Public Service Broadcasting and the digital switchover

IN Research Studies | 01/09/2014
Has digitization changed television viewing in the country?Why have people migrated to digital signals? What are their programming needs?
A research study by The Media Foundation, Delhi

A research study by The Media Foundation, Delhi,

supported by Ford Foundation

 

A complete shift in television access from analog to digital was mandated by an amendment to the Cable TV act in 2011.

This meant all TV channel signals would be encrypted and accessible only through a set top box after a switch-off date.

________________________________________________

 
 

Research questions

Has digitization changed television viewing in the country?

Why have people migrated to digital signals?

What are their programming needs?

Has digitization served those needs

What is it doing to the public broadcaster’s reach?

Are there barriers to the use of television itself?

The research universe:

People at the bottom of the pyramid in five states:

Andhra Pradesh,

Chhattisgarh

Delhi

Gujarat

Odisha

Additonal interviews in UP and Bihar

 

Working class people, scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and OBCs.

Locations:

 

Poorer districts of the country including those with large tribal populations:

 

Kalahandi * Kandhamal * Sambalpur * Puri * Bastar * Rajnandgaon * Dantewada * Surguja * Surajpur * Adilabad * Narmada * Tapi

Farming zones

 

Krishna and West Godavari districts

 

Semi urban locations

 

Aganampudi, Ward No. 56 of the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation

 

Kukurbeda, Ward No. 14 (Ishwari Charan Shukla Ward) of the Raipur Municipal Corporation

 

Urban slums

 

Delhi

Kalyanpuri, Subhash Camp, Ramchand Basti, Saboli Khadda, Rajasthani Camp and Tulsiram Bagicha.

 

Ahmedabad

Juhapura, Vadaj

 

Rajkot

Lakshminagar

Raiyya Dhar

Shantinagar

 

Surat:

Gopipura, Mora Bhagal

 

Bhuj: mixed group from nine slum colonies

Research methods

Household surveys--15 villages

2 semi urban areas

6 urban slums

 

Focus group discussions 55

 

Interviews:

Prasar Bharati executives

Doordarshan programme personnel

Engineering staff

Cable operators

Village residents in UP and Bihar

Locations of hh surveys 

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