Mumbai: Today, there is a shift in viewing habits from linear television to OTT and from theatres to OTT. The rise in content creation is leading to more and more jobs for people. With the arrival of 5G, there is the possibility of direct-to-mobile broadcasting. In a collaboration, Prasar Bharti and IIT Kanpur have come up with a proof of concept whereby, with a small attachment, there can be a direct-to-mobile broadcast. So, without purchasing data, there can be 100-200 channels streamed direct to mobile.
Speaking at Ficci Frames Fasttrack 2022, I&B secretary Apurva Chandra said, "Without data and high-quality internet, users will be able to see high-resolution movies and listen to digital radio on their mobile phones. This change is coming. It will happen."
He also announced that a report on the creation of an AVGC task force will be submitted soon. He noted that there were reports on skills, gaming, education, incentives, and other policy aspects within the task force. They are all being combined and will be submitted to the authorities. He added that the report will be adopted during the course of the year.
"AVGC is the future of this country. The best Hollywood films are being created in Bangalore and other places. AVGC will be the next great revolution like IT was 30 years ago," he stated. Furthermore, he mentioned changing the cinematography act to include anti-piracy provisions. Also, there will be an age classification within the U/A category. The aim is to bring in amendments to the Act and put it before Parliament during the winter session.
He further added that the AVGC centre of excellence, which has not seen the light of day over the past six years, aims to do this only in collaboration with the private sector. An in-principle decision has been taken in this regard. A total of 26 per cent of the task force will be owned by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), 48 per cent by the ministry of information and broadcasting (I&B), and 26 per cent by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (Ficci).
He also said that the media and entertainment industries should target a combined size of $100 billion by 2030. He noted that during National Cinema Day, theatres were full even in the morning. That, he said, shows that you can get people to view movies in theatres as long as the ticket pricing is right. National Film Development Corporation of India (NFDC) will be the cinematic arm of the I&B ministry. The four film units will be merged into one. The film facilitation office will be revamped, he concluded.
