News Broadcasting
Cabinet grants 6-month extn on uplink norms
NEW DELHI/MUMBAI: Government today gave another extension of six months to news and current affairs channels to reduce foreign holding to 26 per cent as required by policy on uplinking.
“The policy requires the news channels to adhere to a cap of 26 per cent of FDI and the Indian entity to have not less than 51 per cent. But for a variety of reasons, many existing news channels have not been able to conform to this changed system,” information and broadcasting minister Jaipal Reddy told reporters after a Cabinet meeting here.
It is expected that by the time the government comes out with a comprehensive policy on news channels’ shareholding patterns in six months time, the I&B ministry would have also finalised the proposed uplink and downlink norms.
Reddy said the Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, “gave its last extension of six months from now (till September, 2005)” to show that its structural equity conforms to this regime. “There will be no further extensions,” he assured.
According to him, the companies operating such channels were earlier required to conform to the revised guidelines by March 2004, that is, to restructure their equity to conform to these guidelines.
Interestingly, Zee News is still to restructure itself as being part of the Subhash Chandra-promoted Zee Telefilms makes it have foreign/NRI shareholding that is way above the permissible limit. A senior executive of the network admitted that the company is still in the process of restructuring the shareholding pattern.
The decision for extension of the deadline will give time to the ministry to finalise the proposal to review the uplinking guidelines, Reddy added. But this line has been given every time, three to be precise, an extension has been okayed by the Cabinet.
Meanwhile, Indiantelevision.com’s information is that the government may take a decision on allowing foreign institutional investors (FIIs) having a holding in news channel ventures later this month, which could pave the way for issuing a clarification on the issue relating to uplinking.
Sometime back, Reddy had told journalists during an informal meeting that this ministry has agreed to allow FII investments in news channels as long as it was kept within the total foreign holding cap. However, this decision too needs a Cabinet okay.
News Broadcasting
Network18 channels lead YouTube news viewership in March 2026
CNN-News18, News18 India and CNBC channels top categories with record views
MUMBAI: When the world hit refresh on breaking news, Network18’s channels were already streaming ahead. As geopolitical tensions and war-driven headlines fuelled a surge in global news consumption, the network’s digital playbook delivered big clocking record Youtube viewership across English, Hindi and business news categories in March 2026.
At the forefront was CNN-News18, which emerged as the clear leader in the English news segment with 130 million live and video-on-demand views. The channel edged past competitors such as Times of India (126.5 million), Times Now (101.1 million), India Today (88.2 million) and NDTV (77.5 million), according to Databeings data for March.
In the Hindi news arena, News18 India delivered a commanding performance, racking up a staggering 3,297 million views on YouTube. The channel comfortably outpaced NDTV India, which recorded 3,119 million views, underlining its deep reach and consistent engagement with mass audiences, as per Playboard data.
The network’s dominance wasn’t confined to general news. In the Hindi business segment, CNBC Awaaz topped the charts with 92 million views, narrowly ahead of Zee Business (90 million) and well ahead of ET Now Swadesh (57 million). Meanwhile, its English counterpart CNBC-TV18 posted a strong 58 million views, reinforcing the network’s cross-category strength.
The spike in viewership reflects a broader shift in audience behaviour, with viewers increasingly turning to digital platforms particularly Youtube for real-time updates and in-depth coverage during high-intensity news cycles. For Network18, the numbers signal more than just scale; they underline the effectiveness of a multi-platform strategy that blends speed, credibility and continuous coverage.
In a month where the news never paused, it seems viewers chose to stay tuned where the stream never stopped.
