I&B Ministry
Govt examining proposal to relax FDI norms in Print Media
NEW DELHI: After a recent slew of relaxations relating to foreign investment norms, the PM Narendra Modi-led government is said to be considering a proposal to liberalise investment levels in print media.
Quoting unnamed Finance Ministry officials, Bloomberg reported that the ministry is of the view that foreign investment norms in India’s print media could be raised from the present 26 per cent to 49 per cent, bringing it at par with norms for TV news segment.
The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) under the Commerce Ministry will take a final call on the matter, the Bloomberg report quoted the government officials as saying.
Though, foreign investment in India’s print media sector is limited, but from time to time global giants like News Corp, having widespread interest in media, have evinced interest in investing here but stopped short because of restrictive policies and an inherent opposition from big Indian media groups.
In June 2016, the government had liberalised foreign investment norms in many sectors including airlines, retail, defence and TV broadcast carriage services like DTH, HITS, teleports, etc.
Recently, a delegation of US-India Business Council (USIBC), which included some broadcast companies, had petitioned the Commerce Ministry to relax foreign investment levels in electronic news media that stands at 49 per cent at present, but just shy of giving majority controlling stake to any foreign entity.
Interestingly, in January 2015, the then Minister of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) and present Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had opined that restrictions on foreign investment limit in print media need to be debated afresh.
Delivering the inaugural JS Verma memorial lecture, organised by News Broadcasters’ Association (NBA), Jaitley had said the practicality of FDI norms in print media should be examined anew in a spreading digital age when such limits are becoming irrelevant as news products are increasingly being made available on the Internet.
Finance Minister Jaitley’s forward-looking views on foreign investment norms in India’s print sector — and media in general — could be viewed at
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Are such proposals under study a precursor to relaxations for TV news channels too?
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I&B Ministry
AIDCF moves TDSAT over Waves plan to stream linear TV channels
Industry body flags regulatory gap as OTT push sparks broadcast turf war
NEW DELHI: The battle between traditional television distributors and digital platforms has found its way to the courts, with the All India Digital Cable Federation (AIDCF) moving the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) against Prasar Bharati’s latest OTT play.
At the heart of the dispute is Waves, Prasar Bharati’s OTT platform, which has invited applications to onboard linear satellite TV channels. Aidcf, which represents multi-system operators (msos), argues that this move sidesteps existing broadcasting rules and risks tilting the playing field in favour of digital platforms.
The federation’s petition hinges on a key provision in the Uplinking and Downlinking Guidelines, 2022. Clause 11(3)(f) allows broadcasters to downlink channels only if they provide signal decoders to recognised distribution platforms such as MSOS, DTH operators, hits operators and iptv platforms. OTT platforms, aidcf points out, do not feature on that list.
In simple terms, AIDCF’s argument is this: if OTT platforms are not officially recognised distributors, they should not be receiving broadcast signals in the first place. By inviting channels onto Waves, the federation claims, Prasar Bharati is opening a backdoor that lets broadcasters bypass long-standing rules.
The concern goes beyond legal interpretation. Aidcf says OTT platforms currently operate without a clear regulatory framework, allowing them to expand into traditional broadcasting territory without the compliance burden that cable and satellite operators must carry. That, it argues, creates an uneven contest.
There is also a warning for broadcasters. If they provide signal decoders to an OTT platform like Waves, they could risk breaching the very conditions under which their downlinking permissions were granted.
For its part, Prasar Bharati’s Waves initiative is positioned as a step towards wider access and digital reach, bringing linear television into the streaming era. But critics say the move blurs the line between regulated broadcasting and largely unregulated streaming.
The matter is expected to come up before tdsat next week. The outcome could do more than settle a single dispute. It may help define how India regulates the fast-merging worlds of television and OTT, where the lines are getting fuzzier by the day and the stakes, sharper than ever.
