High Court
Kerala HC defers TV ratings case, extending BARC weekly data blackout
Landing page dispute pushed to July 21 as TV Ratings Policy 2026 remains on hold
MUMBAI: The ratings clock is still ticking, but the industry’s scoreboard remains frozen. The Kerala High Court on Monday deferred hearing in the television landing-page ratings dispute to July 21, extending uncertainty over the implementation of the TV Ratings Policy 2026 and delaying the return of BARC India’s weekly television ratings.
The matter arises from a writ petition filed by the All India Digital Cable Federation (AIDCF) and DEN Networks, which have challenged the proviso to Clause 5.4.1 of the new policy. The disputed provision excludes viewership generated through landing pages and boot-up screens from being counted in television audience measurement.
During Monday’s proceedings, the court primarily addressed scheduling before listing the matter for further hearing on July 21.
According to media reports, counsel appearing for the Union government argued that the treatment of landing-page viewership is a matter of public policy. The Centre maintained that excluding such viewership is part of a broader effort to improve the transparency, credibility and integrity of India’s television ratings system.
With the hearing adjourned, the interim order issued by the Kerala High Court on May 22 continues to remain in force, preventing BARC India from implementing the landing-page exclusion mechanism envisaged under the revised policy.
The dispute has assumed wider significance after the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) directed BARC India to withhold publication of weekly television ratings until it is permitted to operate under the TV Ratings Policy 2026.
The resulting ratings blackout has left broadcasters, advertisers and media agencies without the industry’s weekly audience data, disrupting media planning, campaign evaluation and advertising inventory pricing.
Under the revised policy, broadcasters and distribution platform operators can continue offering landing pages as a promotional feature. However, any viewership generated solely because a channel appears automatically when a television is switched on would not count towards ratings, with the government arguing that such exposure represents passive visibility rather than an active viewing choice.
Before the interim stay, BARC India had already prepared an operational framework for implementing the new methodology. Under the proposed system, if a watermarked channel appeared first through a landing page, that initial exposure would be excluded from ratings. Any subsequent viewing after a user actively selected the channel during the same viewing session would continue to be measured.
The petitioners contend that landing pages constitute legitimate viewing behaviour because they represent the first channel viewers encounter after switching on their set-top boxes. They have also argued that excluding such viewership could adversely affect an important revenue stream for multi-system operators.
The Centre, however, has defended the provision as a necessary reform to strengthen accountability and confidence in television audience measurement, insisting that the policy does not prohibit landing pages but merely distinguishes promotional exposure from genuine viewer choice.
With weekly ratings still suspended and the industry’s audience measurement system in limbo, the July 21 hearing is expected to play a crucial role in determining when BARC India can resume publishing its weekly television ratings.
