KOLKATA: The Bombay High Court bench today reserved its judgement on the NTO 2.0 case. After hearing both sides, the court has also ordered the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) not to take any coercive action against the broadcasters for non-implementation of the amended tariff order.
Within a very short span of new tariff order (NTO) implementation, TRAI had issued a set of amendments at the beginning of 2020. It was challenged legally by the major broadcasters. Even while the case was sub-judice, TRAI had released fresh directives on 24 July, asking broadcasters to publish details including maximum retail price per month of channels and maximum retail price per month of bouquets of channels, the composition of bouquets and also amended RIO and other details. This further irked the broadcasters.
In the last couple of years, the industry has been overburdened by regulations. According to a FICCI -EY report, NTO 1.0 reduced the number of TV subscribers by 26 million. While broadcasters are reeling from the impact of Covid2019 , it is of serious concern how another change will impact the industry.
