I&B Ministry
53 TV channels, six teleports’ licences up for renewal in ’17
NEW DELHI: Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has conveyed to all TV channels and teleports that licenses for uplink and/or downlink expiring in 2017 should be renewed six months prior to the expiry date.
The MIB communication to TV channel and teleports, dated December 16, 2016 and posted on the ministry website on December 20, 2016 stated, “Permission-holding companies, whose initial period of permission for uplinking and/or downlinking of TV channels and setting up of teleports is going to expire during 2017 and which are willing to get the permission renewed beyond its initial period are required to apply for the same six months prior to the date of expiry of the permission period.”
The government also clarified that TV channels who have not applied six months prior to the date of expiry of the permission period, the December MIB note may be “treated as 21 days notice” and the government would take it that the permission-holder was not interested in further extension after which the government was free to take “further necessary action”.
MIB has put out a list of 53 TV channels and six teleports whose licenses expire at various times during 2017.
The companies are required to apply for renewal of license along with relevant documents, including details of the company, shareholding patterns and foreign investments, for various government organizations like MIB and Ministry of Home Affairs to scrutinize the documents for renewal of licenses. Renewal will also depend on companies concerned agreeing to and updated guidelines relating to uplink and downlink.
I&B Ministry
Prasar Bharati sets EPG standards for DD Free Dish platform
New specs define 7-day guide, LCN mapping, and device compatibility.
MUMBAI: Your TV guide just got a backstage pass structured, scheduled, and far more in sync. Prasar Bharati has released detailed technical specifications for Electronic Programme Guide (EPG) services on DD Free Dish, laying down a standardised framework for how channels and programme information are organised and delivered. At the core of the update is a defined EPG data structure, covering genre-based categorisation, scheduling formats, and Logical Channel Numbering (LCN). The aim is simple: make navigation less guesswork and more guided experience across the platform’s over 40 million households.
The specifications also introduce a seven-day programme guide window for each channel, alongside clear rules for channel grouping and LCN mapping effectively deciding not just what you watch, but how easily you find it.
On the technical front, the document outlines requirements for Program Specific Information (PSI) and Service Information (SI), including descriptor usage across tables such as PAT, BAT and NIT. It further details service lists and network linkage parameters, giving OEMs and developers a clearer blueprint for integration.
Importantly, the framework is designed to work seamlessly with television sets equipped with in-built satellite tuners, enabling users to access DD Free Dish directly without additional hardware, an incremental but meaningful step towards simplifying access.
The platform will continue to operate on GSAT-15 transponders, using MPEG-4 compression and DVB-S2 transmission standards, ensuring continuity even as the interface evolves.
While largely technical, the move signals a broader push towards standardisation and user-friendly discovery in India’s free-to-air ecosystem because sometimes, the real upgrade isn’t what’s on screen, but how easily you get there.
