NEW DELHI: Public broadcaster Prasar Bharati is set to finalise its Content Syndication Policy 2025 by mid-November, following a round of consultations with key industry stakeholders.
The policy aims to monetise and expand access to the broadcaster’s extensive archive of television and radio content from Doordarshan and All India Radio (Akashvani), while also enabling strategic collaborations across domestic and global platforms.
“We are going to organise an industry consultation in the next 10–12 days. I think by mid- November, we will complete the process,” Gaurav Dwivedi, CEO of Prasar Bharati, told this newspaper.
A draft policy and a detailed consultation note were circulated last month to Over-The-Top (OTT) platforms, broadcasters, radio networks, telecom operators and content aggregators, inviting feedback on various monetisation models and regulatory frameworks.
The policy proposes to categorise content syndication into three segments — free or public, commercial, and international.
Under the Free or Public category, government departments, educational institutions, and community media may accessarchival content for non-commercial, educational, and awareness purposes,with mandatory attribution. Any modification to the content will require prior approval.
The Commercial category covers OTT platforms, television channels, aggregators, telecom companies and in-flight entertainment providers, who will be able to access content through paid licensing, revenue- share agreements or bundled offerings.
Exclusive rights may be granted on a case-bycase basis, depending onthe terms of the agreement. International syndication is aimed at foreign broadcasters, diaspora platforms and cultural organisations as part of India’s cultural diplomacy efforts.
Theserights may be issued as global or territoryspecific, and on exclusive or non-exclusive terms. Prasar Bharati is also exploring flexible monetisation models such as flat-fee licensing, hybrid minimum guarantee plus revenue share and barter-based content exchanges.
The policy encourages the use of new-age tools such as AI-driven advertising, blockchain- enabled royalty tracking and addressable TV to ensure greater transparency and efficiency.
As per the draft, a Syndication Review Committee (SRC) will be established to vet all syndication applications to ensure compliance with editorial, legal and financial norms.
It also includes detailed annexures outlining rate cards, branding guidelines, metadata templates, and a list of prohibited use cases—such as political advertising and unauthorised use of content for AI training.