NEW DELHI: The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) will hear the petition by the Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) challenging the DAS tariff order issued in July by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) relating to commercial subscribers on 8 December.

The matter was to be heard in the Tribunal on 5 December but was pushed for next week because the bench was busy dealing with another part-heard case.

 In the last hearing in October, Counsel Abhishek Malhotra, who represents the IBF, had wanted time to file a rejoinder to the reply filed by TRAI following a notice in this regard in September.

 In the tariff order, TRAI had said commercial establishments, who do not specifically charge its clients/guests on account of providing/showing television programmes and offer such services as part of amenities, are to be treated like ordinary subscribers wherein the charges would be on per television basis.

 In cases where commercial subscribers specifically charge its clients/guests on account of providing/showing television programmes, the tariff would be as mutually agreed between the broadcaster and the commercial subscriber.

 TRAI had also said that the commercial subscriber was to obtain television service only from a distribution platform operator (MSO/DTH Operator/IPTV operator/HITS operator).

 The tariff order amendment has been brought out as per the directions of the Supreme Court. It is expected that with the coming into force of these changes in the regulatory framework, the distribution of TV services to the commercial subscribers would be streamlined and the services would be available to them at competitive rates.