New media platforms’ boost for M&E; to reach Rs 3.08 tr by 2026: TRAI Chairman

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) organized a Symposium on ‘Emerging Trends and Technologies in Broadcasting Sector’ on the sidelines of the India Mobile Congress yesterday (October 17, 2024). The symposium explored the transformative potential and practical applications of emerging technologies within the broadcasting industry, with a particular focus on immersive technologies, D2M and 5G broadcasting and digital radio.

In his keynote address, Anil Kumar Lahoti, Chairman, TRAI, underscored the significant growth trajectory of the M&E sector, which is projected to reach ₹ 3.08 trillion by 2026, driven by the rapid expansion of new media platforms. Lahoti emphasized on the transformative power of immersive technologies, which provides more engaging and interactive experience. He highlighted that Direct-to-Mobile (D2M) broadcasting is emerging as an alternative content delivery technology allowing simultaneous broadcasting even without Internet.

Additionally, he stressed upon the benefits of digital radio, especially in areas lacking television connections and reiterated TRAI’s commitment to provide forward-looking recommendations and regulations that protect consumer interests, ensuring level playing field for service providers and promoting overall growth of broadcasting sector. TRAI has recently provided its recommendations for the formulation of National Broadcasting Policy.

Sanjay Jaju, Secretary of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) in his special address, highlighted the Ministry’s role in shaping growth-oriented policies and initiatives for enabling the broadcasting sector. He emphasized the potential of digital radio as an affordable mass communication tool that optimizes spectrum use and delivers better sound quality. He also discussed the benefits of Direct-to-Mobile (D2M) broadcasting, which enables content delivery directly to mobile phones.

Jaju highlighted that Prasar Bharati, the public service broadcaster, in collaboration with IIT Kanpur and Saankhya Labs, is conducting D2M trials using both high-power and low-power transmitters. He also spoke on the transformative potential of 5G, especially when combined with immersive technologies like Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality, which could offer highly engaging broadcasting experiences. Additionally, he mentioned the significant growth is expected in the Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, Comics and Extended Reality (AVGC-XR) sector, which has the potential to boost start-up culture, foster creativity, and enhance the experience of content consumption.

In his inaugural address, Dr L Murugan, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs, emphasized on the transformative impact of technological advancements on India’s broadcasting sector, with content becoming the primary focus for viewers. He stressed on the need to improve access to broadcasting services for vulnerable populations to ensure their inclusion in social, economic, and political spheres. He called for special attention to the AVGC sector, promoting content production in India through a streamlined single-window system to enhance ease of doing business.

The minister noted India’s growth as a content-driven economy, which is also benefitting content creators. He also mentioned the recent approval of the Union Cabinet to auction FM Radio Channels in 234 new cities to boost local content and create employment opportunities. He reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to using technological advancements to strengthen the broadcasting sector’s role in economic growth and cultural dissemination, ensuring access to high-quality media content for all.

The symposium was structured in three back-to-back sessions designed to cover significant topics shaping the broadcasting landscape. 

The first session, titled ‘Use of Immersive Technologies in the Broadcasting Landscape’, delved into how technologies like augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality (MR) can revolutionize content creation and consumption in broadcasting. Experts from broadcasting domain alongside technology innovators presented the use cases to highlight how immersive technologies can enhance viewer engagement, create richer experiences and reshape the future of media content delivery.

The second session, ‘D2M and 5G Broadcasting: Opportunities and Challenges’, discussed the two major technological standards, namely ATSC 3.0 and 5G broadcasting (based on 3GPP standard) to facilitate the seamless direct reception of content to mobile handsets, potentially transforming how users’ access and consume media. The sessions also discussed the trials being conducted and challenges such as requirement of the infrastructure, spectrum, end device ecosystem, etc.

The final session, ‘Digital Radio Technology: Deployment Strategies in India’, examined the strategies for deploying digital radio for the Indian market. Experts discussed the advantages digital radio offers, including superior sound quality, spectrum efficiency and the ability to deliver multimedia services; along with the challenges and solutions for interoperability with existing analogue networks, enabling a smoother transition to digital broadcasting.