I&B Ministry
Complaints against misleading ads rose by 50% in 2017
MUMBAI: The number of cases registered with regard to misleading advertisements has been on the rise. Grievance against Misleading Advertisements is a separate portal by the Department of Consumer Affairs to dispose of such complaints.
Over the last three years, there has been a steady rise in the number of cases registered. In 2015, the launch year, there were 641 cases that shot up to 2032 the next year. Last year, 2017, saw a whopping 3302 cases being submitted to the portal.
The departments had entered into a memorandum of understanding with the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), a self-governing body, to process misleading ads in the print and electronic media, which will be received on the portal.
In a reply to a question asked in the parliament, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting (MIB) Rajyavardhan Rathore said that there was no pre-censorship done for TV channels but all broadcasters needed to abide by advertising rules set by the Cable TV Act and also could not telecast ads found violating ASCI’s codes.
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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.
