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WatchIndia.TV launches set-top box for live Indian channels
MUMBAI: In a significant strategic development, Internet television company WatchIndia.tv has announced the launch of set-top box (STB) for streaming live Indian TV channels on television.
WatchIndia.tv said it has developed the box using the latest IPTV technology. The box is a small unit that connects to the broadband router on one end and to the television set on the other.
The system allows the customer to watch TV directly through their standard television sets. Customers can then switch channels easily between their traditional television provider and the WatchIndia.TV service.
From the beginning of this month, WatchIndia.TV has soft-launched the STB service through a combination of existing customers and those who’ve previously expressed an interest in signing up.
WatchIndia marketing executive Pradeep Parminder said, “In line with this momentous launch, all new customers signing up for the Live India TV services can purchase a discounted STB at the signup stage. All new signups will enjoy a 33 per cent discount on their chosen Indian channel package. In addition, customers will also receive a $50 off on the box.”
WatchIndia.TV is the first site from Live Asia TV. It has partnered with channels like Zee TV, Zee Sports, Zee Marathi, Zee Telugu, Zee Bangla, Zee Kannada, Zee Punjabi, Zee Cinema, Zoom, Times Now, Aastha, NDTV Profit, NDTV Imagine, 9X and 9XM, Saam TV, Mahuaa TV, Raj TV Network and ETV Network.
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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.
