Repeal of Standards of Quality of Service for Television Advertisement Duration

TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY, PART III, SECTION 4

TELECOM REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF INDIA NOTIFICATION

New Delhi, the 10^th^ September 2026

F. No. RG-7/1/(1)/2023-B AND CS (1 AND 3) — In exercise of the powers conferred by section 36 of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997 (24 of 1997), the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India hereby makes the following regulations to repeal the Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) Regulations, 2012 (15 of 2012), namely:

THE STANDARDS OF QUALITY OF SERVICE (DURATION OF ADVERTISEMENTS IN TELEVISION CHANNELS) (REPEALING) REGULATIONS, 2026
(4 of 2026)

1. Short title and commencement. — (1) These regulations may be called the Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) (Repealing) Regulations, 2026.
(2) They shall come into force from the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.

2. Repeal and Savings. — (1) On coming into force of these regulations, the Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) Regulations, 2012 (15 of 2012) along with all orders and directions issued thereunder shall stand repealed.

(2) The repeal of the Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) Regulations, 2012 (15 of 2012) shall not affect the previous operation of the said regulations and any direction or order issued thereunder, or validity, effect or consequences of anything already done or any action taken, or purported to have been done or taken, or omitted to be done or suffered thereunder.

(Ashok Kumar Jha)
Secretary I/C, TRAI

Note: The Explanatory Memorandum explains the objects and reasons of the “Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) (Repealing) Regulations, 2026”.

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

1. Background

1.1 The Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) Regulations, 2012 (15 of 2012) was notified on the 14^th^ May, 2012, in exercise of powers conferred by section 36 read with sub clauses (i) and (v) of clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 11 of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997, read with the notification of the Government of India, in the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (Department of Telecommunications), No. 39. These regulations as a quality of service measure provided, inter alia, that no broadcaster shall carry advertisements exceeding twelve minutes in a clock hour, to effectively monitor the duration of advertisement and to ensure that the broadcasters comply with rule 7, sub-rule (11) of Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994 (CTN Rules, 1994), and additionally prescribed conditions on carriage of advertisements during live sporting events, minimum time gaps between advertisement sessions, prohibition on part-screen and drop-down advertisements and parity of audio levels between programmes and advertisements.

1.2 The said regulations were challenged by some of the broadcasters in the Hon’ble Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT). Considering the issues raised by broadcasters in TDSAT, the Authority decided to revisit the said regulations. Following due consultation process, the said regulations was subsequently amended by the Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) (Amendment) Regulations, 2013 (3 of 2013), notified on the 22^nd^ March 2013, which, while retaining only the twelve-minute ceiling for advertisements in a clock hour under Regulation 3, empowered the Authority to issue order or direction to service providers to protect the interests of the subscribers or for ensuring compliance of the regulations under Regulation 4; and a reporting requirement by broadcasters under Regulation 5.

1.3 Some of the broadcasters had challenged the provisions of the Regulations before the Hon’ble High Court of Delhi in WP (C) No. 7989/2013 titled as M/s News Broadcasters Association & others Vs TRAI and other connected matters. The Hon’ble High Court of Delhi in its judgement dated 29.05.2026, as amended on 03.07.2026 has dismissed the batch of writ petitions and ruled that the Rule 7(11) of the Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994 and Regulation 3 of Ad-Cap Regulations constitute a constitutionally valid exercise of regulatory power, striking a proportionate balance between broadcaster rights and the public interest in efficient and fair use of broadcast spectrum.

2. Decision of the Central Government and justification for repeal

2.1 The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), vide a Press Release dated 14.08.2026, announced the Government's decision to remove the 12-minute advertisement duration cap for television channels prescribed under the CTN Rules, 1994. As per the press release, the ceiling was introduced in 2006, when there were only 62 television channels and the principal distribution platform at that time was cable TV in analog mode with limited carriage capacity which offered very limited choice to the consumers. Distribution has since been completely digitised, with DTH, Cable TV, HITS and IPTV platforms now together carrying 300 to 500 channels or more, resulting in adequate competition and consumer choice in the market. In view of the changes that have occurred in the TV broadcasting sector, the Ministry felt the need to revisit the stipulations relating to advertisement duration. The sector is heavily dependent on advertising irrespective of whether the channel is ‘pay’ or ‘free-to-air’. Further there was a non-level playing field for traditional TV channels vis-à-vis digital media, where no such stipulation on advertisement cap regulation exists. The Ministry had a view that there exists adequate competition in the market and therefore decided to remove the advertisement duration cap to enable fair competition and ease of doing business for the television broadcasting sector.

2.2 Consequent upon the said policy decision, MIB issued a Gazette Notification dated 21.08.2026, whereby sub-rule (11) of rule 7 of the CTN Rules, 1994 has been omitted.

2.3 Since TRAI’s regulations of 2012 and its amendment of 2013 was made to effectively monitor and ensure compliance with the provisions of the CTN Rules, 1994, safeguarding the quality of service and viewing experience of consumers, the continuation of a parallel cap and an associated quarterly reporting requirement under these regulations, after withdrawal of the ceiling by the Central Government, would perpetuate the very restriction that the Government has decided to remove. Therefore, the Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) Regulations, 2012 along with all orders and directions issued thereunder, appears to be inconsistent with the CTN Rules, 1994. TRAI, in accordance with its mandate, reserves the right to revisit the advertising limits in view of consumer protection and quality of service.

Hence, in order to maintain consistency with the decision of the Central Government, and in view of the omission of the Rule 7(11) of Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994, prescribing advertisement duration cap, the Authority has decided to repeal the Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) Regulations, 2012 (15 of 2012) along with all orders and directions issued thereunder.