Mass media in India consists of several different means of communication: television, radio, cinema, newspapers, magazines, and Internet-based websites/portals. Indian media was active since the late 18th century. The print media started in India as early as 1780. Radio broadcasting began in 1927. Today much of the media is controlled by large, corporations, which reap revenue from advertising, subscriptions, and sale of copyrighted material.
There are currently 900 permitted private satellite television channels in India as of February 2021. Numerous regional channels are available throughout India, often distributed according to languages.
Doordarshan is an Indian state-owned public television broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. As one of India's largest broadcasting organisations in studio and transmitter infrastructure, it was established on 15 September 1959. Doordarshan, which also broadcasts on digital terrestrial transmitters, provides television, radio, online and mobile services throughout metropolitan and regional India and overseas.
All India Radio (AIR), also known as Akashvani, is an Indian state-owned public radio broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. It was established in 1936. It is the sister service of Prasar Bharati's Doordarshan, an Indian television broadcaster. Headquartered in the Akashvani Bhavan building in New Delhi, it houses the Drama Section, the FM Section, and the National Service, and is also home to the Indian television station Doordarshan Kendra, (Delhi).
The television industry in India is very diverse and produces thousands of programs in many Indian languages. Nearly 87% Indian households own a television. As of 2016, the country had over 900 channels of which 184 were pay channels. National channels operate in Hindi and English, in addition to channels in several other languages including Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Bengali, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Assamese, Gujarati, Urdu, Bhojpuri, Kashmiri, Konkani and Haryanvi, among others. The Hindi, Telugu and Tamil language television industries are by far the largest television industries in India.
StarPlus is an Indian Hindi-language general entertainment pay television channel operated by Disney Star, a subsidiary of Disney India. Its programming consists of family dramas, comedies, youth-oriented reality shows, shows on crime, and television films.
Sun TV is an Indian Tamil-language general entertainment pay television channel owned by Sun TV Network. It was launched on 14 April 1993. It is the flagship channel of the Chennai-based media conglomerate Sun Group's Sun TV Network. It was founded and is owned by Kalanithi Maran.
ABP News is an Indian Hindi-language free-to-air television news channel owned by ABP Group. Initially launched as Star News in 1998, it was later acquired by the Bengali media group Anand Bazar Patrika (ABP). It won the Best Hindi News Channel award in the 21st edition of the Indian Television Academy Awards in 2022.
Gemini TV is an Indian Telugu language general entertainment pay television channel owned by Sun TV Network. It is the first satellite TV channel in Telugu. It was launched on 9 February 1995 by the Gemini Group of Hyderabad, in association with Sun TV Network. In 1996-97, Sun TV Network acquired a controlling interest in the channel. The channel's programming consists of serials, films, film-based programs and game shows alongside some reality shows. Gemini TV HD was launched on 11 December 2011.
Udaya TV is an Indian Kannada language general entertainment pay television channel owned by Sun TV Network. Udaya TV is telecast in several nations like India, some Gulf countries and the United States. Udaya TV was launched on 1 June 1994.
DD India, is an Indian state-owned international English language news and current affairs channel from India. The service is also aimed at the overseas market, similar to WION, CNN International, BBC News, DW, VOA, France24, NHK World-Japan, Arirang, CNA, RT and RTR-Planeta and broadcasts through satellite and cable operators throughout the world as well as online and through its mobile app. It became a full-fledged English news and current affairs channel in January 2019, followed by a decision of the parent Prasar Bharati's board. The total budget provided by the government to this channel is ₹2,640 crore (US$320 million).
Discovery Channel is an Indian pay television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery for the Indian subcontinent. Launched on 15 August 1995. It is the Indian version of Discovery Channel. It is available in eight languages including Hindi, English, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Bengali and Marathi while the Tamil language has a separate dedicated channel DTamil. The channel can be viewed on digital cable and satellite television in India. The channel also available on its OTT services Discovery Plus.
Sony Max is an Indian pay television entertainment channel which is a sister channel to Sony Entertainment Television, operated by Culver Max Entertainment. The channel started broadcasting on 20 July 1999 and is available internationally. It launched a HD simulcast version on 25 December 2015.
News World India was free to air 24-hour national news channel. The channel was owned by F7 Broadcast Private Limited. News World India focuses on news that touches the day-to-day life of masses. At present Rohit Saxena is chief executive officer.
OK India is an Indian satellite Hindi language television news channel, owned by Dr. Jogender Singh. It was launched on 15 April 2016. The channel broadcasts live from Rohtak, Haryana.
