"The India government is planning to open the terrestrial TV broadcasting space so that operators are able to offer mobile TV services. At present, private operators are not allowed access and government-owned Doordarshan is the only broadcaster providing terrestrial TV services.The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is currently working on recommendations to be submitted to the ministry of information and broadcasting on issues related to mobile TV.

"The restriction on terrestrial TV broadcasting will require at least a limited relaxation to permit mobile TV operation, pending a decision on the larger issue of allowing private participation in analogue and digital terrestrial broadcasting by the government," states the regulator in the consultation paper.

Mobile television services allow a subscriber to view television services in a mobile phone or any other handheld device. A mobile TV service provider can be a telecom service provider or may be an independent mobile service operator. There are two ways of delivering television content to mobile devices—via mobile telecommunications networks or by using the broadcasting technologies. The main drawback of providing TV through the mobile networks is that there may be congestion in the network, if a large number of subscribers access television at the same time. However, its advantage is that roll out becomes easy in such cases.

The broadcasting method has an advantage of the efficient use of spectrum as the video content is delivered using one-to-many distribution topology. Thus, different viewers do not require dedicated channels for delivery of video content to them. This is very similar to traditional broadcasting services. A hybrid of the two technologies is also taking place.

About two years ago, TRAI had suggested the government should open terrestrial broadcasting space to the private sector also. The government, however, did not take any decision on it then. Now, it has asked the regulator to give its recommendations on mobile TV.

Sharing of infrastructure is another important issue for the success of mobile TV services. The planning commission had earlier suggested that the private operators should be allowed to share network for speedy rollout of services. "This will also ensure a viable business case for mobile operators and speedy rollout of mobile services throughout the country," said Parag Kar, a senior director of Qualcomm. "Mobile TV services will not only enable entertainment but also enable interactive visual-based application so as to educate masses on various issues," said Nikhil Jain, chief technology officer (CTO) of Qualcomm"
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