News Broadcasting
CAS rollout deadline not sacrosanct: I&B secretary Pawan Chopra
MUMBAI: Is the “non-negotiable” deadline of 14 July for the rollout of conditioinal access in the four metros about to be extended? Looks likely.
Information and broadcasting ministry secretary Pawan Chopra says “CAS will be enforced more vigorously in time but admits next month’s launch date is not ‘sacrosanct’.”
Chopra made this comment in an interview to BBC World. The interview will appear on this Sunday’s edition of India Business Report .
“I think we have a fairly good amount of consensus emerging on this,” he tells presenter Manvi Dhillon. “We should not treat the date of 15th July as so sacrosanct, that next day everybody who does not have a set top box will be arrested. We will have a close look at the situation, and we will be flexible in the initial stages. As time goes on, the law will be enforced more vigorously.”
Chopra also hints at the creation of a regulatory authority at a later stage. “The government had to fall back and had to play the role of regulator, but I am sure that the next thing we will be looking at is a Broadcasting Regulatory Authority.”
The issue of CAS has been politically charged in India, with a number of those involved disagreeing on many issues. Chopra says: “If we are all sensible, all the stakeholders, the cable operators, the MSOs [multi-system operators], the broadcasters, I think we can do something which is useful for everybody in the long run. Useful for the customer, the viewer of TV, and I think it will lead to the upgradation of TV services in the country… When you change over to a new system, there are bound to be fears, and everybody is jostling for a better share of a future cake. We are not sure of the size of that future cake, despite all the hype and what has been reported in the media,” he explains.
He adds that CAS implementation is a pressing need and will benefit consumers in the long run. “Over the last two years, the rates for cable TV have increased very sharply, almost doubled in the metros. The objective was to stop arbitrary price increases. So you separate the free-to-air channels and rent for cable service from the actual cost of pay channels, so people can see for themselves what they are paying for.”
News Broadcasting
Rajesh Sundaram joins NDTV Profit as senior editor, assignment
The 32-year newsroom veteran has launched channels on three continents and covered everything from 9/11 to South African television
MUMBAI: NDTV Profit has bolstered its newsroom with a hire who has done rather more than most. Rajesh Sundaram, a journalist with over three decades of editorial, managerial and consultative experience across India and international markets, joins as senior editor, assignment, tasked with sharpening the network’s newsgathering and real-time response.
Sundaram’s career reads like a tour of Indian media’s most formative moments. He began at Businessworld in 1994, moved to Zee News as bureau chief across Mumbai and Chennai, then joined NDTV in 2002 as part of its political bureau during a particularly febrile period in Indian politics. A stint as India correspondent for Al Jazeera International followed, where he covered key geopolitical developments and got his first serious taste of the global newsroom.
What sets Sundaram apart, however, is his serial channel-launching habit. At NewsX, he helped get the operation off the ground. At Headlines Today, part of the India Today Group, he served as editor. At News Nation, he helped launch the Hindi news channel and its digital ecosystem. He then crossed continents to lead the launch of ANN7 in South Africa as editor-in-chief, overseeing both television and digital. Back in India, he launched Tamil news channels News7 Tamil and Cauvery News, and later served as principal consultant for the launch of Marathi channel Lokshahi. Most recently, he helped build and lead the Press Trust of India’s video service and content studio, before stints consulting for Business Today and The Himalayan Times.
Rahul Kanwal, chief executive and editor-in-chief of NDTV, left little doubt about what Sundaram is expected to deliver. “The assignment desk is where a newsroom’s intent becomes action,” he said. “Rajesh brings a rare combination of field experience and leadership in building news operations at scale.”
Sundaram has reported from across India and the world, covering elections, civil conflicts, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 US presidential election.
At NDTV Profit, he will lead the assignment desk, driving editorial coordination and real-time response across markets and breaking developments. For a business news network sharpening its focus on speed and multi-platform delivery, it has hired a man who has built newsrooms from scratch on three continents. The assignment desk is in good hands.
