Applications
Are the fruits of digitisation really being harvested?
GOA: The first session was on how digitisation has progressed and how it is no longer just a goal but the means to a critical end and a sweet spot for the convergence of national economic benefit, advanced infrastructure and content democratisation coverage.
The panel for addressing this topic had TRAI principal advisor N Parmeshwaran, DEN Networks chairman and CEO Sameer Manchanda, Tata Sky CEO Harit Nagpal and Star India president & general counsel Deepak Jacob. The session was moderated by Anil Wanvari and Vivek Couto.
“The entertainment and media space is doing much better as compared to earlier times and is a booming sector now just like how the IT sector was in the early 90s,” says Parmeshwaran.
 |
|---|
According to a recently released CII-PwC report the media and entertainment industry in India was valued at Rs 96,500 crore in 2012 witnessing a rise of nearly 20 per cent from the Rs 80,500 crore in the preceding year (2011).
Says Parmeshwaran, “TRAI has been doing its bit to help out in bringing systems in order by passing various recommendations, consultation papers on interconnect agreements and also streamlining the distribution process.”
Over the past few months the regulator has really been pressing for the completion of phase II of digitisation, setting strict deadlines for submission of CAFs and also instructing the MSOs to maintain proper subscription management systems (SMS). But the idea is not just to install boxes and collect forms.
Nagpal says, “The idea is to bring in processes, understand consumer behavior and more importantly focus on the content being provided, rather than just giving numbers of boxes installed and CAFs collected.”
TRAI has also been trying to address issues on direct billing, the segmentation of aggregators and broadcasters and also regarding media ownership along with giving its recommendation on the TV ratings system.
“TRAI is open to helping out anyone who is looking out for helping improve the media and entertainment segment. We have enhanced the FDI limit to 100 per cent for carriage fees and 49 per cent for the news and FM radio segment recently,” stresses Parmeshwaran.
The DTH segment has certainly made progress as far as numbers go with nearly 26.7 million STBs being installed by 31 March 2013 and this number is expected to reach a huge number of 135 million STBs by end of December 2014.
Manchanda feels that in the next five years these numbers will witness a phenomenal change. “The current situation is causing pain to everyone – broadcasters, aggregators, MSOs and consumers – but looking at the bigger picture is important and progress will be made accordingly.”
The need of the hour is for all the stakeholders to come together and nourish the ecosystem and the change will come in the next 12 to 24 months. “Currently everyone is trying to save their own bedrock, but what is needed is to go that extra mile and cater to the needs of the consumers, the consumer is just looking for the best quality to experience and once we do that, ARPUS will no longer be an issue,” adds Manchanda.
There is a problem that is faced by DTH service providers wherein they are forced to carry many of the channels that they do not really wish to but have to because of the aggregators, “even the consumer doesn’t really see the need to see these channels, so why should I carry it?” argues Nagpal.
TRAI had recently issued a consultation paper asking for comments from stakeholders on the matter of unbundling channels from the same network in the bouquets provided by the aggregators and received more than 100 comments and is still in the process of going through all the comments to reach a decision on the matter.
Speaking on the prospect of meeting the phase III and IV deadlines Jacob opines, “There were 35 million STBs installed and CAFs collected during phase I and II put together and there are another 30-35 million STBs and CAFs to be accounted for in just the next three months, it’s going to be chaotic and will leave no time for LCOs and MSOs to breathe.”
So with phase II of digitisation being completed and on the cusp of nearing the phase III and IV, it is yet to be seen how things progress and how India can meet the dream of becoming a completely digitised country.
Applications
Inshorts Group chief Deepit Purkayastha joins IAB video council for Southeast Asia and India
The co-founder and chief executive of the short-form content platform has been inducted into the IAB SEA+India Video Council, giving India a stronger voice in shaping digital video frameworks
NOIDA: India has long been the world’s most chaotic, multilingual and mobile-first digital market. Now, one of its most prominent short-video executives is getting a seat at the table where the rules are written.
Deepit Purkayastha, co-founder and chief executive of Inshorts Group, has been selected as a member of the IAB SEA+India Video Council for 2026. Run by the Interactive Advertising Bureau, the council brings together senior leaders from Southeast Asia and India to shape standards, best practices and measurement frameworks for the fast-evolving video and digital advertising ecosystem.
The timing is pointed. According to the IAMAI-Kantar Internet in India Report 2025, over 588 million Indians are now consuming short-video content, with growth increasingly driven by rural and non-metro audiences. India’s active internet user base has crossed 950 million, with 57 per cent of users now coming from rural markets. Yet the frameworks that govern how video consumption is measured and monetised were largely designed for single-language, Western markets and have struggled to keep pace with the scale, diversity and complexity of India’s digital landscape.
Purkayastha is no stranger to these debates. He already serves on the AI Council at Marketing and Media Alliance India and as co-chair of the Digital Entertainment Committee at the Internet and Mobile Association of India. His induction into the IAB SEA+India Video Council extends that influence into the global video standards arena.
Inshorts Group sits squarely at the intersection of these forces. Its flagship product, Inshorts, India’s highest-rated short news app, reaches 12 million active users with 60-word news summaries. Its sister platform, Public App, reaches 80 million monthly active users across more than 700 districts and 12 languages, serving communities that most global platforms barely register.
Purkayastha said the opportunity was about building something more representative. “India today sits at the centre of the global video ecosystem, but the frameworks that define how value is created and measured have not always kept pace with the realities of our market,” he said. “Being part of the IAB SEA+India Video Council is an opportunity to contribute to a more representative and future-ready approach, one that accounts for diversity in language, context, and user intent.”
As a council member, Purkayastha will contribute to shaping regional standards across video advertising, measurement and platform governance, with a focus on frameworks that are native to India’s multilingual, mobile-first ecosystem rather than imported from global benchmarks designed elsewhere.
For years, India has been content to play by rules written for other markets. Purkayastha’s induction is a signal that it is done waiting to be consulted and ready to start writing them.
