News Broadcasting
Trai issues additional QoS instructions
NEW DELHI: Indian broadcast regulator today came out with more details on quality of service (QoS) to be observed by MSOs and local cable operators in CAS-notified areas.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has said the reporting (in the prescribed format) of QoS by approved MSOs and local cable ops shall be done on or before the expiry of 15 days from the end of the quarters and shall pertain to the quarters ending with 31 March, 30 June, 30 September and 31 December of each calendar year.
Further, in the case of Chennai, the first reporting shall be for the quarter ending December 2006 and in case of notified areas of Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata, it shall be for the quarter ending 31 March, 2007.
Trai had issued Regulation specifying standards of Quality of Service to be observed by the MSOs and cable operators in CAS notified areas of Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata on 23 August 2006.
This regulation provided that Trai, for the purpose of monitoring, can prescribe formats and demand reports from service providers on observance of QoS standards.
Further, in MSOs who are permitted to provide cable service in CAS notified areas under the Cable Amendment Rules of 2006 would be obliged to maintain quality of standards as may be determined by the regulator.
A full text of the general directive is available on the regulator’s website.
News Broadcasting
Rajesh Sundaram joins NDTV Profit as senior editor, assignment
The 32-year newsroom veteran has launched channels on three continents and covered everything from 9/11 to South African television
MUMBAI: NDTV Profit has bolstered its newsroom with a hire who has done rather more than most. Rajesh Sundaram, a journalist with over three decades of editorial, managerial and consultative experience across India and international markets, joins as senior editor, assignment, tasked with sharpening the network’s newsgathering and real-time response.
Sundaram’s career reads like a tour of Indian media’s most formative moments. He began at Businessworld in 1994, moved to Zee News as bureau chief across Mumbai and Chennai, then joined NDTV in 2002 as part of its political bureau during a particularly febrile period in Indian politics. A stint as India correspondent for Al Jazeera International followed, where he covered key geopolitical developments and got his first serious taste of the global newsroom.
What sets Sundaram apart, however, is his serial channel-launching habit. At NewsX, he helped get the operation off the ground. At Headlines Today, part of the India Today Group, he served as editor. At News Nation, he helped launch the Hindi news channel and its digital ecosystem. He then crossed continents to lead the launch of ANN7 in South Africa as editor-in-chief, overseeing both television and digital. Back in India, he launched Tamil news channels News7 Tamil and Cauvery News, and later served as principal consultant for the launch of Marathi channel Lokshahi. Most recently, he helped build and lead the Press Trust of India’s video service and content studio, before stints consulting for Business Today and The Himalayan Times.
Rahul Kanwal, chief executive and editor-in-chief of NDTV, left little doubt about what Sundaram is expected to deliver. “The assignment desk is where a newsroom’s intent becomes action,” he said. “Rajesh brings a rare combination of field experience and leadership in building news operations at scale.”
Sundaram has reported from across India and the world, covering elections, civil conflicts, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 US presidential election.
At NDTV Profit, he will lead the assignment desk, driving editorial coordination and real-time response across markets and breaking developments. For a business news network sharpening its focus on speed and multi-platform delivery, it has hired a man who has built newsrooms from scratch on three continents. The assignment desk is in good hands.
