News Broadcasting
BBC, ITV to launch a free-to-view satellite proposition
MUMBAI: UK pubcaster The BBC has been given approval by the BBC Trust to launch a free-to-view satellite proposition as a joint venture with ITV in the UK.
Freesat, as it is currently known, will provide a Standard and High Definition (SD and HD) enabled digital satellite proposition with launch anticipated for Spring 2008.
Consumers will be offered up to 200 channels plus full digital satellite interactivity and high definition capability, without the need to pay a subscription.
Consumers will also have a choice of equipment (including both SD and HD receivers, an HD personal video recorder and an integrated digital television), together with a range of installation options.
BBC DG Mark Thompson said, “The BBC’s objective in launching Freesat is to support Digital Switchover by providing another way for licence payers to receive digital television channels and radio services, subscription free from the BBC and ITV. Its primary purpose is to drive digital take-up in analogue homes, particularly in those areas which are out of digital terrestrial coverage.
“Freesat also offers a trusted free-to-view digital upgrade path that gives licence payers all the benefits of digital television (notably high definition capability) guaranteed free of subscription.”
ITV executive chairman Michael Grade said, “Freesat will build on the success of Freeview by offering viewers a simple and cost effective way of upgrading to digital TV. By filling in the current gaps in Freeview coverage, Freesat will ensure that a free-to-air, no strings attached option for accessing digital TV is available to the whole of the UK ahead of digital switchover. By offering HD capability we will future proof Freesat if, as expected, high definition television continues to capture the imagination of UK viewers.”
The BBC and ITV have been working with selected manufacturers, retailers and installers to develop an innovative consumer proposition.
The proposal for a nationally available free satellite platform offered by the BBC working with other public service broadcasters was supported in the Government’s White Paper on the BBC Charter.
It said: “The Government is keen to ensure that consumers have as wide a choice as possible of how they get digital TV. We welcome the plans being developed by the BBC and ITV for a free-to-view satellite service alongside Sky’s offering and we hope that the other public service broadcasters will join them in this endeavour. This promises to enhance further both consumer choice and competition in the television market.”
News Broadcasting
Times Now Summit 2026 to convene top leaders as network marks 20 years
Policymakers, global voices and industry leaders gather to shape India’s roadmap to 2047
NEW DELHI: Times Network is turning 20 and using the moment to set the agenda for India’s next 25 years. The broadcaster will host the Times Now Summit 2026 on March 26 and 27 in New Delhi, bringing together a heavyweight lineup of policymakers, global leaders and industry voices under the theme “Celebrating Times Now @ 20, Shaping India @ 100.”
The two-day summit aims to move beyond rhetoric to results, with keynote addresses, panel discussions and debates focused on India’s growth story, its challenges and the road ahead. Designed as a platform for high-impact dialogue, the event will evaluate promises versus performance while spotlighting actionable solutions to accelerate the country’s trajectory.
The speaker roster reads like a power list. Amit Shah, minister of home affairs and minister of cooperation; Ashwini Vaishnaw, minister of railways, minister of information and broadcasting, and minister of electronics and information technology; Hardeep Singh Puri, minister of petroleum and natural gas; and Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu, minister of civil aviation will headline discussions.
They will be joined by political leaders and public figures including Akhilesh Yadav, national president of Samajwadi Party and member of parliament; Manish Sisodia, former deputy chief minister of Delhi; Harmanpreet Kaur, captain of the Indian women’s cricket team; and Kriti Sanon, actor and entrepreneur, among others.
Global perspectives will come from Lindy Cameron, British high commissioner to India, and Juan Antonio March Pujol, ambassador of Spain, alongside other international voices.
Day one will also double up as a branding pivot for the network, with the unveiling of a new identity that positions Times Network not merely as a broadcaster but as a bridge connecting India to the world and the world to India in a continuous exchange.
The summit underscores Times Network’s ambition to remain at the centre of national conversations, curating dialogue that shapes policy, business and culture.
As India marches towards its centenary as an independent nation, the message from Times Now Summit 2026 is clear: the next chapter will be written not just in studios or boardrooms, but on platforms that bring power, policy and people into the same room — and force the future into focus.
