NEW DELHI: Television channels will no longer be restricted to 12 minutes of advertisements per hour, with the government deciding to scrap the two-decade-old cap in a move it says will put traditional broadcasters on a more level footing with digital platforms.The restriction, introduced in 2006 under the Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994, will cease to apply once the amended rules are notified in the Gazette, the information and broadcasting ministry said.The government has argued that the television landscape has changed substantially since the cap was imposed. India had only 62 TV channels in 2006, compared with more than 900 now. Cable television, then the dominant distribution platform, was largely analog and offered limited capacity and consumer choice.With digitisation, platforms including cable TV, direct-to-home, HITS and IPTV can now carry 300 to 500 channels or more, significantly expanding viewer choice and competition, the ministry said.The decision could give broadcasters greater flexibility to determine advertising inventory, an important consideration for an industry that remains heavily dependent on advertising revenue across both pay and free-to-air channels.
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The ministry also cited the growing competition television faces from digital media, where there is no comparable statutory cap on advertising duration.It said the existing restriction had created a “non-level playing field” for conventional television broadcasters and that removing it would promote “fair competition” and ease of doing business.The change, however, will become operational only from the date the amendment to the Cable Television Networks Rules is formally notified.
