Why are streaming apps worried over Prasar Bharati's this new move?

Public broadcaster Prasar Bharati is planning to launch a wide range of content on its proposed video streaming platform, including news, entertainment and, potentially, sports

India’s state-owned television broadcaster Prasar Bharati is planning to launch its own video streaming platform, sparking concern among private players about the potential impact of the move on their businesses.

To be clear, Prasar Bharati, in an email sent to private broadcasters, has not yet shared whether sports will be featured on its proposed OTT (over-the-top) platform, LiveMint reported.

However, the private broadcasters worry that if sports events are streamed freely on Prasar Bharati, it could damage their prospects of monetising the genre.

One of the officials associated with the matter told LiveMint that if private players are forced to share the feed of live sports events with Prasar Bharati, it would mark the ‘end of sports broadcasting’.

“Sports rights are sold at a very high premium today because they are the only events which command appointment viewing and male audiences,” the executive said, noting that they generate higher advertising revenue per rating point delivered.

Prasar Barati’s new OTT platform

According to the report, Prasar Bharati aims to launch a wide range of content on its platform, including news, entertainment and, potentially, sports.

The state-owned broadcaster has not yet made an official comment on the development.

At present, Disney Star has secured the rights to stream the International Cricket Council’s (ICC’s) tournaments till 2027 and Viacom18 holds the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) media rights for Rs 5,963 crore till March 2028.

The public service broadcaster, launched in 1997, is likely to offer the first couple years of subscription to its new platform free of cost to reach a wider audience.

Broadcast rules for major games

Under the present rules, for the games of national importance such as Olympics Games, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games among others, the rights holders are required to share the broadcast signals with Prasar Bharati. This move is aimed at making sports more accessible to a wider audience.

In cricket, test matches, one-day, twenty-20, women’s cricket teams and all ICC test matches featuring India fall under this category.