favour of selling the company to Paramount in a deal valued at $81 billion rising to nearly $111 billion including debt setting the stage for one of the biggest shake-ups in modern media. The proposed merger, still subject to regulatory approvals, would bring together a vast portfolio spanning HBO Max, CNN, and franchises such as Harry Potter under the same umbrella as Paramount’s own heavyweights, including Top Gun and CBS.
At the heart of the deal is streaming scale. Executives have indicated plans to combine HBO Max and Paramount+ into a single platform, potentially creating a stronger challenger to giants like Netflix and Amazon’s Prime Video. Current market data suggests HBO Max holds around 12 per cent of US on-demand subscriptions, compared to Paramount+’s 3 per cent, together still trailing Netflix’s 19 per cent and Disney’s combined 27 per cent via Disney+ and Hulu.
Paramount CEO David Ellison has signalled that while platforms may merge, HBO’s creative identity will remain intact, stating the brand should “stay HBO” even within a broader ecosystem.
Beyond streaming, the deal would redraw the map for film production. Combining two of Hollywood’s oldest studios Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros., the new entity aims to scale output to over 30 films annually, while maintaining a 45-day theatrical window. Warner Bros. currently commands around 21 per cent of the US box office, compared to Paramount’s 6 per cent, underscoring the strategic weight of the acquisition.
But scale comes with scrutiny. Critics warn that fewer players could mean reduced consumer choice, rising subscription costs, and potential job cuts as the combined company looks to streamline overlapping operations while managing billions in debt.
The news business, too, faces a reset. CNN would join forces at least structurally with Paramount-owned CBS, raising questions about editorial independence and positioning. The merger has already drawn political attention in the United States, particularly given perceived ties between the Ellison family and Donald Trump, though the company maintains that newsroom autonomy will be preserved.
If approved, the deal would mark another milestone in Hollywood’s consolidation wave shrinking the industry’s traditional “big six” studios to a “big four”, with Paramount joining Disney, Universal, and Sony at the top table.
In an industry built on storytelling, this merger may well become its most consequential plot twist yet.
