I&B Ministry reviews replies as broadcaster bodies dodge landing page question

New Delhi: Although a few broadcasters, in their individual capacities, and the cable operators’ body opposed the government’s move to exclude landing page impressions from television ratings, the top television industry bodies did not address the contentious issue due to differences among their members.

Top sources privy to the development told BestMediaInfo.com that the Indian Broadcasting and Digital Foundation (IBDF) and the News Broadcasters and Digital Association (NBDA) have remained largely non-committal in their responses to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) on the landing page question.

Senior ministry sources said the replies submitted so far vary widely in tone and substance, making it increasingly difficult to arrive at a clear or consolidated view based on the responses received.

What IBDF, NBDA did not say

The replies received from the top industry bodies are said to avoid directly addressing the core issue of whether landing-page-led exposure should ever have been counted as viewership in the first place.

Instead, the responses are understood to have focused on broader concerns around implementation, transition timelines, and operational challenges, without taking a clear position on the principle behind the amendment.

When asked what the apex industry bodies did not say about landing pages in their responses, an industry veteran told BestMediaInfo.com that they are, in fact, indirectly backing the government’s move.

The veteran said cable operators have turned landing pages into a year-round mechanism to extract additional payments from broadcasters, beyond what would ordinarily be expected under legitimate commercial arrangements, including those envisaged under the Reference Interconnect Offer (RIO).

According to the veteran, landing pages have evolved into a round-the-clock monetisation lever for operators, used as “additional ammunition” in carriage negotiations.

In the veteran’s view, removing landing pages from measurement would reduce that leverage, improve broadcaster profitability, and free up capital to reinvest in content.

The veteran also argued that the news genre, in particular, has lived off this distortion for years, adding that the incentives created by “sticky” exposure have shaped increasingly aggressive programming choices with wider societal consequences.

Broadcasters’ mixed responses

Sensing the deadlock within the industry bodies, NDTV, Network18, and Times Network told the ministry that the proposed amendment attempts to regulate a matter currently pending before the Supreme Court, which, in their view, violates principles of administrative propriety, BestMediaInfo.com’s exclusive report said.

The broadcasters further argued that the proposal effectively revives a measurement approach that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) had already examined and rejected in 2018 as “unsuitable” and “technically flawed”.

At the same time, sources close to the matter said Zee Media, TV Today, ABP Network, India TV, and Republic Media Network are among the legacy broadcasters that have opposed the use of landing pages and have called for their removal from the ratings framework, reflecting the lack of consensus even among large networks.

A loophole the government wants shut

For years, landing pages, the default channel that appears when a television or set-top box is switched on, have been among the most contentious issues in Indian television measurement.

Critics have long argued that counting these few seconds of passive exposure as “viewership” artificially inflates ratings, distorts advertiser decisions, and undermines trust in the ratings ecosystem.

Recognising this, the government’s latest amendment to the Television Rating Agency policy guidelines makes its position unambiguous: any viewership arising out of landing pages shall not be counted in viewership measurement.

The draft guidelines clarify that landing pages can be used only as a marketing tool, not as a source of audience data.

The revised draft amendment comes alongside a broader tightening of rules around cross-holdings, board independence, minimum net worth, panel size expansion, and technology-neutral measurement, including connected TVs.

The move signals the government’s intent to clean up structural weaknesses that have dogged television ratings for more than a decade.

What happens next

Ministry officials told BestMediaInfo.com that they are reviewing the replies and may seek further clarification if they find them inadequate. Given that the amended provisions take effect immediately and apply to existing rating agencies, any ambiguity is unlikely to delay enforcement.

The final amendments are likely to be sent to the Union Cabinet soon, and will be published in the Gazette after the Cabinet’s nod.