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Tag: Trai

  • Phones of over 51,000 alleged telemarketers disconnected

    NEW DELHI: Over 51,000 telephone numbers of such subscribers who had not registered as telemarketers but were doing telemarketing activities have been disconnected and notices have been served on nearly 88,300 subscribers who have carried out similar violations.

    The measure is to check several calls and SMSs being sent by subscribers without getting themselves registered with Trai as a telemarketer by using normal telephone connections having numbers other than the ‘140‘ number series allotted to registered telemarketers.

    Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology Milind Deora told Parliament that it had been noticed from the complaints‘ data received from service providers that the majority of complaints of Unsolicited Commercial Communications are sent by telecom subscribers who were not registered as a telemarketer.

    ‘The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2010‘ is clear that no subscriber who is not registered with the TRAI as a telemarketer under these regulations can make any commercial communication. In case it is found based on verification of a complaint that the UCC was originated by a subscriber who is not registered with Trai as a telemarketer, the Originating Access Provider shall issue a notice to such subscriber to forthwith discontinue the sending of such unsolicited commercial communications and if such subscriber sends a commercial communication to any subscriber on a second occasion, disconnect the telecom resources of such subscriber.

    Till 30 July this year, 88,307 notices have been sent to subscribers who have not registered as a telemarketer but were doing the telemarketing activities; and 51,181 telephone numbers of such subscribers have been disconnected.

  • Broadcasters get breathing space as Tdsat stays Trai’s ad cap rule

    Broadcasters get breathing space as Tdsat stays Trai’s ad cap rule

    MUMBAI: Broadcasters have earned a five-week vacation from the upsetting regulation of limiting ad time on their networks, as Tdsat has stayed the Trai notification till the hearing comes up on 17 July.

    For a while, broadcasters will at least not have their ad revenues hanging by a thread, its future determined by a 12-minute ad cap per hour fixed by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai). Stressed by a slowdown in the ad economy and anxious about the implementation of cable TV digitisation, the least they want to do is cut down on commercial time and take up the troublesome task of upping advertising rates.

    True, none of the broadcasters are willing to obey the Trai order as they feel that the broadcast watchdog is overreaching its powers by regulating TV ad time.

    Still, the Tdsat’s stay order comes as a major source of relief at a time when the least that the media industry wants is more headaches.

    “We got a stay from the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (Tdsat) today. The hearing is due mid-July,” says Star India chief executive officer Uday Shankar.

    News broadcasters have horrible woes. If there is a way for them to wriggle out of the mess that they have themselves created by coughing out high distribution costs, cutting ad rates amidst competition amongst themselves and living under high staff costs, it is by giving more commercial time to advertisers.

    Hindi TV news, the most fragmented of the lot, dedicates on an average 20-24 minutes of ad time per hour. Even with this abundant supply, news broadcasters find their ad revenues crawling at below 10-per cent growth and their profitability under attack.

    Zee News Ltd (ZNL) chose a different path to tread this year, cutting the commercial time of its flagship Hindi news channel, Zee News, by 30 per cent while upping the ad rates by 40 per cent. However, the ‘Maximum News, Minimum Break‘ journey from 2 April has been a bumpy one.

    “The ratings have not seen much impact. And we have ended up producing more content. Perhaps, this experiment needs more time to yield results. We will wait for a couple of quarters more before we take a call on whether we want to go back to our old route,” says Zee News Ltd chief executive Barun Das.

    Let‘s not forget that Zee News’ slash in ad time of eight minutes for every half-hour slot is still above the ceiling of Trai’s prescription of 12 minutes of commercial time per clock hour. So imagine the misery news broadcasters will be in if they have to swallow Trai‘s medicine!

    In the tangled financial problems that the news broadcasters face, it is the timing of Trai’s regulation that comes under question. News channels need more time to weed out the ad inventory flab that they have created due to economic compulsions, much to the irritation of the TV audiences.

    Says TV Today Network CEO Joy Chakraborthy, “Trai’s so-called radical step would jeopardise the business models of news channels. Less ad time would mean more content costs. Besides, scaling back on ad inventory by 40 per cent (from our average of 20 minutes per hour to 12 minutes) would mean demand outstripping supply and, hence, higher costs. This will discourage small and local advertisers, who form a fair bulk of clients for news channels, to come on board. These steps suggested by Trai should come when the digitisation rollout is complete. We can’t fight on all fronts.”

    The ad time on news channels varies from month to month.TV Today Network, for instance, offered 22 minutes of commercial time per hour in March. This came down to 18 minutes in April.

    News and sports broadcasters consider another regulation by Trai as retrograde at this stage of maturity: the ban on part-screen and drop-down advertisements.

    “We use scrolls on a positive sense. For Olympics, we, for instance, will run scrolls. We earn Rs 120-140 million from the part-screen and drop-down ads,” says Chakraborthy.

    Trai’s ad regulation will also pinch hard the sports broadcasters. According to the broadcast regulator’s prescription, the ads during live broadcast of a sporting event should be only during the breaks in the sporting action.

    A clock hour measurement system, however, does not suit this genre of channels as live content is seasonal and limited to a specific period.

    Entertainment TV networks have also objected against the capping of ad duration on their channels.

    “It looks like Trai is linking digitisation to shrinkage of advertisement space. There is no logic in this and it is very untimely,” says the head of a broadcasting company on condition of anonymity.

    Trai’s control in ad diet is something that TV viewers would, indeed, love to have. Broadcasters, however, feel that the best route to maturity is self-regulation in content and ad inventory management.

    “Trai’s order is ridiculous. It is like putting the camel’s nose in the tent. Every independent player should decide on what course of action to take. Market forces know best how to play the balancing role,” says Times Television Network MD and CEO Sunil Lulla.

  • Broadcasters set to challenge Trai regulation on ads

    Broadcasters set to challenge Trai regulation on ads

    NEW DELHI/MUMBAI: Irate with the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) for its order on restricting advertisements to 12 minutes to the clock hour, broadcasters are burning the midnight oil to work out steps they can possibly take.

    Sources say senior officials of the Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF), which represents the general entertainment channels, today held day-long discussions with legal experts in Mumbai and Delhi on whether the regulations which have already been notified can be challenged in Court.

    The News Broadcasters Association (NBA) representing the news channels are also working out their plan of action.

    Though neither of the two have issued any formal reaction, it is understood that both are in the process of working out their reaction to the press keeping in perspective the argument given by a Trai official that most channels would be able to make their revenue through subscriptions after digitisation and, therefore, it would not be fair to impose advertising on the consumer who is paying for the channels he sees.

    “The IBF and the NBA will soon take up with the relevant bodies the Trai regulation on ad duration on TV channels. We will share our point of views. Like there is a sunset time of three years given for digitisation in the country, sufficient time should be given to channels for capping ad time,” says TV Today Network chief executive officer Joy Chakraborthy.

    Besides the 12-minute cap per hour, Trai has said part-screen and drop-down advertisements shall not be permitted. This piece of regulation is sure to hurt news and sports broadcasters.

    Says Zee News Ltd. chief executive officer Barun Das, “We are looking into the issue and will decide on what course of action to take.”

    According to an official in the Advertising Standards Council of India, since the regulations were about timing and not content, Asci did not want to react. This was also the reason for India‘s advertising watchdog not to give any reaction when Trai had asked all stakeholders to voice their views.

    The broadcasters are likely to approach the Tdsat, industry sources say.

  • Trai caps TV ad breaks at 12 minutes per hour

    Trai caps TV ad breaks at 12 minutes per hour

    NEW DELHI: In a move that is set to upset the business models of the broadcasters, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has capped the duration of advertisements in television channels at 12 minutes per clock hour.

    “Any shortfall of ad duration in any clock hour cannot be carried over,” Trai said in its latest regulations on standards of quality of service for TV channels issued today.

    The minimum time gap between two consecutive advertisement breaks should not be less than 15 minutes. In the case of movies, this should be a minimum of 30 minutes.

    Sports broadcasters to feel the pinch

    The conditions shall not apply in case of ads during live broadcast of a sporting event.

    “The advertisements during live broadcast of a sporting event should be only during the breaks in the sporting action,” the broadcast sector regulator said. This is sure to upset sports broadcasters.

    No part-screen and drop-down ads

    There is another regulation that is sure to hurt news and sports broadcasters, while pleasing TV viewers. Trai has said part-screen and drop-down advertisements shall not be permitted and they have to be full screen.

    Broadcasters will also have to ensure that the audio level of ads cannot be higher than the audio level of the programme being telecast. Advertisers, thus, can’t try to use a higher sound level to grab the attention of the viewer.

    The advertisements in the clock hour will include all types of advertisements including advertisements promoting the channel(s) of the broadcaster.

    The “Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) Regulations 2012, issued today, will be effective from the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.

    Trai‘s explanation

    In an explanatory memorandum, Trai has observed that the duration of advertisements, their placement within or in-between the programmes and their frequency of occurrence, is closely related to the quality of viewing experience of the consumers. The quality of viewing experience of the consumers is akin to the quality of service provided by the service providers to the consumers.

    The broadcast watchdog said: “Since the dawn of the television, advertisements have been used to promote a wide variety of goods and services. Advertisements provide for a significant portion of the revenue of the television industry. The broadcasters of the free to air channels rely solely on the advertisements as their source of revenue, while the pay channel broadcasters have twofold source of revenue in the form of advertisement and subscription revenues.”

    Trai said that the consumers are “presently fed with content feeds interlaced with the advertisements within and in-between the various programmes aired by the broadcasters in their channels as well as MSOs and local cable operators in their local/video channels. The majority of television advertisements consist of advertising spots, info-commercials and self-promotional campaign in various formats ranging in length from a few seconds to several minutes.”

    The present provisions concerning the duration and format of advertisements in the TV channels according to the Cable Television Networks Rules 1994, prescribe that no programme shall carry advertisements exceeding 12 minutes per hour, which may include up to 10 minutes per hour of commercial advertisements, and up to 2 minutes per hour of a channel’s self-promotional programmes. It is also provided that all advertisement should be clearly distinguishable from the programme and should not in any manner interfere with the programme viz., use of lower part of screen to carry captions, static or moving alongside the programme.

    Trai said there have been several complaints, mainly from the consumers raised at various forums regarding overplaying of advertisements, long duration of advertisements, overlaying of advertisements on the screen, increased audio level during advertisements etc. It has been said that the advertisement duration and formats are not in accordance with the provisions stated above. It has often been pointed out that the advertisements are played/repeated several times in between the programmes, which break the continuity of the programme and often done at crucial stages of a programme. In this context, there have been requests to at least restrict and regulate the duration, frequency and timings of the advertisements.

    The Regulations have been issued with the primary objective of striking a balance between giving a consumer a good TV viewing experience, and protecting the commercial interests of broadcasters and is based on the reactions to a consultation paper issued on 16 March 2012 titled “Issues related to Advertisements in TV channels”.

    In response to this consultation paper, 29 comments were received. Based on the comments and views of the stakeholders and analysis of various aspects, facts and available studies, the Authority has decided to issue separate regulations for the duration of advertisements carried in TV channels.

    The Memorandum notes that the broadcasters and their associations, and the advertisers and their associations are against any regulation as proposed by Trai. But the other stakeholders comprising mainly the consumers, consumer organisations and cable operators had supported the Trai proposal for the regulation of duration and format of advertisements in the TV channels.

    Trai said it had taken note of the charge that it was the wrong time to regulate the advertisements since the digitization has just started; that advertisements were part of a business model of the broadcasters and should not be seen as a burden to the consumers and were in fact helpful to the consumers; a system of self regulation by the industry body is a better and appropriate way to regulate the advertisements; and the reference to some Supreme Court judgments which had said the restriction on advertisement space in the newspapers would lead to reduction in its revenue which is in violation of Article 19(1)(a) and consumer interest cannot be the only relevant factor for framing a regulation.

    Indiantelevision.com had earlier reported the views of the various stakeholders. The broadcasters had opposed the move while consumers bodies were in support.

    Also Read:

    TV networks flay Trai for ad regulation

    Trai‘s ad review policy to hurt biz models of sportscasters

    News channels ask Trai to sort out carriage before capping ad time

    MSOs divided on Trai‘s ad regulation policy

  • MSOs divided on Trai’s ad regulation policy

    MUMBAI: Trai’s ad regulation proposal has divided two of the country’s leading multi-system operators (MSOs) into opposite camps with Digicable coming out in support while Hinduja Ventures-owned operator IndusInd Media and Communications Ltd opting for a no-regulation line.

    The regulator had initiated the policy to regulate ads on a clock hour basis on the premise that the country is moving towards digitisation and subscription income will become the primary source of revenue stream for broadcasters, an argument which the broadcasters have trashed outright.

    However, Digicable in its response to Trai’s consultation paper ‘Issues Related to Advertisements in TV Channels’ has suggested the cap to be only 10 minutes (eight minutes for commercials and two minutes for self-promotion) instead of 12 minutes proposed by Trai for FTA channels.

    For pay-channels, Digicable favours a cap of eight minutes (six minutes for commercials and two minutes for self-promotion) while it is against allowing commercials on HD channels except for two minutes in a clock hour.

    “If the broadcaster agrees to have a 100 per cent advertisement free channel, then he can have total forbearance on the subscription rate charged for that channel,” Digicable said.

    It also demanded that certain channels which are presently FTA in digital domain but pay in analog should be treated as pay till they have a uniform status across the country.

    IIMCL, on the other hand, favoured a more open market policy where consumers must be allowed to decide whether they want an ad-free channel or a free to air channel subsidised by advertisements.

    “It is up to the subscriber to opt to watch a channel with advertisements at a lower cost or pay premium to watch a channel without ads. Broadcasters on the other hand will automatically regulate the ad time as too many ad breaks will drive away subscribers, thus affecting their resources,” IIMCL said.

    Both the MSOs were in agreement that in case of sporting events, advertisements should be carried only during disruptions as most of the sportscasters are pay channels with certain sports like cricket being monetised heavily.

    In the case of News and Current Affairs channels, the two operators agreed on Trai’s proposal to run not more than two scrolls at the bottom of the screen and occupying not more than 10 per cent of the screen space for carrying non-commercial scrolls and tickers.

    The audio level of the advertisements should also not be higher than the audio level of the programme, both Digicable and IIMCL held.

    Stressing that India is not a pay market as consumers do not pay for content, Cable Operators Federation of India is of the view that the so called pay channels were introduced in India in an illegal way in the non-addressable networks by forcing cable operators to pay to receive them, once they became popular as FTA channels. For the last 18 years pay channels have been exploiting the cable operators using all unethical ways like blackmailing with threats of a black out, arbitrary increase in rates, forcing bouquets on consumers and making cartels for distribution.

    Cofi wants FTA channels to get 12 minutes ads in a clock hour and pay channels not to be allowed to carry any ads as they would get 100 per cent subscription in the digital regime.

    The cable association did not favour allowing ads in sports channels as they already charge the highest amount amongst all pay channels. It also agrees to permitting only full screen ads and not more than two scrolls at the bottom of a page for news and current affairs channels.

    Also Read:

    Trai‘s ad review policy to hurt biz models of sportscasters

    News channels ask Trai to sort out carriage before capping ad time

    TV networks flay Trai for ad regulation

  • TV networks flay Trai for ad regulation

    NEW DELHI: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India does not have the mandate to regulate advertising and any content-related issues, according to a majority of the stakeholders who have responded to the review call by the broadcast sector on capping ad duration on television channels.

    The consumer rights organisations or individual consumers, on the other hand, have welcomed Trai‘s decision to regulate advertisement time. Some have also called for a Consumer Redressal mechanism to check violations as they find the endless running of ads on certain genre of channels a serious irritation.

    The Advertising Standards Council of India (Asci), however, is not among the forty-odd respondents as the Consultation Paper does not deal with content but only with regulatory issues relating to duration and timing of commercials.

    Indian Broadcasting Foundation, the apex organisation of television broadcasters, says the paper “appears to have been issued in an injudicious manner in so far as it reflects on the Authority’s power to regulate content on television channels”.

    The present consultation paper posits that the heavy reliance of Indian broadcasters on advertising revenues is due to the “non-addressable nature of the cable TV networks,” and “gross under declaration of the subscriber base”.

    “The under-representation of subscription revenues in the business model of Indian broadcasting is also due to a decade of excessive regulation of subscription models — including tight retail rate regulation, increasing interference in wholesale rate-setting, and maintenance of “must-provide” mandates that prevent platform differentiation and unnecessarily restrain competition,” the IBF said.

    The IBF further added that over-regulation was responsible in creating the industry’s current imbalances. It suggested that the key to resolving the imbalances lies in progressively remedying the ills at their cause.

    The federation also pointed that Indian broadcast industry has one of the lowest monthly ARPUs in the world under $4 vs $60-120 for developed nations, as per Ficci-KPMG 2012 report.

    While reiterating Trai’s own position as stated in Tdsat, Star TV India says the regulator has no jurisdiction to regulate advertising as per extant laws, rules and regulations.

    Star argues that any shrinking of advertisement space is likely to impact broadcaster’s ability to offer superior and differentiated content to their viewers at an affordable price. It says Trai’s proposed recommendations are retrograde, will substantially increase the costs to consumers, will burden advertisers with higher costs, and will drive out marginal and smaller advertisers from advertising their products on national television.

    Zee TV says that curtailing advertisements would mean infringing on the fundamental right of free expression quoting Supreme Court judgments to say that any kind of restriction on media ads would be violative to the fundamental rights of Speech and Expression as enshrined in the Constitution.

    It has also questioned why TV is being targeted while newspapers are free to carry any amount of advertising. It suggested that the issue of advertising which is purely a content issue should be left to self-regulation as at present any attempt/suggestion to regulate the same would be highly detrimental for this sector. It also said that several TV channels will be forced to close down with severely restricted ad time.

    Times Television Network says it would be better for Trai to concentrate on smooth switchover to digital access systems instead of spending its time on issues like advertisements, which have been clearly addressed in the CTN Rules. While stressing that Parliament has already passed the CTN Rules and Trai cannot override those, it also questions the regulator making a difference between free to air and pay channels as arbitrary, unwarranted, and not based on sound facts.

    A response by Vijay Television and Asianet Communications on behalf of South Indian regional channels questions the jurisdiction of Trai. It says the paper fails to provide adequate justifications for a differential regime for Pay and FTA channels and also does not take into account the unique business model of regional broadcasters who operate in challenging regime of sky rocketing content acquisition costs and an onset of Carriage spends which makes mockery of the “Pay revenues” earned from the MSOs and cable operators.

    They say regulation in advertisement would eventually lead to heightened subscription fees, the burden of which may have to be ultimately borne by the consumer. Additionally, this could lead to further reduction in the quality and variety of content, thus leading to the commodification of the entire content industry.

  • Over 161 mn users don’t want unsolicited marketing calls on mobile

    NEW DELHI: Around 161.66 million customers have registered their preference on the National Customer Preference Register (NCPR) to stop receiving unsolicited commercial calls or SMSs.

    A total of 36,156 subscribers have been issued notices, 22,769 subscribers have been disconnected while 94 telemarketers have been penalised and four telemarketers have been blacklisted as of now.

    The NCPR had come into force from 27 September last year under “The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2010” issued by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on 1 December 2010.

    Under its provisions, telecom consumers who do not wish to receive unsolicited commercial call or SMSs may register their preference(s) on NCPR.

    TRAI is also monitoring and enforcing the regulations for protection of customers from unsolicited commercial calls and SMSs. If unsolicited commercial calls and SMSs are sent from individual numbers, notice will be served to the customer and his number will be disconnected on second violation. Registered subscribers receiving UCC may lodge their complaint by dialing or sending SMS to 1909.

  • News channels ask Trai to sort out carriage before capping ad time

    News channels ask Trai to sort out carriage before capping ad time

    MUMBAI: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s ad review policy will have a devastating impact on the television news industry which is already going through a rough patch due to muted revenue growth and rise in overall costs, the News Broadcasters Association has said.

    The NBA is of the opinion that there should no restriction on the duration of ads that a channel can air in between a show, contending that ad revenue continues to be a key revenue source for news broadcasters and any curtailment in that revenue stream will have adverse impact on their business models.

    The body also said that it was in favour of “self-regulation” on ad time rather than being regulated externally.

    The association has warned that Trai’s regulation will result in closure of small news channels and loss of jobs on a mass scale and has requested it to reconsider the issue in the larger interests of the news broadcast industry.

    While lauding Trai’s efforts for facilitating the process of rolling out digitisation of cable networks in the country, the NBA said that the authority should first try to address more serious issues like carriage fees and cap on channels pricing, which have been the bane of the news television industry.

    The NBA also criticised Trai for over reaching its authority by attempting to regulate TV ads by asserting that the issue is beyond its scope and authority. It also wondered how Trai could forget its own submission to the Tdsat that it had no role in advertising minutage rules.

    The news broadcasters’ body also opinionated that there is inherent “self-correcting” mechanism which is efficient enough to keep a check on transgression’s by news broadcasters. Furthermore, it stated that in News Broadcasting Standards Authority it had a robust mechanism to deal with the issue, should the self correcting mechanism fail to address grievances.

    A classic example of the “self-correcting” mechanism is the recent move by Zee News Ltd. to slash its ad air time by 30 per cent while increasing the ad rates by 40 per cent as part of its ‘Maximum News, Minimum Break‘ positioning.

    The NBA also highlighted the fact that the Trai’s ad review does not specify the bifurcation between time for commercial advertisements and self promotion.

    “Television viewing is a function of rating, which is a function of consumer viewing experience. If the advertisements are more than what is preferred by consumers, the ratings will drop and the channel will have to reduce its advertising. This “self-correcting” mechanism ensures that Trai or anyone’s intervention in regulating advertisements is unnecessary,” NBA secretary general Annie Joseph said in response to Trai’s consultation paper on the subject.

    It added, “The NBA has a robust mechanism – News Broadcasting Standards Authority – and we have not received any specific complaints so far against one or more channels, for excessive advertising.”

    The NBA also questioned the regulatory body if the government was willing to offer subsidies to news broadcasters should the consumers be unwilling to pay more for ad-free viewing. “If consumers are not willing to pay more, will the government, in public interest, offer subsidies/tax benefits in lieu thereof to make the business model economically viable for news channels,” Joseph questioned.

    The news body also pointed out that no less than Supreme Court had ruled in favour of newspapers when the government had tried to curtail advertisement space.

    “The mere fact that the newspapers would be “exposed” to “financial loss” was held by the Supreme Court to be an infringement of right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 19 (1) (a),” NBA further added.

    “The importance of advertising revenue for the electronic media (especially news channels) is exactly the same, if not even more grave, as that for print. The restriction sought to be placed upon the “advertising airtime” is exactly in pari materia with the restrictions on “advertisement space” considered by the Supreme Court in the foregoing cases.”

    The notion that ads are a nuisance is incorrect, the NBA said adding that advertisements play a significant role in informing and educating the public about products and services which can enhance their lives. Any reduction in ad inventory will also result in scarcity of FCT which in turn would result in rise in ad cost and would make it out of reach for small and medium enterprises.

  • Trai’s ad review policy to hurt biz models of sportscasters

    Trai’s ad review policy to hurt biz models of sportscasters

    MUMBAI: In line with the stated position of their industry peers, leading sports broadcasters Neo Sports Broadcast, Taj Television, and ESPN Software have red flagged Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s ad time review policy that has the potential to upset business models of the broadcasting industry.

    In their response to Trai’s consultation paper on “Issues Related to Advertisements in TV Channels”, all the three sports broadcasters have unequivocally objected to the regulators interference in the matter over which it has no jurisdiction.

    Zee Group-owned Taj Television, which operates four sports channels, has termed the move as “untimely”. The company contends that the premise on which Trai has initiated this policy, that the country is moving towards digitisation and subscription income for broadcasters will jump multifold to become the primary source of revenue stream, is wishful thinking.

    It also said that any consultation on the premise of digitalisation should be done only after the system becomes fully addressable wherein income arising out of subscription revenue sees a significant gain.

    “It is pertinent to point out that only four metros in the entire country would be digitalised in the first phase beginning 1st July 2012 and it is expected to be rolled out in four phases to be completed by 2014 with lot many more challenges along the way till complete digitisation reaches every nook and corner of our country,” Taj said in its response to Trai‘s consultation paper.

    “During this interim period the broadcaster would be saddled with problem of under declaration of subscriber numbers (in the non – notified areas), high cost of acquisition of content which is spiraling every year. Therefore, in our humble submission we put forth that there is no need to bring in any fresh regulatory norms for Advertisements in TV channels and let the channels self regulate the time span, format and frequency of the advertisements,” it added.

    In mid-March, Trai had come out with a consultation paper on “Issues Related to Advertisements in TV Channels” seeking views on different maximum limits for the duration of ads in free-to-air (FTA) and pay channels on an hourly basis.

    Trai proposed to limit ads of FTA channels to 12 minutes in an hour. For pay channels, this limit should be six minutes, according to Trai‘s proposition for which it wants to take the views of the stakeholders before framing out its recommendations.

    In case of sporting events being telecast live, the regulator feels the ads should only be carried during the interruptions in the sporting action – for example, half time in football or hockey match, lunch/ drinks break in cricket matches, game/set change in case of lawn tennis etc.

    What can adversely affect the sports genre most is that Trai is also in favour of allowing only full screen ads. In its view, part screen ads should not be permitted. Drop down ads should also not be permitted, Trai feels.

    Presenting its viewpoint, ESPN Software India, the India arm of ESPN Star Sports, has argued that the consultation paper goes against Trai‘s position of favouring self-regulation.

    It further said that the authority‘s decision to single out sports and news genre will be detrimental to the business models of these two genres. That sports content has a shorter shelf life only compounds the matter.

    ESI also said that the international practices cited in the consultation paper do not compare well since the frameworks within which those broadcasters operate is completely different.

    “The fact is that most of the jusrisdicstions covered do not operate under regimes where price ceilings prevail and thus allows broadcasters far more options even if advertisements are subject to regulation,” the ESI response read.

    The company in its submission has laid down that the should be on a 24 hour basis rather than than hourly basis.

    “Such a proposal demonstrates the inherent deficiency where niche channels such as sports channels have not been considered. A clock hour basis measure would not suit this genre of channels where live content is seasonal, limited to a specific period and natural breaks where advertisement would be appropriate (For eg half time in Football or Hockey, lunch/drink breaks in cricket),” ESI held.

    Neo Sports Broadcast asserted that the ad time review proposal would hamper the only revenue generation mode of sportscasters who are already suffering due to mandatory feed sharing with Prasar Bharti which robs them of the exclusivity that is the sole critereon for extracting premium from advertisers.

    Neo also bemoaned the fact the broadcasters are at the mercy of Trai when it comes to pricing, which has also been an impediment to growth.

    “Sports model is a very unique model where many content by its very nature have extremely limited scope to fully monetise its value and hence the channel consciously purchase other properties that offer revenue opportunities and subsidise for loses incurred on other properties. Hence a straight jacketed application of the advertising rule will be completely prejudicial to the business model of sports,” Neo said.

    Also Read:

    Trai reviews ad time policy for TV channels

  • Trai paper on ad time cap should have grievance redressal system

    Trai paper on ad time cap should have grievance redressal system

    NEW DELHI: The income a pay (encrypted) channel earns from advertisements should be linked to the subscriber income, thus making it mandatory that broadcasters earning high subscription are forced to reduce the advertisements, according to the Consumer Education and Research Society (CERS).

    The CERS, a consumer rights body, has also demanded that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India should make provisions for a grievance redressal mechanism for TV viewers and the consumers of cable TV. In case a TV channel flouts the Trai norms, there must be a simple and easy- to-use mechanism to handle consumers’ complaints.

    The comments of the CERS are contained in a letter to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Advisor (B&CS) Wasi Ahmad with regard to the recent consultation paper issued by the regulator on advertisements on the electronic media.

    When pointed out that the Advertising Standards Council of India has a system of monitoring advertisements, CERS chief general manager Pritee Shah told indiantelevision.com that Asci only dealt with content and not duration of ad space.

    In the letter, Shah who is also Editor of ‘Insight’ said consumers would not like to compromise their TV viewing experience if they pay for the service.

    While welcoming the suo motu initiative of Trai in this regard, the CERS said the proposed stipulations do not mention any norms for the local cable operators who continuously show ads in addition to regular ads shown by channels.

    It said for children-specific channels and programmes, the ad duration should be further decreased from 12 minutes for free to air channel and six minutes for pay channels to six minutes for FTA channel and 3 minutes for pay channels. Advertisers target children – who are more susceptible to false and misleading claims shown in TV ads – to influence the purchasing decision of parents. In Australia, she said the restriction on ads is very stringent, where no commercial may be broadcast in the pre-school children’s classification zone. In New Zealand, TV ads are banned on Christmas day, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, etc., and also advertising of unhealthy products like alcohol is banned.

    Shah suggested that similarly, Trai may also curb TV ads during festivals like Diwali, Holi, Christmas, Eid and New Year. Heavy advertising during the festivals leads to over consumption and wastage of resources, which is against the principles of sustainable living, she said.

    Inserting ad breaks during a live show/ programme reduces its viewing experience. Similar to sports events, advertising should only be inserted at natural breaks in programmes such as concerts and live events. She pointed out that Norway has a similar provision on ad breaks.

    CERS has said the proposed stipulations under section 1.23 of the consultation paper are commendable and they should be implemented strictly. “The release of the consultation paper has not been publicised in the media. Only the Trai website visitors are aware of the document and the proposed changes in the rules for advertising on TV channels. Consumers and viewers of TV channels are the single largest stakeholder group and they must know the development. Trai should first publicise the consultation paper and the proposed stipulations through the media,” Shah said.

    The efforts of Trai would make a difference if people know the new guidelines. “Once the stipulations are finalised, Trai should ensure that every TV viewer knows them, so that they can act like a watchdog,” Shah added.