Here is What You Missed About the New DTH Rules by TRAI

Do you regularly visit the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) website and catch the latest news in mobile, broadband, internet, DTH, OTT, and other sectors? We doubt you do.

But wait, do you try to read telecom and DTH relevant news in different newspapers, magazines, online articles, etc.? More hands up now?

Why put in so much effort trying to collate and read information from different sources when you can catch every detail here with us on Selectra?

Selectra is meant to help you (and your businesses) make the best choices with the available options and prepare you for any upcoming regulatory decision that might change the way you use plans for personal and business purposes.

Our content is thoroughly researched, up-to-date, extracted from verified sources, and covers all the essential elements.

Today, we are going to share with you the New DTH Rules issued by TRAI. We will cover the updates in chronological order to make the reading experience smooth and relevant.

So here we go!

TRAI New Rules for DTH Operators: 1^st March 2019

All the DTH providers and consumers do remember TRAI’s notification in 2017.

On 3^rd March 2017, the national body notified a new regulatory framework to ensure the Broadcasting and Cable TV sector’s orderly growth. The bold move was necessitated by the complete digitization of Cable TV networks in India.

Below is a list of all the issues that were addressed in the new regulatory framework:

• Discount structure on bouquet pricing
• Ceiling price of a channel for inclusion in a bouquet,
• Need to form bouquets by Broadcasters/Distributors
• No. of bouquets offered by Broadcasters/Distributors
• No. of channels in initial NCF of Rs 130
• NCF for the multi TV home
• Discounts on long term subscriptions
• Promotional offers by DPOs
• Flexibility in offering NCF
• Placement of channels in EPG

While most of our readers might be aware of what we are discussing here, let us quickly do a recap for everyone’s knowledge -

• Capping of monthly payment of free to air channels at Rs. 160
• Charging of a maximum of 40% of declared NCF (Network Capacity Fee) for the second and additional TV connections in the case of multi-TV homes (more than one TV connection under the same person’s name).
• Reduction of the maximum NCF to Rs. 130 for 200 channels.
• Non-inclusion of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting declared mandatory channels in the no. of channels in the NCF.
• Permission granted to DPOs (Distribution Platform Operators) to offer discounts on subscriptions of six (6) months or more.
• The sum of the a-la-carte rates of the pay channels forming part of a bouquet shall in no case exceed 1.5 X the rate of the bouquet of which such pay channels are a part.
• The a-la-carte rates of each pay channel (MRP), forming part of a bouquet, not to exceed three (3) times the average rate of a pay channel of the bouquet of which such pay channel is a part
• A cap of Rs. 4 lakhs per month on carriage fee payable by a broadcaster to a DPO in a month for carrying a channel in the country.
• Only channels with an MRP of Rs. 12 or less permitted to be part of the bouquet offered by broadcasters.

TRAI released an information note to the media on 8^th October 2019, where it threw light on the repercussions of the move it made to bring about a change. 

TRAI DTH News: 23^rd December 2020

On 23rd December 2020, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar confirmed that the Union Cabinet of India approved 100% FDI in the DTH broadcasting services. Earlier the FDI was capped at 49% only.

Furthermore, DTH operators get a license for 20 years with a renewal every ten (10) years.

DTH New Rules by TRAI: 16^th June 2021

Last year on 25^th June 2020, the national telecom body had launched the TV Channel Selector to provide a reliable and transparent system to DTH customers and optimize the subscription before it gets sent to the DTH operator or Cable operator.

A year later, TRAI launched the Channel Selector Portal to facilitate those DTH users who prefer using the web browser over smartphones and do not have access to smartphones altogether.

The new Channel Select Portal covers all the existing features of an app, along with a download facility, and help subscribers to

• Check their subscription,
• View channels and bouquets provided by their DTH/Cable Operator,
• Choose or remove channels according to their taste and get the optimized solutions,
• Allow modifications to the current plan,
• Download and print subscriptions and offerings.

In addition to this, users will also be able to provide feedback on the ‘Feedback menu.’

Conclusion

These were some of the most sorted out information pieces on New DTH rules by TRAI. Don’t forget to visit our website for the next round of updates on new TRAI orders on DTH.