I&B Ministry
MIB gives licences to 6 new channels
MUMBAI: The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) gave licenses to six new channels in the month of January and February. The channels are Skystar Bangla, Skystar Telugu, PTC Music, PTC Punjabi, PTC Simran and Zee Classic. All the six channels are under non-news category.
G-Next Media got the permission for uplinking and downlinking PTC Music, PTC Punjabi and PTC Simran on Intelsat-20 satellite in Punjabi, Hindi and English on 7 February 2019.
Zee Entertainment Enterprises got the permission for uplinking and downlinking Zee Classic on Asiasat-7 in Punjabi, Hindi and all regional languages on 13 February 2019.
Skystar Entertainment Pvt Ltd got the permission for uplinking and downlinking Skystar Bangla and Skystar Telugu on Intelsat-20 in Hindi, English, all India scheduled languages and world language on 15 January 2019.
The number of private satellite TV channels having valid permission in India stands at 885 as on 21 February 2019. 505 channels are non-news and the remaining 380 are news channels.
In December 2018, MIB gave permission to five channels.
I&B Ministry
Prasar Bharati sets EPG standards for DD Free Dish platform
New specs define 7-day guide, LCN mapping, and device compatibility.
MUMBAI: Your TV guide just got a backstage pass structured, scheduled, and far more in sync. Prasar Bharati has released detailed technical specifications for Electronic Programme Guide (EPG) services on DD Free Dish, laying down a standardised framework for how channels and programme information are organised and delivered. At the core of the update is a defined EPG data structure, covering genre-based categorisation, scheduling formats, and Logical Channel Numbering (LCN). The aim is simple: make navigation less guesswork and more guided experience across the platform’s over 40 million households.
The specifications also introduce a seven-day programme guide window for each channel, alongside clear rules for channel grouping and LCN mapping effectively deciding not just what you watch, but how easily you find it.
On the technical front, the document outlines requirements for Program Specific Information (PSI) and Service Information (SI), including descriptor usage across tables such as PAT, BAT and NIT. It further details service lists and network linkage parameters, giving OEMs and developers a clearer blueprint for integration.
Importantly, the framework is designed to work seamlessly with television sets equipped with in-built satellite tuners, enabling users to access DD Free Dish directly without additional hardware, an incremental but meaningful step towards simplifying access.
The platform will continue to operate on GSAT-15 transponders, using MPEG-4 compression and DVB-S2 transmission standards, ensuring continuity even as the interface evolves.
While largely technical, the move signals a broader push towards standardisation and user-friendly discovery in India’s free-to-air ecosystem because sometimes, the real upgrade isn’t what’s on screen, but how easily you get there.
