Mobile TV norms to be out by March 15

The information & broadcasting (I&B) ministry has set time-bound targets for the media sector, including for expansion of private FM radio, terrestrial mobile TV services and upgradation of Doordarshan’s direct-to-home (DTH) platform.

To enable the growth of mobile TV services in India, the ministry wants to firm up its views on the issue after consulting with the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) by February 28.

In a target projection, the ministry has pointed out that it would try to circulate the draft Cabinet note and guidelines for introducing mobile TV by March 15.

If there’s a slippage of 15 days and the Cabinet note on mobile TV is circulated by March 31, the I&B ministry has claimed it would rate its performance as “poor”.

If the proposal is cleared by the Cabinet, an auction process is expected to be initiated for spectrum allocation for mobile TV service providers. Each successful bidder would be entitled to 8 MHz of spectrum, or frequency bandwidth.

Mobile TV service is a service that enables one to watch TV channels on a mobile phone. This is possible through two routes — telecom and broadcasting. The routes use separate spectrum bands.

On expansion of private FM radio, the I&B ministry has said it would circulate a draft Cabinet note on the issue by January 30.
In case of a slippage, the ministry may take up to February 28 for the job. The third phase of private FM radio may allow 799 stations to come up in 27 cities.

Hiring of consultants for the Commonwealth Games, to be hosted in New Delhi in October, is also in the list of the ministry’s objectives. It has set a goal of hiring international media consultants and architects for the games by January 20.

For upgrading Prasar Bharati’s direct-to-home service from 59 to 100 channels, the I&B ministry plans to submit a note for fund permission this month. The same target has been set for seeking funds for extension of the All India Radio service to J&K and border areas.