India is witnessing a massive shift in the nature of content consumption and the avenues to consume the content, thanks to the rapid internet growth in the country. This surge in data consumption calls for a better and more organised regulatory framework, given the scope for strong regulatory overlap between telecom and media, said Gaurav Dwivedi, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Prasar Bharati. Dwivedi was speaking at the 24th edition of FICCI Frames.

In his keynote address on Media, Telecom and Bandwidth: Navigating the Crossroads of Regulation and Consumer Welfare, Gaurav Dwivedi shared that with the media and entertainment sector expected to reach humongous Rs 2.8 trillion by next year, the regulatory responsibility of those driving the sector becomes paramount. “The key principles of such a regulatory framework should take into account the diverse consumer profile on the one hand and uplifting the regulatory standards on the other.”

Speaking further on the topic, the Prasar Bharati CEO highlighted that the digitalization of television and the emergence of new video devices have redefined the broadcast landscape. “The features offered by digital television like personalization of content, interactivity and technical capabilities have brought up a world of new opportunities as well as challenges to all the existing and upcoming stakeholders, which includes content creators, broadcasters, distributors, application developers etc, to reach out and catch the eyeballs of the viewers.  

Dwivedi said the importance of telecom players in such a dynamic environment cannot be ignored as they are the torchbearers of infrastructure which enables the seamless consumption of this content.

“This emerging ecosystem is posing a great challenge to the traditional broadcasters, whether terrestrial or satellite. Terrestrial broadcasters need to evolve, innovate and reach out to the audiences through multiple platforms. They also need to use the new media platforms to complement the services rendered through the traditional broadcasting systems.” 

This requires a considerable commitment of resources on the emerging platforms and technologies, while sustaining the traditional linear broadcast infrastructure, said Dwivedi. “OTT services, digital cable and DTH operators are presently competing to occupy more space in the broadcasting industry for the distribution of content,” he added. 

He also asserted that OTT services have caused disruption to the traditional broadcasting services and are becoming more and more popular, especially in the urban areas. As the services are using internet connections, they can be accessed anywhere. 

“Many DTH operators are providing access to their services through OTT as well to complement their traditional services and keeping their consumers with them. However, the requirement of reliable high-speed broadband is limiting their reach. This further calls for enhanced harmony between media and telecom,” mentioned Dwivedi.

According to him, the market is now segmenting into Pay TV, Free TV and Connected TV, and each platform is sizable in itself. Therefore, content producers, broadcasters and distributors will have to address the needs of each of these groups for better monetization of their services.  

Another competing element to the broadcast media ecosystem of late has been the entry of telecom operators, informed Dwivedi. He said that the demands for spectrum by telecom service providers to roll out 4G, LTE, 5G and wireless video streaming services has put a lot of pressure on the broadcasters and a sizable part of the spectrum used by the latter has seen diversion. 

“This has compelled broadcasters to look for better compression technologies and competing solutions and standards. While allocating spectrum to the telecom operators and other wireless service providers, there's a need to keep the spectrum reserved for broadcasters to roll out new HD TV and other innovative services. As TRAI has rightly recommended, in one of its concentration papers, to accommodate new services and the evolving marketplace.” 

Further in his address, the CEO also mentioned that many countries are modifying their policymaking and regulatory frameworks and institutions addressing the phenomenon of convergence of broadcast and telecom industries. 

One of the ways this has been achieved is by merging different regulatory authorities for telecom and broadcasting into regulatory bodies. Large economies around the world like the USA, UK, Australia, EU etc. have established convergent regulators who are empowered and are responsible for overseeing the complete electronic communication space, which includes telecom, broadcast media and cyberspace. 

“They have a common body that authorises or provides licenses to both telecom and broadcast services. In light of the above, but also keeping into account India’s situation and landscape, we are at a stage now where we are ideally suited to discuss debate and draw from the best of international practices, keeping in view the specific Indian set of challenges, the consumers profiles and stakeholders.” 

Speaking on the same topic, Sanjiv Shankar, Joint Secretary, Broadcasting, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, too shared his insights on the connection between telecom service providers and OTT players. 

Shankar said that OTT applications, facilitated by internet protocols, have decoupled content from carriage, empowering service providers to directly reach end-user communication networks. This decoupling has allowed OTT players to ride on a readymade infrastructure, herein lies the issue. 

“In this evolving landscape, OTT services like WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram, Skype have emerged as formidable competitors to the traditional telecom services, leveraging the same infrastructure laid down by telecom service providers. Yet they do not directly compete with the services governed by telecom licenses. This dichotomy poses profound questions about regulation, competition and consumer welfare,” shared Shankar.  

According to him, the rise of broadband internet has been maturing in India. “We know that this is witnessing exponential growth in the past decade. However, amidst this transformative shift, regulatory challenges loom large. The debate over the regulatory framework for OTT services has been ongoing, with stakeholders grappling to strike a balance between fostering innovation and ensuring a level-playing field. TRAI consultation and the offering on OTT regulation underscored the complexities inherent in this space calling for a nuanced approach that considers international precedents and emerging regulatory paradigms.”

He further added that central to this discourse is the principle of net neutrality, which advocates for equal treatment for all internet traffic. “Imposing carriage fees on OTT services could potentially undermine this principle, " said Shankar.

In his speech, Shankar also spoke about the fact that in the broadcasting sector there are carriage fees. Can we bring that template in the relationship between the telecom operators and the OTT players also? Asked Shankar. “So, the imposition of carriage fees may have another side of the argument that has adverse consequences for consumers, leading to increased costs and reduced choice. Critics argue that such fees could hamper innovation and competition in this streaming industry favouring larger players at the expense of smaller ones,” he explained.  

He shared that what is suggested by most is that a collaborative framework that encourages dialogue between OTT providers and telecom operators are essential to address regulatory uncertainties and promote a thriving digital economy. 

The collaborative framework which is being talked about, can take care of one or many of these suggested points:

“One is creating an enabling environment to encourage competition, innovation, and investment in the digital economy. Then OTT and network operators remain critically interdependent to each other. We should continue to foster entrepreneurship and innovation on OTT application side. It is not that if a carriage fee is imposed, it will stifle innovation in the OTT application side,” said Shankar.

“If the situation allows, the voluntary commercial arrangements between telecom network operators and OTT providers may be encouraged,” he added.