The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Wednesday recommended that the government may amend the rules under the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act that govern the cable TV distribution sector in the country to enable the use of the last mile infrastructure they have created by the Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) for promoting broadband connections.
In its recommendations, TRAI said the government may take suitable measures to facilitate and promote sharing of cable infrastructure by the local cable operators with the TSPs.
“Cable operators may strive to provide last mile access to access service providers, Internet Service Providers in a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory manner for proliferation of broadband services,” it stated in its recommendations.
It also pointed out that India’s large cable TV distribution sector does not require any additional regulations or corrective measures to enhance the level of competition but the developments should be monitored and necessary interventions to be considered at appropriate time.
TRAI’s recommendation come on the back of a letter from the ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB) dated February 2021 which said the regulator’s earlier recommendations on “Monopoly\Market Dominance in the Cable TV Services Sector” were made in 2013 and a considerable time has elapsed with the media and entertainment landscape having transformed since.
Consequently, TRAI issued a consultation paper on “Market Structure\Competition in Cable TV Services” in October 2021 and closed all stakeholder comments in December.
After studying stakeholder comments, TRAI said that globally, cable TV broadband (CATV) has become very popular as it is less expensive, quick to deploy and easier to handle. CATV broadband offered to customers via the existing CATV network can deliver higher broadband speeds. “In India, Cable TV industry has tremendous reach, deep into urban and rural areas. Because of its affordability and ubiquity, cable broadband could be, for India, a super-fast highway for broadband communications for most homes and businesses in the foreseeable future,” it noted.
TRAI said cable operators can play an important role in the delivery of broadband if an appropriate policy framework is put in place. For accelerated growth of cable broadband, a harmonized effort is required by the industry and the Government.
