News: The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) notified the TV Ratings Policy, 2026, replacing the 2014 Television Rating Guidelines.
About
- Makes MIB the sole authority for registration, regulation, and monitoring of TV rating agencies, removing regulatory overlap with TRAI.
- Rating agencies must comply with the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023 for data privacy.
Key Features
- Lower Entry Barriers: Minimum net worth reduced from ₹20 crore to ₹5 crore to encourage competition.
- Platform-Neutral Ratings: Audience measurement must cover Cable TV, DTH, Connected TV, and OTT platforms.
- Better Representation: Metered households increased from 50,000 to at least 80,000, with demographic surveys every 3 years.
- Data Integrity: Landing-page viewership will not be counted to prevent artificial inflation of TV ratings.
- Governance Reforms: Restricts cross-holdings and consultancy activities; mandates at least 33% independent directors.
- Compliance: Requires annual independent audits and introduces a graded penalty mechanism for violations.