Dear regulators, please back convergence in journalism to spur competition

Recently, the members of the Association of Television Channel Owners (ATCO), an organisation of Bangladesh's privately-run TV stations' sponsors, demanded government measures to stop the broadcast of video news by IPTVs and news portals of media outlets, only to protect their 'big investment'. However, their call comes as a big surprise when it comes to the free flow of information.

While meeting the Information and Broadcast Minister, Hasan Mahmud, the TV stations' sponsors cited the traditional TV stations' approved guidelines-based 'licensing regime' and hefty investment cost, which is as high as Tk100 crore a station, as their reasoning.

IPTV, or Internet Protocol television, broadcasts video or TV contents over the internet, as opposed to via traditional terrestrial, satellite and cable television formats. This helps cut expensive operating costs and avoid burdensome telecast procedures, such as getting a minimum 5 MHz spectrum from regulators, setting up an earth station involving Tk1.25 crore and hiring a satellite company at a cost of approximately Tk1.5 crore a year.

TBS Sketch of Shamim Zahedy

IPTV only needs a set-top box, that costs approximately Tk4,000, to make inroads into a household with a broadband internet connection, eliminating the need for middlemen or cable operators.

Also, the demand for suspension of video news broadcast through Youtube or similar platforms by traditional print newspapers or online news portals has prompted many to raise eyebrows, as the request in question goes against innovation and fair competition, apart from the fact that it puts a hindrance to the free flow of information.

When authorities propagate open markets and free-thinking, one has to fight adversaries in the same trade by sheer skill and ability, not through protectionism.

IPTV is the new entrant in the ecosystem of news media comprising print papers, web portals, television and radio. Each medium complements the other as every genre has its own USP (Unique Selling Proposition).

Today's news media operations are moving towards practising converged journalism, a holistic approach to cross-media cooperation involving broadcast, print and internet sites; allowing readers, listeners and viewers to have access to news anytime, anywhere and on any platform, thanks to technological developments.

For example, a print newspaper can have a video, and also a separate audio version known as a podcast, of a news story printed on a broadsheet via their website. This too can be accessed quickly through QR code scanned with any device such as a mobile phone.

Hence, it is irrelevant and unjustifiable to say that one should not invade the other's territory. There is no harm if print and online publishers broadcast video news content while television channels run multimedia news portals. Rather, regulators need to officially allow the cross-media convergence determined by news media outlets' respective business models.

A strict licensing regime and excessive terms and conditions can only bode ill for the future of the news media industry, leading to the growth of informal and alternative outlets, disseminating 'fake news' in the process. 

To rescue the traditional TV channels, the distribution network should be made digital to ensure TV channels get a share of money for their expensive content from cable operators, who receive some Tk1,350 crore a month from about 4.5 crore households in Bangladesh. TV channels' only major source of revenue is TV commercials that run between breaks of programmes. As of now, traditional television stations get no money from cable distributors.

There have been three dozen private TV channels in Bangladesh with a total investment of Tk3,000 crore, employing around 10,000 people, according to industry insiders.

Protectionism is a deeply flawed notion when technological changes overtake the traditional way of life: telegram, fax, wireless telecommunications device pager have become obsolete since the introduction of the internet and cellular phone.

Big investments will not protect a business, rather constant innovation with the change of time and the ability to anticipate the future hold the key.    

Take an example from Bangladesh's own experience: investors' failure to see the future was the reason behind the failure of the once much-hyped WiMax sector, promising high-speed wireless internet connections in households.

In 2008, Augere Wireless Broadband Bangladesh's Qubee brand and Banglalion Communications Limited's Banglalion brands were awarded WiMax or worldwide interoperability for microwave access licences for Tk215 crore each. Later in 2013, Bangladesh Internet Exchange Limited's Ollo brand joined the fray. 

The three companies spent more than Tk2,500 crore on network and customer acquisition but failed to get returns on their investment before they turned off their switches. The death sentence was awarded to the three WiMax companies in October 2012 once state-owned mobile company TeleTalk formally began rolling out its third generation mobile communication technology in Bangladesh. 

The global tech industry is evolving very fast with tech giants racing to space to offer high-speed internet to connect the globe's unconnected and under-connected population.

Giants such as Jeff Bezos' Amazon and Elon Musk's SpaceX are 'fiercely' working on deploying hundreds or thousands of satellites in space, which will be known as 'mega-constellations of satellites' and will offer internet service from space. 

Once the internet from space is all set, promising affordable high-speed and stable internet services to individuals and organisations around the globe, the way of the world will change diametrically with artificial intelligence, blockchain, the internet of things, big data, cloud computing, 3-D printing and the like looming large.

Hence, if any particular industry wants to live longer, it has to look up to the mythical eagles who could live up to 70 years for inspiration. But to reach 70, the eagles must change: at 40 when their long talons can no longer grab prey, when feathers get wilted and when beaks become blunt, they are left with only two options: die or go through a painful process of change to 'rebirth'.

Shamim A. Zahedy is a journalist. He can be reached at [email protected]