I&B Ministry
Day 2: FM Phase III sees increase of Rs 100+ crore in provisional winning price
NEW DELHI: The second day of the e-auction for FM Radio channels in Phase III infused new enthusiasm though there were no bids in as many as 14 cities and the provisional winning price was lower than the Clock round price in some cases.
In all, eight rounds of e-auction have been completed including four today for 135 FM channels in all the existing 69 cities of the first stage.
At the close of second day of bidding, 79 channels in 55 cities became provisionally winning channels with cumulative provisional winning price of around Rs 479 crore against their aggregate reserve price of about Rs 377 crore.
The auction began today with Auction Activity Requirement set at 80 per cent. A total of 26 bidders were allowed to participate in the auction.
The demand over the price in many cities fell by up to three per cent below the aggregate demand.
The Percentage Price Increment (in INR) applicable for the Next Clock Round was five per cent in the metros of Mumbai and Chennai, and in Bhubaneswar, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Rourkela, Jodhpur, and Pune, whereas in Delhi, it went up to eight per cent.
The highest Provisional winning price – the same as the Clock round price at the end of the eighth round – was in Mumbai – Rs 55.43 crore; followed by Delhi – Rs 48.11 crore with both showing sizeable increase compared to the first day; Hyderabad – Rs 18 crore; and Lucknow – Rs 14 crore. Among cities recording more than Rs 10 crore, it rose sizeably in Bengaluru – Rs 30.39 crore; and marginally in Chennai – Rs 17.26 crore; Pune – Rs 19.7 crore; Ahmedabad Rs 16.89 crore and Cochin – Rs 10.21 crore (marginally lower than the clock round price), but fell just marginally in Chandigarh – Rs 15.61 crore.
The ongoing auction is a Simultaneous Multiple Round Ascending (SMRA) e-auction, which is being conducted online from Auction Control Room No. 404 B Wing, Shastri Bhawan.
I&B Ministry
Prasar Bharati opens AIR to private content under new policy
NIPP introduces revenue share, sponsored and gratis models
MUMBAI: Radio may be the oldest voice in the room, but it’s learning some very modern tricks. In a bid to stay tuned to changing listener habits, Prasar Bharati has opened the doors of All India Radio to private players under a newly rolled-out content framework. The initiative, titled Notice Inviting Programme Proposals (NIPP), marks a significant shift in how the public broadcaster approaches programming moving from a largely in-house model to a more collaborative, market-aligned ecosystem. Issued by Akashvani’s Directorate General in April 2026, the policy invites private producers, content owners and aggregators to pitch programmes across formats, from radio dramas and documentaries to quiz shows, storytelling and music-led content.
At the heart of the framework lies a three-pronged participation model designed to balance creative freedom with commercial viability. The most prominent route is revenue sharing, where advertising and sponsorship income generated by a programme is split between the producer and the broadcaster. The structure tilts in favour of creators offering a 70:30 split when producers bring in advertising, and 65:35 when monetisation is handled by Prasar Bharati.
Alongside this sits the sponsored model, where producers fully fund and monetise their content, subject to compliance with advertising norms and the AIR Broadcast Code. For those less commercially inclined, a gratis route allows content to be submitted free of cost, with Prasar Bharati retaining all monetisation rights effectively turning the platform into a national distribution channel for diverse voices.
The move comes as legacy media grapples with intensifying competition from private FM networks, streaming platforms and digital audio ecosystems. By repositioning AIR as both a public service broadcaster and a content marketplace, Prasar Bharati appears to be recalibrating its role in a rapidly evolving media landscape.
Importantly, the framework does not dilute editorial control. All submissions must adhere to the AIR Broadcast Code, and proposals are evaluated through a layered process that weighs storytelling quality, production capability, audience appeal and revenue potential. Only proposals crossing a defined threshold move forward, signalling that while access has widened, the bar remains firmly in place.
Operational discipline is another cornerstone of the policy. Producers are required to maintain broadcast-ready content, deliver episode banks in advance and navigate a structured approval process. Crucially, all production costs are borne by the content provider, reinforcing Prasar Bharati’s positioning as a distribution and oversight platform rather than a commissioning entity.
What elevates the initiative further is its scale. The framework spans multiple clusters and stations across India, covering both metro and regional markets, with specific language mandates and submission channels. This not only expands the content pipeline but also deepens linguistic and cultural representation, an area where AIR has historically held an advantage.
In effect, NIPP signals a quiet but meaningful transformation. AIR is no longer just broadcasting to the nation, it is inviting the nation to broadcast with it, blending legacy reach with contemporary content economics in a bid to stay relevant in an increasingly fragmented audio universe.
