News Broadcasting
Prasar Bharati invites applications for vacant MPEG-2 slots in 56 e-auction
Mumbai: Prasar Bharati has invited satellite TV channels to bid for vacant MPEG-2 slots on DD Free Dish DTH Platform through the 56th e-auction. Successful bidders would be distributed on the platform for the allotment period between 1 January and 31 March 2022.
The bidding process shall be open to all language genre channels starting at a reserve price of Rs 1.94 crore and going up to Rs 5.51 crore. The e-auction, if required, will be conducted on 24 December and the last date to submit applications is on 23 December by 3 p.m.
The public broadcaster has categorised TV channels into different buckets in accordance with the genre/language of the channel and defined a starting reserve price for the allotment period.
Only satellite channels licensed by the ministry for information and broadcasting for downlinking in India would be allotted slots on DD Free Dish. Only license holder company or their authorised distributor partners can apply for allocation of DD Free Dish slots.
Applicants must also pay a mandatory non-refundable processing fee of Rs 25,000 and participation fee of Rs 1.5 crore. For unsuccessful bidders, the participation fee will be refunded within three weeks after the declaration of the results of e-auction. For successful bidders, participation fee will be adjusted in the final installment of the carriage fee/bid amount.
News Broadcasting
Network18 channels lead YouTube news viewership in March 2026
CNN-News18, News18 India and CNBC channels top categories with record views
MUMBAI: When the world hit refresh on breaking news, Network18’s channels were already streaming ahead. As geopolitical tensions and war-driven headlines fuelled a surge in global news consumption, the network’s digital playbook delivered big clocking record Youtube viewership across English, Hindi and business news categories in March 2026.
At the forefront was CNN-News18, which emerged as the clear leader in the English news segment with 130 million live and video-on-demand views. The channel edged past competitors such as Times of India (126.5 million), Times Now (101.1 million), India Today (88.2 million) and NDTV (77.5 million), according to Databeings data for March.
In the Hindi news arena, News18 India delivered a commanding performance, racking up a staggering 3,297 million views on YouTube. The channel comfortably outpaced NDTV India, which recorded 3,119 million views, underlining its deep reach and consistent engagement with mass audiences, as per Playboard data.
The network’s dominance wasn’t confined to general news. In the Hindi business segment, CNBC Awaaz topped the charts with 92 million views, narrowly ahead of Zee Business (90 million) and well ahead of ET Now Swadesh (57 million). Meanwhile, its English counterpart CNBC-TV18 posted a strong 58 million views, reinforcing the network’s cross-category strength.
The spike in viewership reflects a broader shift in audience behaviour, with viewers increasingly turning to digital platforms particularly Youtube for real-time updates and in-depth coverage during high-intensity news cycles. For Network18, the numbers signal more than just scale; they underline the effectiveness of a multi-platform strategy that blends speed, credibility and continuous coverage.
In a month where the news never paused, it seems viewers chose to stay tuned where the stream never stopped.
