India tops world in job loss worries, Indian firms least trusted

A survey by global image consultants Edelman has found that Indians are significantly more worried about losing their jobs than people in any other country, while those in Japan, Saudi Arabia, Netherlands and Germany are the least worried. The survey, which was conducted among 34,000 people in 28 countries, also found that Indian companies were […]

Cheaper TV channels likely as court gives no stay on TRAI tariff order

The Bombay High Court did not grant any interim stay on the TRAI’s amendments to last year’s tariff order at the second day of hearing on the matter, making it even more likely that broadcasters will be forced to cut their channel prices soon. Instead of issuing a stay, the High Court has posted the […]

TRAI tariff order, slowdown maul Zee Entertainment’s results

Zee Entertainment, the second-biggest broadcasting company in India, continued to bleed under the combined impact of a slowing economy and the company’s decision to increase channel prices under the new TRAI tariff order. While the slowdown in the economy has resulted in companies cutting down on advertising, this has been exacerbated by Zee’s decision to […]

Reliance Jio users cut down on data, voice usage after price hike

Users of Reliance Jio’s 4G service have started cutting down on their data and voice usage the company implemented price increases in December, thus limiting the benefits of the price hike from fully flowing through to the company. The average data consumed by a Reliance Jio user fell to 11.1 GB per month during October-December […]

Jio Fiber crosses 1 million subscriber mark, but addition slows

Reliance Jio Fiber, the wired broadband service from Reliance Jio, crossed the 1 million subscriber mark in November, but the company’s pace of customer additions showed a sharp slowdown during the month. The company added 43,198 Jio Fiber customers during November 2019, taking the total to 1.02 million. With over 10 lakh fiber users, Jio […]

New genetic study lends strength to ‘Aryan Migration’ theory

The largest study of human genome ever carried out in Asia has added strength to so-called theory of Aryan migration theory into the Indian subcontinent. The study was published in the latest issue of scientific journal Nature. ARYAN MIGRATION THEORY According to the Aryan migration theory, the Indian subcontinent saw a massive influx of a […]

TRAI Tariff Order helps lift Hathway into profit

Hathway Datacom, one of India’s top cable feed providers (MSOs) finally posted a profit after remaining saddled with losses for several years. The company was able to post a profit due to various factors, including a sharp fall in pay channel costs thanks to TRAI’s new tariff order and a reduction in its cable TV […]

Most of your TV channel packs will stop working on Mar 1

Most of the channel packs currently available to cable and DTH customers are likely to disappear on Mar 1, given that broadcasters like Star, Sony and Zee have missed a 45-day window for making them complaint to new rules. This means that consumers who are currently subscribed to packs from Star, Zee, Colors and other […]

No plans to sell news channels: TV18 Broadcast

Rahul Joshi, Managing Director of TV18, today said his company has no plans to sell its news business. “We’ve outrightly denied any such story in news. In news, the group remains absolutely committed to grow the business. “As you’ve seen, we’ve committed so much investments in digital, on television. So there’s no question of getting […]

No stay on TRAI’s Tariff Order from Bombay HC, yet

The Bombay High Court did not issue a stay on the implementation of the amended TV channel tariff order issued by TRAI on News Year’s day, but kept the possibility open when it takes up the case again on January 22. Broadcasters, under the aegis of Indian Broadcasting Foundation, had approached the Bombay High Court […]

Did Satya Nadella really support illegal immigration into India?

Satya Nadella, the Indian-born CEO of Microsoft, has found himself at the center of a citizenship-related debate in India after he reportedly compared his situation in the US to that of Bangladeshi immigrants in India. However, a careful reading of Satya Nadella’s comments reveal that he did not support illegal immigration into India, but did […]

TARIFF ORDER: TRAI responds to broadcasters’ concerns

Even as the channel owners today took TRAI to the courts over changes to channel pricing rules, the regulator has issued a statement responding to their concerns. Broadly, it said the latest changes were required to overcome ‘teething problems’ associated with such a radical shift to a choice-oriented television distribution regime, but also criticized some […]

Broadcasters challenge TRAI’s amended tariff order

With just two days remaining for a deadline to file amended TV channel tariffs, a case filed by India’s big broadcasters in the Bombay High Court has been listed for hearing tomorrow in front of Justice SC Dharmadhikari. Broadcasters, including Star India, Zee Entertainment, Sony Networks and others, have come together under the banner of […]

JNU Violence: ABVP shifts blame to Left students organizations

Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (All India Students Federation), the student wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, today sought to distance itself from the violent incidents on Jawaharlal Nehru Campus on Sunday evening. In their first official reaction, officebearers of the JNU unit of ABVP said the violence was carried out by students organizations affiliated to […]

After Tata Sons, TCS moves SC against NCLAT’s Cyrus Mistry order

A day after Tata Sons filed a plea in the Supreme Court against a decision by a statutory body restoring Cyrus Mistry as its chairman, subsidiary Tata Consultancy Services also filed an appeal seeking a stay on the reinstatement of Mistry as a director on the information technology company’s board. Tata Sons is the main […]

TRAI Tariff Order will hurt broadcasters: Ind-Ra

India Ratings, a unit of Fitch Group, said new tweaks to TRAI’s 2017 tariff order — scheduled to come into effect on March 1 — are likely to reduce revenue for channel owners, be neutral for cable and DTH players and reduce costs for consumers. “India Ratings & Research (Fitch Group) believes that Telecom Regulatory […]

TRAI cuts maximum channel price to Rs 12/month from Rs 19

Media and telecom sector regulator TRAI has amended its 2017 tariff order — which came into effect a year ago — introducing a new price-cap of Rs 12 per pay channel, down from Rs 19 earlier. It also introduced new safeguards and conditions to curtail the practice of forcing unwanted channels upon consumers. However, these […]