India Considering A BBC-Like Global TV Channel
By Nikhil Pahwa - Mon 21 Apr 2008 08:44 AM PST
The Indian government is mulling a global television channel on the lines of the BBC, reports ET. The idea is “the voice of India is heard and appreciated by the global community”. What’s important is that Prasar Bharati, the state owned broadcasting company, will be studying distribution arrangements for the channel. The government is planning an outlay of Rs. 100 crore on the project. I wonder if there will be a digital component involved - the BBC has an excellent (user friendly) site, and you probably know about their iPlayer.
Apart from India, France, Russia, New Zealand and the African countries are also planning similar channels, which will air their respective views on what’s happening in the world. Frankly, it all appears to be propaganda channels to me.
Anyway, while looking around for more information on Prasar Bharti, I came across this report. The chapter on new technology mentions that Prasar Bharati should set up a New Media division. There’s no telling whether this report is from this century or the last, since the online version of the report is not dated.
