Prasar Bharati's auction for DD Free Dish MPEG-2 slots from Feb 10

Public service broadcaster Prasar Bharati has invited applications for allotment of vacant MPEG-2 slots on DD Free Dish DTH Platform for the period from April 1, 2025 to March 31, 2026.

The 7th Annual online e-auction process will tentatively begin on February 10, 2025 (Monday).

According to the notice issued by Orasar Bharati, the e-auction will be conducted in accordance with E-auction Methodology 2025 for allotment of DD Free Dish slots to private TV channels.

“Only satellite channels permitted and licensed by the Ministry of I&B would be allowed to participate in the e-auction. Only companies holding valid permission from Ministry of I & B can apply for participation in e-auction for allocation of DD Free Dish slot. International Public Broadcasters permitted and licensed by the Ministry of I & B can also participate in e-auction,” the notice said.

The document provides a framework for categorizing TV channels into different buckets based on their genre and language for an allotment period.

Bucket A+ includes General Entertainment Channels (GEC) in Hindi and Urdu, while Bucket A covers Movie channels in the same languages. 

Bucket B consists of Music and Sports channels in Hindi and Urdu, channels in the Bhojpuri language, and any other Hindi/Urdu channels not classified elsewhere. 

Bucket C focuses on News and Current Affairs channels in Hindi and Urdu. 

Bucket D encompasses Devotional, Spiritual, or Ayush channels; all Marathi and Punjabi channels; English News and Current Affairs channels; and regional language channels (excluding Hindi, Urdu, Marathi, and Punjabi) that are either newly launched or re-launched and meet specific criteria. 

Bucket R includes channels in regional languages other than Hindi, Urdu, Marathi, and Punjabi, provided they meet operational and platform eligibility requirements. This categorization ensures an equitable and systematic allotment of channels across diverse genres and linguistic groups.