Prasar Bharati is reportedly planning to launch mobile and tablet applications for India's oldest broadcast mediums - Doordarshan (DD) and All India Radio (AIR), says a new report.
According to a report published by The Times of India, the new apps will provide news and entertainment to the users along with the subscriptions of digitized archival material. Prasar Bharati hopes to revive the public broadcaster's revenue with its foray into the digital segment. The app is expected to be ready within next six months.
"The organization hopes to earn ad revenue to the tune of ₹200 crore with eventually digital media earning 25-30 % of its revenue," said the report.
The increasing following for both DD and AIR's YouTube channels and Twitter accounts has given hopes to the company. DD has 32,000 followers on Twitter and gets 700 views per day on Youtube for its 1,700 videos uploaded till date. Similarly, AIR also has 24,000 followers on Twitter. Apparently, the public broadcasters of the country are also planning to sell its excess land to restructure its finances.
"The apps for news service will be a priority. Prasar Bharati has an unenviable credible network through the length and breadth of the country that will be put to use. It has the potential of creating its own niche amid the private news broadcasters," The Times of India quoted a source as saying.
AIR already has an Android app in its digital apps bank. The app, which is available at Google Play Store for download, offers news and news-based programmes to the users.
