News Broadcasting
DD to introduce DTT service in the four main metros
In a move aimed at demonstrating the government’s commitment to make all pay channels mandatorily routed through a conditional access system, national broadcaster Doordarshan is all set to launch its Digital Terrestrial Transmission (DTT) service in Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata from June.
To access the service a subscriber needs a decoder (set-top-box) which costs about Rs 3,500 and an antenna for Rs 150, according to a report in a leading national daily. The report states that there will be no monthly subscription charge for the service.
DTT will beam 12 channels, five of which will be DD National, DD Metro, DD Bharati, DD Sports and DD India (earlier known as DD World but a name change has taken place effective 13 April). DD plans to generate revenue by leasing the remaining transmitters to private broadcasters to beam the remaining seven channels.
The report quotes DD officials as saying that private broadcasters will be roped in before the year is through. They said that the national broadcaster is in negotiations with niche and city-centric broadcasters.
DD director-general SY Quraishi has been quoted as saying that the aim was to provide a full-fledged bouquet that covers DD’s role as a public broadcaster and a complete entertainment-cum-educational network.
Quaraishi says he expects the price of the set-top-box to come down to as low as Rs 1,000 once its penetration increases in the market. Senior DD officials said that Consumer Electronic and Television Manufacturer’s Association (Cetma) officials have expressed interest in bundling the decoder with new television sets that are to be manufactured in the coming months.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to air live counting day coverage for five state election results on May 4
The channel is rolling out its biggest election coverage machinery yet for results day on 4th May
NOIDA: The votes have been cast. Now comes the reckoning. CNN-News18 is pulling out all the stops for results day on 4th May, when counting begins across five battleground states — West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry — in what promises to be one of the most closely watched electoral verdicts in recent memory.
The channel’s coverage, titled Battle for the States: The Verdict, kicks off at 7am and runs through the day across linear TV, connected television and YouTube. It is the culmination of CNN-News18’s multi-format editorial initiative, Battle for the States, which has tracked the polls from the beginning under the theme Road to Power.
At the operational heart of the coverage will be the Live Results Hub, the channel’s central command centre built to collate, verify and process real-time data flowing in from reporters stationed at counting centres across constituencies. The hub combines newsroom intelligence, analytics and on-the-ground reporting to deliver what the channel promises will be the fastest and most accurate results coverage in English news.
Leading the on-air charge will be primetime anchors Rahul Shivshankar, Anand Narasimhan, Aman Sharma, Nabila Jamal and Shivani Gupta. They will be joined by a wide panel of commentators including author Chetan Bhagat; GVL Narasimha Rao, senior leader of the BJP; Smita Prakash, editor of ANI; activist Saira Shah Halim; political analyst Sumanth C Raman; Abhijit Iyer Mitra, senior fellow at IPCS; Amitabh Tiwari, founder of VoteVibe; columnist Abhijit Majumdar; Nalin Mehta, managing editor of MoneyControl; political analyst Tehseen Poonawalla; senior journalist Subir Bhaumik; and political analyst Manojit Mandal.
Shivshankar, who serves as editorial affairs director at CNN-News18, set out the stakes plainly. “Counting day is one of the most watched events in the electoral cycle, where speed and credibility are tested in real time,” he said. “Battle for the States: The Verdict is built on that promise, combining ground reporting, sharp analysis and cutting-edge election technology to give viewers the clearest and fastest route to the verdict. On May 4, CNN-News18 will once again be the nation’s most trusted channel to witness democracy in action.”
Smriti Mehra, chief executive of English and Business News at Network18, framed the coverage in broader terms. “Elections are defining national events, and audiences turn to brands they trust in moments that matter,” she said. “CNN-News18 has consistently led from the front in every election coverage, and this special programming reflects the scale of our ambition and editorial strength.”
The channel has form here. It claims to have been India’s most preferred English news destination for election results for the past 20 years, covering everything from the 2024 general elections to the Delhi, Maharashtra, Bihar and BMC polls on the back of what it calls an “Always First, Always Right” record. Five states, one day, and a nation waiting for answers. The clock starts at 7am on 4th May.
