WAVES shifts marketing burden to creators with mandatory audience engagement plans

Prasar Bharati’s OTT platform WAVES is introducing a stringent anti-manipulation and creator accountability framework that effectively turns content onboarding into a regulated digital marketplace, with creators now being evaluated not just on content quality but also on their ability to drive audiences, app downloads and engagement.

The development emerges from the newly released “Notice Inviting Programme Proposals” (NIPP) under the Prasar Bharati Pay-Per-View (PPV) Content Sourcing Policy, 2026, which lays out an extensive operational and compliance architecture for onboarding content onto WAVES OTT. 

The new framework signals a major strategic shift in how the public broadcaster intends to scale WAVES as a digital-first OTT platform competing for premium, regional and creator-led content.

Creators to be judged on audience-pulling power

One of the biggest changes under the new framework is the formal integration of marketing capability and audience mobilisation into the content evaluation process.

Applicants seeking onboarding on WAVES must now submit a detailed “Marketing, Outreach & Audience Engagement Plan” outlining trailer launches, influencer tie-ups, social media campaigns, YouTube promotions, creator collaborations, regional promotions and audience engagement activities.

Content providers will also have to disclose their existing follower base, expected campaign reach, retention potential, fan community strength and their proposed strategy for driving WAVES app downloads and user registrations.

The framework effectively shifts a significant part of user acquisition responsibility onto creators and production houses rather than relying solely on platform-led promotion.

Industry executives tracking the development said the model resembles creator-economy driven OTT ecosystems globally, where audience ownership and community engagement increasingly influence commissioning and monetisation decisions.

Prasar Bharati has separately initiated the process to appoint a dedicated marketing and creative agency for WAVES OTT to strengthen platform branding, digital promotion and user acquisition efforts.

Crackdown on fake streaming and bot traffic

The policy also introduces one of the most detailed anti-fraud structures seen in an Indian OTT onboarding framework.

Under the Integrity Pact section, content providers are expressly prohibited from engaging in artificial inflation of streaming metrics, fake audience generation, bot-driven traffic, repetitive non-genuine streaming or manipulation of analytics systems.

Any violation could lead to suspension of payouts, removal of content, recovery of previously paid amounts, blacklisting and legal proceedings.

The broadcaster has also reserved powers to investigate operational records and financial documents of content providers in case of suspected manipulation or policy violations.

The strict provisions come as OTT platforms globally face growing concerns around streaming fraud, manipulated engagement metrics and artificial viewership inflation.

Extensive legal liabilities for content owners

The framework significantly expands legal obligations for producers, aggregators and rights holders.

Applicants will be required to submit indemnity bonds, rights declarations and notarised affidavits confirming lawful ownership of rights, music clearances, performer permissions and statutory approvals.

Where exclusive or unreleased content is offered, applicants must declare that the content has not already been commercially exploited on competing OTT or digital platforms.

The broadcaster has also introduced broad indemnification clauses protecting itself against copyright disputes, performer claims, licensing conflicts and privacy violations arising from onboarded content.

OTT onboarding becomes compliance-heavy process

The framework reveals that onboarding on WAVES will involve enterprise-grade ingestion, metadata management and technical quality-control systems.

Content providers must comply with prescribed delivery specifications covering metadata structures, subtitles, artwork, folder structures, checksum verification and technical QC requirements.

The broadcaster said all platform analytics, operational information and performance data shared with content partners would remain confidential and could not be publicly disclosed without prior approval.

Public broadcaster builds digital ecosystem

The new framework underlines Prasar Bharati’s transition from a conventional broadcaster-led acquisition system into a platform-driven digital content ecosystem built around analytics, creator participation, engagement metrics and audience conversion.

Earlier pilot PPV frameworks introduced validated-view-based payouts linked to actual audience consumption. The revised 2026 framework expands that structure into a more comprehensive OTT governance and monetisation architecture.

The government has already described WAVES and the PPV framework as central to Prasar Bharati’s “digital-first content strategy”, particularly aimed at younger audiences and regional digital consumption.