Two News Channels Win Slots on DD Free Dish in 104th E-Auction

Published 2026-11-03

Two Indian news channels, News 1 India and India News, have secured slots on the DD Free Dish platform in the 104th e-auction. DD Free Dish is the free-to-air direct-to-home (DTH) satellite service run by Prasar Bharati, India's public broadcaster. The service allows channels to reach viewers across the country without a paid subscription.

The e-auction is the process used to allocate channel slots on the platform. Broadcasters bid for the available slots, and the highest bidders are awarded the right to broadcast. The slots in this auction are for the MPEG-4 format, which is a video compression standard that helps channels send good-quality pictures using less satellite capacity.

The result means that both channels will be able to broadcast their programmes on a national free-to-air platform. Viewers who have DD Free Dish set-top boxes will be able to watch them without monthly payments. The auction is part of a regular process through which the platform fills its available channel capacity.

The full details of the auction, including the bid amounts and the exact dates when the new channels will start broadcasting, were not included in the available information. Readers who want more details can check official announcements from Prasar Bharati.

Sources: BMI

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