I&B Ministry
CAN welcomes basic tier pricing post-CAS, cautions government to stay on alert on implementation
MUMBAI:It’s once again the turn of the Consumer Action Network (CAN) to air its views on conditional access. CAN president Ahmed M Abdi has welcomed the proposal before the government (pushed by the broadcasters) to fix the price of free-to-air television channels at Rs 40 per household per month.
Says Abdi in a press release: “This is a price affordable by poorest of the poor sections of our society and the government should not come under pressure of cable operators who want to increase this price to Rs 250(?) for the free to air bouquet. Cable operators are free to make profits from the generation of revenue from pay channels, which would be subscribed to by the affordable section of the society, and it is duty of the Govt. to come to rescue of the general public comprising of poor section of the society having limited avenues for entertainment.”
Abdi has also cautioned the government to keep a close watch on cable ops, as they would try and arm twist cable TV viewers into subscribing to pay TV services by depriving them of basic free to air services if they don’t take up pay TV services. “If any such cases come to light, the government should act tough by labelling it a cognizable and non-bailable offence authorising the local police to initiate action as per law,” he says. “It is essential that a regulatory body be constituted and be empowered to look into the problems that consumers face and also take timely decisions.”
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.
