MUMBAI: Indian television broadcasters are mounting a fierce campaign to restore separate pricing for commercial and household subscribers, arguing that forcing hotels and restaurants to pay the same rates as ordinary homes is killing their business.
The Indian Broadcasting and Digital Foundation (IBDF), which represents the country’s main TV networks, has petitioned the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to scrap uniform pricing rules introduced in 2015. The lobby group contends that charging a Mumbai hotel chain the same rates as a middle-class family is not just outdated—it is commercial suicide.
“Like every other industry, TV services should recognise the higher value and different use cases in commercial environments,” the IBDF argued in its submission to TRAI. Before 2015, broadcasters enjoyed the freedom to charge premium rates to businesses and negotiate terms directly with commercial customers. That changed when TRAI imposed a one-size-fits-all pricing regime, stripping away broadcasters’ ability to set distinct commercial tariffs. Now, as television viewership plummets in favour of digital streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, JioHotstar, Z5 and SonyLiv, broadcasters are fighting for their financial lives.
They argue that restoring separate, higher tariffs for commercial users could help the traditional TV industry weather the streaming storm.
TRAI has launched a review of the pricing structure and is consulting stakeholders—including broadcasters, direct-to-home providers, and cable operators—on whether uniform rates should continue. The regulator has not indicated when it might reach a decision.
The IBDF has branded the current rules as “too restrictive” and wants a return to flexible, market-driven negotiations with commercial subscribers. For an industry grappling with declining reach and stagnant subscription revenues, every rupee counts.
The outcome of TRAI’s review could reshape India’s television landscape, determining whether broadcasters can extract more value from their dwindling commercial customer base or remain trapped in a uniform pricing straitjacket as viewers continue their exodus to streaming services.
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