Telecom Regulatory authority of India (TRAI) has reiterated that the Tariff Order is not applicable to OTT platforms since they don’t come under the license/permission granted by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB). Responding to the legal notice issued by Tamilnadu Digital Cable TV Operators Association (TNDCTOA), TRAAI, through its attorney has given this clarification.
The TNDCTOA has sent a legal notice to TRAI on 18th October 2021, to issue direction to pay channel broadcasters not to inflate prices in the guise of the New Tariff Order (NTO 2.0). However, TRAI said that the broadcasters were given an opportunity to submit fresh rates before 31st dec. 2021 and they will be implemented only after 1st April 2022.
While reiterating that the OTT is not controlled by TRAI, the response to the legal notice asked the complainant to withdraw the notice. Since the basic issue of pay channel price hike is not solved, it has to be seen if the Cable TV Operators Association withdraws the legal notice or not.
