I&B Ministry
Fresh attempt underway to study convergence of communications & broadcasting
NEW DELHI: More than a decade after the then Union government, headed by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, failed to agree on a Convergence Commission of India, a new attempt is being finalized to establish a single regulatory framework for communications, IT and broadcasting sectors.
The Department of Telecom is likely to make a presentation on the proposed Communications Convergence Bill to the Prime Minister’s Office on 15 February.
A Group of Ministers headed by then Finance Minister Yashwant Singh had held several meetings on the possibility of a Convergence Commission of India but failed to reach consensus. Members included Arun Jaitley (then Law Minister), the late Pramod Mahajan (then Telecom and IT Minister) and Sushma Swaraj (then Information and Broadcasting Minister). A draft had in fact been prepared in 2000 but it was then learnt to have been shelved because of differences between the then Telecom and I&B Ministers.
According to Department of Telecom sources, the presentation being prepared by it will be made before Principal Secretary Nripendra Misra on 15 February and those expected to be present will include Telecom Secretary Rakesh Garg, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India chairman Rahul Khullar, and I&B secretary Bimal Julka.
The new Bill proposes a super regulator – Communications Commission – with defined powers, procedures and functions for regulatory and licensing functions, and an Appellate Tribunal.
The aim is to replace all old and redundant legislations, which include the Telegraph Act of 1885, as well as Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act 1933, Cable TV Networks (Regulation) Act 1995, and IT Act 2000.
The super regulator is proposed to be a six-member body with a chairman who will have a five-year tenure. Members will include one each from sectors like telecom, broadcasting, finance, management, accountancy and either law or consumer affairs.
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.
