Broadcasters want same laws for IPTV, TV channels

NEW DELHI: Seeking a level playing field, TV broadcasters have sought the prime minister's intervention for extending security, licencing and downlinking laws applicable to TV channels to television programming beamed on the internet and mobile phones.

In a representation to the prime minister, the broadcasters' body Indian Media Group (IMG) has warned the government of the serious security implications of "unregulated" internet protocol TV (IPTV) and mobile TV, which could open a back door for all channels that are banned or do not have permission to downlink in India.

Since IPTV and mobile TV are being launched by telecom companies on their network infrastructure, they are considered to be under the communications and IT ministry.

Thus, they are not covered by the information and broadcasting ministry's Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act of 1995, which regulates downlinking, licencing and content of channels allowed to broadcast in the country.

Telecom companies have taken the stand that IPTV and mobile TV should be listed under the telecom licence regime while cable operators and broadcasters argue these should be in the broadcasting domain.

The jurisdiction of ministries is decided by the allocation of business rules, which only the prime minister can change.

"Technologies in the media sector are evolving at a very rapid pace and there is an urgent need to have a unified mechanism which is technology-neutral to regulate the sector," A K Doval, general secretary of IMG, said in a letter to the prime minister. Doval said there is a dire need for "a comprehensive regulatory policy framework" to resolve dualities in the approach to emerging technologies like mobile TV and IPTV.

Both telecom companies and broadcasters are in the fray to provide IPTV and mobile TV services.

MTNL has launched its IPTV service while Bharti Telecom plans to do so by the year-end. Los Angeles-based PIO TV, which beams IPTV in PIO (people of Indian origin) homes around the world, announced its launch last week.

IPTV programming is broadcast over a telecom network using a dedicated broadband channel that carries only TV content to computers or TV sets.

Mobile TV is not only available on cellular phones but also on any DVB (Digital Video Broadcast)-enabled portable device like gaming devices, palmtops, laptops and personal digital assistants.

Broadcasters want these misnomers and anomalies in the domains to be corrected.

Security and content are not the only issues, sources said. With IPTV and mobile TV considered to be in the telecom domain, they will be eligible for 74 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI), compared to 49 per cent for entertainment TV channels and just 26 per cent for news channels.

The sources said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to chair a meeting of an inter-ministerial group set up to resolve the issue of domains of ministries in the light of converging technologies.

The issue of bringing broadcast services provided by telecom companies under the information and broadcasting ministry's rules was also raised by the MSO Alliance, a national body of cable operators.

Arvind Mohan, secretary of the MSO Alliance, said, "If the telecom sector wants to enter into TV broadcasts, their FDI too should be brought down to 49 per cent. And if it wants to start news broadcasts, then it should be brought down to 26 per cent."

More than 3,000 channels are currently available on internet TV, and most services are free while some are subscription-based. Since the internet has no boundaries, IPTV services can be launched from anywhere in the world without needing any government's permission.

WWiTV, beamed by www.wwitv.com, provides over 2,500 channels and Beeline TV provides more than 2,200 channels. Channel King provides over 230 free internet channels, including adult content