BARC stays off the grid as no agency applies under new TV ratings policy

NEW DELHI: India’s television ratings business is in a curious freeze frame. Weeks after the ministry of information & broadcasting (MIB) unveiled its Television Ratings Policy, 2026, not a single entity including incumbent ratings body Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) has applied for registration under the new rules.

The revelation came in the Rajya Sabha on Friday, where minister of state for information and broadcasting and parliamentary affairs L. Murugan disclosed that, “as on date, no entity is registered under the new Policy.”

The disclosure is significant because every entity wishing to conduct television audience measurement in India must now register under the new policy. That effectively leaves the country’s television ratings ecosystem waiting on the sidelines until agencies come forward and secure registration.

The absence of an application from BARC is particularly noteworthy. For over a decade, it has been India’s sole television ratings agency. Yet, despite the government replacing the 2014 guidelines with an entirely new regulatory framework, BARC has not, so far, sought registration under the revised regime.

The Rajya Sabha reply came in response to questions from MP Dr John Brittas on whether the government had directed BARC to suspend television ratings and what the new policy envisaged. While the government did not state that it had ordered any suspension, it confirmed that every ratings agency must comply with the additional requirements laid down in the Television Ratings Policy, 2026 and register afresh.

The new framework also opens the door to competition. Unlike the previous regime, it places no cap on the number of television ratings agencies that can be registered, lowers the minimum net worth requirement from Rs 20 crore to Rs 5 crore and mandates technology-neutral audience measurement across linear television and connected TV platforms. It also expands the sample size of metered homes to 80,000, prescribes annual independent audits and introduces graded penalties for non-compliance.

For now, however, the government’s attempt to reboot India’s television ratings ecosystem has yet to attract its first player. The new rulebook is in place. The field is open. But until someone BARC included steps up to register, the race has yet to begin.