The Indian Broadcasting Federation (IBF), which has representation from all major channels, is setting up a committee to review the television rating systems in India.

Presently, there are no uniform guidelines wherein agencies can rate programmes on various channels.

"The IBF is putting together a technical committee to prescribe the technical specifications for a rating system which would be valid for India," the Financial Express quoted Bhuvan Lall, executive director, IBF, as saying.

The IBF has 29 members, including representatives of Doordarshan, Star, Zee, Sony, Discovery, TV Today, Sahara, ESPN, BBC, UTV, Enadu, Sabe and Sun TV, among others.

The review committee, which is expected to present a final report in the next three to four months will have representatives from all major broadcasters/TV channels, Lall said.

After the committee finalises its report, independent rating agencies that broadcasters subscribe to will have to conform to the guidelines in the report, according to Lall. The IBF expects the initiative to be the first step in offering a fair rating system for TV programmes.

Rating of TV programmes is a major issue in the industry, and the IBF is determined to address all issues that impact the industry as a whole, Lall said.

The government is sticking to its guns as far as the issue of a sectoral cap of 20 per cent for setting up a Direct-to-Home (DTH) TV platform is concerned despite all pleas from broadcasters.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday was quite categorical in an interview to the Financial Express that there would be no changes made to the original DTH guidelines.

Swaraj‘s consistent refrain on the subject despite strong lobbying indicates that entry into the DTH club will prove virtually impossible for most aspirants. There is a distinct possibility that when DTH does take off, there may be only one or at the most two competing players.

And with the government‘s own Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited (VSNL) announcing the formation of a five-member panel to chalk out its entry into DTH it all seems pretty well sewed up on that front. Who else if at all any remains to be seen.