Govt. mulling fresh FM radio auction: I&B Secretary

Information and Broadcasting Secretary Apurva Chandra on Thursday said the Central Government was mulling fresh auction of FM radio stations this year, to expand its coverage in the country.

Addressing the Broadcast Engineering Society Expo-2023, Mr. Chandra said the FM radio service currently covered only 60% of the country.

The I&B Secretary said the Centre had recently allocated ₹2,500 crore under the Broadcasting Infrastructure and Network Development (BIND) Scheme, to be spent over a period of four years, which would result in the infrastructure upgrade of the Prasar Bharati.

About the direct-to-mobile television broadcast trials, Mr. Chandra said IIT-Kanpur and Sankhya Labs had installed transmitters along Kartavya Path and nearby areas for the purpose. He said the technology had the potential of increasing the reach of TV media. Mobile phone users would have to attach a special dongle to their devices to receive TV signals. Also, mobile phone manufacturers could be encouraged to install a TV signal receiver.

Mr. Chandra said Prasar Bharati had an unmatched archival repository which had not been monetised yet. In this regard, the public broadcaster was planning to have an OTT platform for its content.