News Broadcasting
Ericsson and NRK launch interactive mobile TV
MUMBAI: Ericsson and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK) have conducted the world’s first live trial of interactive mobile TV. The trial demonstrates a new way of using mobile TV, which allows mobile phone users to vote, chat and communicate with a television presenter while watching their favorite show – all at the same time on their mobile.
Together, Ericsson and NRK launched a downloadable client for the existing interactive TV format, Svisj. For example, viewers can vote for which music video is to be played next by the touch of a button and may also chat with each other or the host of the program, states an official release.
Gunnar Garfors, director of Mobile Services, NRK Development Division, says: “This is interactivity with a vengeance. We are making it easier for our audiences to view mobile TV and participate in shows, no matter where they are.”
Ericsson Mobility World VP Kurt Sillén says: “Our solution makes it possible for viewers to interact with a show that they are watching on their mobile device in a whole new way, creating a much richer TV experience with the help of the mobile channel.”
The new interactive mobile TV application is an end-to-end solution based on existing technology, which enables mobile phone users to watch streamed TV programs live and at the same time interact with the show, the release adds.
For TV networks, this means increased traffic and new revenues from content fees, additional advertising and paid interactions such as voting, chatting and greetings. This opens the way to new TV formats, widens target groups and builds customer loyalty while giving end-users an advanced and enhanced TV experience.
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI:Â Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
