The TV broadcasting sector has undergone significant changes and advertising is the major source of revenue for channels in India.
Major relief for TV channels, govt removes 12- minute Ad cap: The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has decided to remove the 12-minute cap on advertisement duration for television channels. The government has also issued an order related to this on Friday. The decision aimed at promoting fair competition and improving the ease of doing business.
According to the Ministry, this change will be effected through an amendment to the Cable Television Network Rules, 1994. Under the existing rules, TV channels cannot show more than 12 minutes of advertisements in an hour. This includes up to 10 minutes of commercial ads and up to two minutes of the channel’s own promotion. This limitation is applicable under Rule 7(11) of the Cable Television Network Rules.
The Ministry also said that when this limit on advertising was introduced in 2006, there were only 62 TV channels in the country. These platforms, including DTH, Cable TV, HITS and IPTV, currently show over 300 to 500 channels. The TV broadcasting sector has undergone significant changes and advertising is the major source of revenue for channels in India. The revised rules will be notified in the Gazette before the new provisions come into effect the ministry added.
Now, the TV channel sector in India is largely dependent on advertising. Whether the channel is on pay or free to air, ministry said. Therefore, it has been decided to remove the time limit of advertisement to promote fairness and ensure ease of doing business.
The decision comes at a time when the Delhi High Court had dismissed petitions challenging the ban on TV ads a few months ago.
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