The request comes even as the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) finalises the authorisation regime under the Telecommunications Act.
Although Direct-to-Home (DTH) operators are yet to formally submit their response to the draft Telecommunications (Television, Radio and Associated Services) Rules, 2026, industry executives said they will seek a level playing field across television distribution technologies and the implementation of long-pending recommendations of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
Their demands broadly mirror those recently made by the All India Digital Cable Federation (AIDCF).
The MIB published the draft rules on June 12 for public consultation as part of the transition to the new authorisation regime, which replaces the previous licensing framework. While the industry has welcomed the move to consolidate multiple legacy broadcasting guidelines into a single legal framework, executives say the draft retains regulatory asymmetry, with competing television platforms subject to different financial and compliance obligations.
Private DTH operators remain subject to annual authorisation fees, bank guarantee requirements, mandatory carriage obligations, which require them to carry specified television channels, and extensive compliance norms.
By contrast, DD Free Dish faces no similar obligations, while Application-based Linear Television Distribution (ALTD) services, which deliver live television channels over the internet, and Free Ad-supported Streaming Television (FAST) channels, free streaming television channels funded by advertising, remain outside the proposed framework.
Cable operators continue to be governed under the separate Cable Television Networks Act. Both DTH and cable executives said the MIB should have waited for TRAI’s recommendations before issuing the draft rules.
The industry’s demands come as the pay-TV market contracts. The DTH subscriber base has fallen to 49 million from more than 62 million two years ago. According to the FICCI-EY Media & Entertainment Report 2026, India’s linear television distribution revenue declined 8% to Rs 35,400 crore (gross of taxes) in 2025 from Rs 38,500 crore in 2024, mainly because 11.5 million households stopped paying for television services, although average revenue per user (ARPU) increased 2.4% to Rs 288.
Industry executives argue that viewers increasingly consume the same linear television channels across multiple technologies, making platform-specific regulation outdated. They want all linear television distribution platforms, including ALTD, FAST channels and DD Free Dish, brought under comparable licensing and compliance requirements.
Excluding some platforms creates opportunities for regulatory arbitrage, allowing them to avoid obligations that apply to licensed operators, they argue. TRAI has completed consultations on ALTD and FAST services and is expected to submit its recommendations to the MIB soon.
DTH operators could seek the implementation of pending TRAI recommendations, including reducing the annual authorisation fee from 8% to 3% of adjusted gross revenue (AGR), the revenue on which licence fees are calculated. They would also likely seek lower bank guarantee requirements, a narrow definition of gross revenue, and greater clarity on the government’s auditing authority.
The AIDCF has also sought uniform Programming and Advertisement Codes across all broadcasting platforms, phased encryption of DD Free Dish and incorporation of TRAI’s recommendations on ground-based broadcasters into the final rules.