TRAI notifies amendments to Regulatory Framework for Broadcasting and Cable Services

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New Delhi, Nov 23 (IANS) The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Tuesday issued the Telecommunication (Broadcasting and Cable) Services Tariff (Third Amendment) Order, 2022 and the Telecommunication (Broadcasting and Cable) Services Interconnection (Fourth Amendment) Regulations, 2022.

The TRAI, in the present amendments, addressed those critical issues which were suggested by the Stakeholders’ Committee to avoid inconvenience to consumers while implementing the Tariff Amendment Order 2020.

Officials said that the authority analysed the comments of the stakeholders and to protect the interests of consumers has notified the amendments to Tariff Order 2017 and Interconnection Regulations 2017.

The main features of the amendments include continuance of forbearance on MRP of TV channels and only those channels which are having MRP of Rs 19 or less will be permitted to be part of a bouquet. Moreover, a broadcaster can offer a maximum discount of 45 per cent while pricing its bouquet of pay channels over the sum of MRPs of all of the pay channels in that bouquet. It also said that discounts offered as an incentive by a broadcaster on the maximum retail price of a pay channel shall be based on combined subscription of that channel both in a la carte as well as in bouquets.

All the broadcasters shall report to the Authority, any change in name, nature, language, MRP per month of channels, and composition and MRP of bouquets of channels, by December 16, and simultaneously publish such information on their websites.

All the distributors of television channels shall ensure that services to the subscribers, with effect from February 1, 2023, are provided as per the bouquets or channels opted by them.