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CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION
The apprehensions of media communication, as well as evidence for its effects, are as old as the history of the subject itself. People have always wondered how media messages are affecting them by bringing about an imperceptible change in their culture, values and behavioural patterns. They have always been concerned for the negative influence of a particular message or message system and have been curious about the potential prosocial effects of others. Wimmer (1993) has mentioned that the concern over the social impact of mediated messages was evident as far back as the 1920s when many critics charged that the motion pictures had a negative influence on children. The study of the anti-social effects of viewing television and motion picture is one of the intensely researched areas of mass media. The impact of pro-social content is a newer area and grew out of recognition that the same principles underlining the learning of anti-social activities ought to apply to more positive behaviour. Keeping in view the above-cited concern, this study analyses the Effects of cable television in Pakistan. It is a comprehensive study of effects on women in Lahore, Pakistan and provides results by comparing life patterns of heavy, moderate and light viewers. In 2003, this researcher had conducted an M. Phil study on cable television titled Cable Television Network in Pakistan: Introduction, Development, Prospects and Dilemmas. The outcome of the study (M. Phil) has now been used in this research, leading to the effects of cable television. Zia (2003) quotes In Pakistan, cable television network was initiated in Karachi in early 1980s and by 1998 was introduced in almost all the big cities of the country but functioned without rules and regulations. The year 2000 witnessed a mushroom growth of cable television network all over Pakistan after the government legalized cable television network. According to Aziz (2003) in 2002 almost four million households were enjoying its services in the country. Cable television viewership is no more restricted to the upper-middle class only; with the availability of low-priced television and cable connection, it has become a common household facility for the lower class as well. Viewers have access to a variety of channels from local to foreign, which provide them an opportunity to watch all types of programmes. Zia (2003) quotes, The reasons for this rapid growth of cable television
included easy access, low cost, access to satellite channels and a huge television viewership interested in entertainment only. According to Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) regional office, Punjab, the subscription of cable television in Lahore has increased from 0.2 million in 2003 to 0.35 million in 2006. Cable television subscription to 0.35 million households in Lahore increases the chances of its effect/influence on the viewers as findings of a pilot study with 1200 sample size, conducted by the researcher showed that majority of them (60 percent) are spending 2-3 hours daily to watch cable television.
reports that growth of cable television has resulted into a spill over of the Indian and western channels to Pakistani audience. The primary beneficiaries were the ZEE TV, Sony, Star Plus, HBO, sports channels etc. These western and Indian channels have grabbed attention of viewers in Pakistan and exposed its audience to programmes that were vividly different to the usual available programmes on local television channels. There was an apprehension among the public that these Indian and western channels may adversely affecting viewers minds and activities. Therefore, it was high time to conduct a study on cable television effects. So this research has been conducted to find out the effects of cable television in Pakistan. General aim of this study was to ascertain effects of cable television on women in Lahore, Pakistan. This study tried to record the demographic characteristics of cable television subscribers (women only) and measured their level of viewership. The study also tends to find out respondents preferred channels and programmes. It also tried to find out whether or not there existed any gender difference in cable television viewing. Following were the specific objectives of the study to: Explore how viewing of cable television was affecting their household chores and other activities; Gauge association between viewing of cable television and change in family and social interaction patterns of women (18-40 years) in Lahore, Pakistan; Find out relationship between viewing of cable television and its effects on personal appearance and style of women; Determine relationship between viewing of cable television and changes in cultural practices; Examine association between viewing of cable television and its effect on house and personal expenditure of women in Lahore, Pakistan; Assess association between viewing of foreign channels and role of Pakistani women in society; Propose recommendations for policy-makers, viewers and media practitioners.
1.3 Hypothesis
The hypothesis designed for the study was as follows:
The core purpose of this study was to dig out the influence of foreign channels and Pakistani channels with foreign contents on social life, values and behaviour patterns of female viewers through cable television. The researcher was interested to examine if the cable television has any affects on women in Pakistan and if yes, to what extent has it effected the women at basic level in terms of the following factors: Domestic and other activities; Family and social interaction patterns; Appearance and style; Cultural practices i.e. food, language, dress, traditions and religion; Domestic and personal expenditure; and Role of Pakistani women in society. Researcher had selected the above-mentioned factors based on the conclusion, after reviewing the relevant literature i.e., most of the researchers were of the view that television viewing generates socio-economic and cultural changes. The following subhypotheses were formed on the basis of above-mentioned factors.
1.4 Rationale
This study was aimed at finding out effects of cable television on Pakistani women with emphasis on measuring these effects on women belonging to Lahore and viewing cable television for a minimum of two years. The study was important as there was a general
concern in the society about cable television and their impact/effects on women particularly if they were heavy viewers of cable television. But little or no attention had been paid in the past to the actual consumption of cable television and its impact on audience, particularly on women of reproductive age in Lahore, Pakistan.
A study conducted by Saleem (1994) on Impact of Dish Antenna on Pakistani Society concluded that 44 percent of the respondents felt considerable impact upon their social behaviour. Viewers of programmes through dish antenna felt a change in their outlook towards life and became more broad-minded. The study further revealed that satellite communication was introducing international culture and viewers were admiring the general living standards of social values of western and Indian societies. Majority of the women respondents in this study were of the opinion that dresses hairstyles and jewellery of Indian and western models grabbed their attention the most. Therefore, new trends and fashions were making their way in our society. Through this dissertation, the researcher intended to explore whether people are adopting these new trends and fashions or not. In light of the findings of the study conducted by the researcher herself: Cable Television Network in Pakistan Development, Usage, Prospects and Dilemmas in 2003 the programmes that were being projected on the satellite channels were pre-dominantly western and Indian. On these cable television networks, a lot of undesirable programmes and advertisements were also being screened without any fear of being checked as the government does not have any system of check and balance.
on screen. Hence, with such concern in the back of her mind, it was very necessary to measure those implicit and explicit effects that (might) affect the behaviour and attitudes of the female-audience. It is a general observation that females in Pakistan are the housewives. A very small segment of the female population professionally works. Hence their exposure to outside world is limited. Thus, their perception falls back upon the mediated and glamorised reality via television. This also directed attention towards an important issue: the weak analytical and expressive powers of female population in general. Even if the women possess communicative skills, they are not provided with a proper platform to get themselves heard. Further, in Pakistans male-dominated society, women are not encouraged to come forward and speak-out their minds. Such observations developed the need of this study. In Pakistan, a woman is supposed to perform an important responsibility of bringing up their children. She is considered as the first institution of the society from where the child learns. Moreover, woman is also the one who is responsible for keeping intact the value system of the family unit and thus the women population holds the key to value system of the society in general. Hence, this study had a strong rationale for analyzing the effects women are receiving through the cable television. Zia (2003) mentioned that cable television channels have been immensely popular among viewers, particularly among women folk in Pakistan. Public concern over the ill effects of media violence and sexuality, explicit content, obscenity and vulgar language shown through cable television channels is evident and important. This caused many to criticize the channels and express concern over the effects of such material on an innocent and expanding viewership. It was reported in the national dailies several times that angry viewers physically attacked the cable operators. On the other hand, the PEMRA does not have any proper system of check and balance and monitoring cable networks. Thus, this study was deemed significant for the public and the policy makers. A study by Zia (2004) concluded that entertainment was the primary purpose of viewing cable television and 70 percent female cable viewers were interested in watching only two kinds of programmes: films and dramas. Only 17.3 percent of the women used cable television for information and awareness purpose. Therefore, this study focused on women only and analysed the affects of these programmes on them. The study has provided certain recommendations on the bases of these affects.
Thompson and Bryant (2002) expressed that new media enabled users to become more active in communication process and to be more selective with regard to messages they receive. They were active agents rather than passive receivers of information. They may be called addressable users of micro multimedia television. Bellour (1975) considered women as passive audience but was converting them into an active audience. Hence, with all these aspects in mind, the study explored the area of cable watching and its effects with special reference to women residing in Lahore, Pakistan.
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were few limitations. But for those living some distance away, reception could be poor, the picture was often fuzzy, distorted or faint. Even a passing car could create electrical interference and fill the screen with snow or cause the picture to roll. In addition, the fact that television signals travel in a straight line reduced the quality of reception or even made it impossible behind large buildings on the back side of hills or mountains and in similar positions. To solve his problem, Mr. Walson put an antenna on the top of a large utility pole and installed it on the top of a nearby mountain. Television signals were received and transported over twin lead antenna wire down to his store. Once people saw these early results, television sales soared. It became his responsibility to improve the picture quality by using coaxial cable and self- manufactured boosters (amplifiers to bring cable television to the homes of customers who bought television sets. And as such the cable television was born in June 1948. In the early 1950s, television was fairly new. Though it had not yet become popular, city department stores displayed many different models for sale. And, like an apartment house where every resident had his/her own television, the rooftops of stores were beginning to resemble forests of television antennas. Milton Jerrold Shapp, who later became governor of Pennsylvania, developed a system to consolidate the forest of antennas for city department stores and apartment buildings. Under this new system, one master antenna (MATV) could be used for all television in the building. His secret: the coaxial cable and signal boosters (amplifiers) capable of carrying multiple signals at once. At about the same time, in the nearby town of Lansford, another appliance salesman named Robert (Bob) Tarlton experienced similar problems as those faced by Mr. Walson. He read about Mr. Shapps new system and though it worked for apartment houses and department stores, it could work for his own town as well. While the community was only 65 miles from Philadelphia, it was behind a mountain that interfered with signals. Tarlton decided to try a new approach. He put up a big antenna and for a monthly fee he provided a cable hook-up to each subscribers home. He called his new business the Panther Valley Television Company, and he was able to supply excellent signals to people who could not otherwise operate a receiver. He did not originate any new programming. All he did was to capture network broadcasts with his community antenna and relay them to homes on his system.
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broadcasting, commercial telecast was also permitted but no license fee was charged on television set at that time.
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1.7.5 AJK TV
AJK television is a Kashmiri Channel providing different programmes for local viewers and Kashmiri and Gojrati news.
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decoders, which were a lot more expensive and the annual subscription was also beyond the reach of a common man. A man once setup this satellite system for his own personal use and then started providing this service to neighbouring areas against a small fee. Thus, this gave way to the business of cable television networking which established and flourished in a short period. The government took notice of this illegal operation in the late 1998. The Nawaz Sharif headed government came to conclusion that cable operation be made legal in Pakistan. But before any action could be taken, the Nawaz Sharif government was toppled and the armed forces took command of the nations destiny and started considering legalization of the cable television. The army regime headed by General Musharraf legalized cable television operations in January 2000. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) started the procedure of issuing licenses to the cable operators in January 2000. The following is the data for the number of issued application forms and responses received till June 2000. PTA chairman Mian Muhammad Javed explained that cable television had now emerged as one of the most inexpensive means of entertainment in the country which government wanted to make more popular among users and viewers by framing policies and proper rules and regulations to ensure transmission of good programmes through their channels. The legalization process of cable television networks started in November 1998 and completed in 2000. Therefore, in June 2000, cable television networks started
functioning legally which initiated a new era of electronic media in Pakistan. This raised a number of new queries and gave an opportunity to people to discuss this new system of communication in Pakistan.
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PTA issued nationwide licenses to the cable operators and the issuance of the license to an eligible firm(s)/company may take seven days on the receipt of the application.
Table 1.1: Licenses Issued to Cable Operators from June 2000 to Dec. 2001 by PTA Category B-1 B-2 B-3 B-4 B-5 B-6 B-7 B-8 Total Islamabad/ NWFP 110 3 0 1 0 0 0 5 119 Punjab/ Lahore 328 7 2 1 0 0 0 0 338 Karachi 333 42 1 1 1 1 0 1 380 Total 771 52 3 3 1 1 0 6 837
It can be seen from the above table that maximum licenses were issued in Karachi i.e. 380 and minimum were issued in Islamabad/NWFP i.e. 119 whereas Lahore issued 338 licenses throughout Punjab. This shows that the growth of cable television network is at its peak in Karachi and in Punjab including that cable television was warmly welcomed in these areas and people accepted it with pleasure. Cable television has been growing rapidly in major cities of the country since the government authorised PTA to issue licences to cable operators in early 2000. The number of households using this service has crossed 2.5 million. In the densely populated cities, like Karachi and Lahore, the growth of cable television is rapid as the operators do not have to face high installation cost. Secondly, houses are close to each other, making
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supplying of connections easier than in cities like Islamabad where the houses are not so close. Therefore, in the federal capital, cable television system is far from being a thriving trend as cable operators see dim business prospects in the field. According to a study in which three thousand people were interviewed in different areas of town, cable network has expanded 25 percent in just one year. (Zia, 2003: 89).
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Table 1.2: Licenses Issued to Cable Operators till 2006 by PEMRA License category B(LH) B-1 B-2 B-3 B-4 B-5 B-6 B-7 B-8 B-9 B-10 Rural (R) Hotel (H) Total Islamabad Region 09 90 18 02 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 63 00 182 Punjab region 99 236 07 01 01 01 00 00 00 00 00 60 03 408 NWFP Region 12 50 03 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 17 00 82 Sindh Region 00 219 71 24 03 03 00 00 02 00 01 217 04 544 Balochistan Region 08 28 03 01 00 01 00 00 00 00 00 43 01 85 Total 125 622 94 25 05 04 00 00 02 00 01 365 08 1301
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The authority retains the approved list of satellite television channels under constant review, periodically revising it to cater to public taste, needs and demands. Its current list has on it 49 satellite television channels excluding the Pakistani ones. The list is enclosed at: Religious Channels ----------------------------02 News Channels ----------------------------11
Entertainment Channels-----------------------15 The list is widely circulated among cable television operators for their information
and compliance. The number of connections has been increased from 2.9 million in 2003 to more 4 million homes in 2006 in Pakistan. However, cable operators do not have any device to censor whatever the channels are broadcasting. In addition to this PEMRA does not have any system to monitor the channels which are being transferred to the connection holders by the cable operators.
Table 1.3: Number of Cable Television Subscribers in the Country Areas / Region Islamabad Sindh Punjab NWFP Balochistan Grand total
Source: Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority
Declared subscribers by cable television operators 40,244 88,332 22,356 17,037 8,434 176,392
Implemented subscribers through enforcement so far 223,000 1,497,905 1,011,000 499,017 40,000 3,270,922
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Table 1.4: Technology and Connection Charges Technology Connection charges/installation(Rs) Cable Television MMDS DTH 500 2000 1500 2000 10,000 12000 Monthly subscription (in Rs) 225 350 200- 350 250 350
The growth in subscription of above technologies is correlated with the cost effectiveness that is offered to end-users. Table 1.5 portrays a survey of the television viewership in the country by household income group.
Table 1.5: Television Viewership by Household Income Monthly household income (Rs.) Up to 4,000 4001-7000 7001-15000 15000+
Source: Gallup Survey of Pakistan
Viewers percentage 35 51 72 81
Cable television operators all over the country have been relaying programmes and advertisements on self-generated CD channels in explicit violation of the provisions
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of PEMRA regulations. By doing so they were causing damage to the satellite television channel operators by fetching advertisements at a very cheaper cost. Moreover, content and quantity of such private channels was also devoid of PEMRA rules. On the other hand, cable television operators of the country have persistently demanded PEMRA for granting permission for in-house channels and advertising on cable television networks. PEMRA has therefore devised a policy for registration of inhouse channels for cable television operators. The very purpose of this policy is to ensure the level playing field for stakeholders by regulating illegal transpiration of in-house channels. The number of such channels is now restricted to five (maximum) according to categories of cable television licenses. Whereas, in past they were showing 15 to 20 such channels by flouting all the regulations and norms. No operator is allowed to transmit their local channels or to insert ads without prior permission/license of the Authority. The license for in-house channel and its fee is in addition to the license for cable television operation. Moreover, the sector had over the time come to be lighted massively by the courage of loopline connections. Instead of going for rather impracticable punitive actions, the Authority thought it more prudent and practicable to bring the operators of these illegal connections in its net by offering them concessions. To this end, it introduced for operators running their cable operations on loopline from any licensed cable television head-end operators, a category marked as cable television license of loop-line holders (LH Category). It provides two options to such loop holders. They can either obtain an independent license in LH Category maintaining their independent status or they may become an agent to the licensed cable television operator. Both options were evolved in consultation with various representatives of cable television operators associations and stakeholders (PEMRA: Annual Report 2002-2003). As such, some good results were obtained and PEMRA issued 640 head-end licenses till 2006 in Punjab. In Lahore, PEMRA has issued 83 head-end licensees till 2006, out of which 68 are active and 276 loop holders are successfully handling cable perorations and serving 0.35 million subscribers. Every cable operator/loop holder provides more than 100 channels to connection holder.
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ARY Digital Pakistan Indus Music Indus Vision Ptv Channel 3 The City Channel Geo News
ARY One World Indus News KTN Ptv National The Music Apna Channel
The present situation in Pakistan shows dominance both by public sector and private/commercial media, with PTV having an extensive reach because of its extensive network of stations and boosters. It has a greater acceptability and credibility of people in areas where it can be watched through cable network and satellite dish antennas. Currently, in Pakistan we can differentiate three kinds of television channels: 1. State-owned television channels
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2. Privately-owned commercial television channels that are not PEMRA licensee but telecast from abroad 3. Privately-owned commercial television channels that are PEMRA licensee
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Table 1.6: The PEMRA Licence Holder Private Channels Sr. No. 1 Name/Title of licensee Virtual University, Lahore [Two Channels] Name of channel License issued for VTV 1 VTV 2 VTV 3 VTV 4 2 Indus TV Network (Pvt.) Ltd., Karachi [Two Channels] License issued for Indus Music Indus Vision 3 AVT Prime Pvt. Ltd., Islamabad. Licence Issued for Khyber TV 4 ARY Communications Pvt. Ltd. Karachi [Two Channels] Licence issued for ARY ONE World ARY Digital 5 Mashriq Television Pvt. Ltd,, Lahore Licence Issued for Mashriq TV 6 7 8 9 10 11 International Marketing and Trading Company (Pvt.) Ltd. Lahore. Top End Network (Pvt.) Ltd., Lahore. Eye TV Ltd, Karachi Vision Network TV Ltd, Karachi 24-Seven Media Network (pvt) Ltd, Karachi Southern Networks Limited, Islamabad Licence Issued Licence Issued "Hum TV" Licence Issued Licence Issued Licence Issued
Number of Licenses 16
Gone on-air 10
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INDUS News - 24 Hours Round The Clock News INDUS USA - For North American Viewers INDUS Europe - For European Viewers KTN - National Sindhi Channel Mashriq TV - National Urdu Channel Ptv National - Official Domestic State Television Ptv World - Official International State Television Ptv Bolan - National Balochi Channel Ptv Channel 1 Ptv Channel 3 Ptv Prime Europe Ptv Prime USA QTV - 24 Hour Islamic Religious Channel Rung TV Sindh TV - Sindhi Language Television The Musik - 24 Hour Pakistani Music Channel TVOne - The ONE To Watch City Channel Karachi - Karachi Metro Channel UNI Plus - Pakistani Urdu Channel Virtual TV1 - Online Educational Channel Virtual TV2 - Online Educational Channel VIBE - Pakistan's Newest 24 Hour Music Channel Vectone - UK Based Urdu Channel Sun Biz TV Ravi TV
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Star Movies
Star Sports
Sahara One
Sur Sangeet
Super Sports
Ten sports
Zee Movies
Zee Tv
Zee Smile
ZOOM
HBO
HallMark
AXN
Balle Balle
BBC Prime
Bloom Berg
Cartoon Network
ESPN
VOX
Fashion TV
ESPN
FOX
Reality TV
MTV
Channel V
CNN
Discovery channel
National Geographic
History
SONY
Saharay samay
Saudi Tv
LBC
B4u music
B4u movies
S Max
Sky sports
Zee cinema
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Star one
CNBC
MTV HITS
MTV UK
Nickelodeon
Sky Movies
Sky News
The Hits
Animal Planet
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came out of the stagnant state of Ptv which monopolised the electronic media field for a long time. Viewers may have the cable connection by paying nominal amount and can watch a variety of channels which provide them unlimited number of films, drama, music, international programmes, sports programmes etc. With the introduction of cable television, viewers of different age groups and different income groups can now approach different kinds of local and foreign channels. Another reason for its acceptability and popularity among the viewers is the leisure and entertainment at their doorstep. For instance, if a family visits a cinema hall, they have to spend on their travelling, food stuff and tickets, obviously being expensive to a middle class family. Now, with the ultimate number of channels on cable television, inexpensive and round the clock entertainment is available at their home for the entire family. At the same time they may avoid the programmes on Ptv which lack variety, are unattractive and with a lot of coverage to the govt activities. As a result these programmes are quite often monotonous and uninteresting. In contrast, foreign channels provide a variety of programmes, non-stop entertainment and a choice to all the members of the family. Moreover, their uncensored presentation is found to be bold and attractive for them. One of the reasons for the attraction of cable television channels is the live coverage of international audience hitherto ignored by Ptv in the past. The Ptv news and current affairs programmes gave more coverage to government activities and most of the time full of statements and speeches of the VIPs, political leaders and ministers were telecast. It lacked coverage to social and other issue of common mans interests. Therefore, viewers were glad when they received news of events of their interests and interviews with personalities on BBC, CNN and other private channels rather than statements by the government officials and celebrities. They were also amazed by visiting foreign lands by watching programmes on cable television foreign channels and were also exposed to the behaviour and lifestyle of other nations. Apart from live coverage of major happenings, interviews with personalities on news channels, music channels, dramas on Geo, Star Plus, ARY and Sports channels attracted both viewers and advertisers which posed a serious threat to Ptv. The soap operas, talk shows, chat shows and other programmes have become quite popular among viewers of all income status groups, though these programmes promote a very different values system from that of Pakistanis. As a result, rapid growth of cable television in Pakistan has not only broken the monopoly of Ptv in the country but also possessed a challenge to the behaviour and values system of our nation. Further, with the advent of
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satellite transmission and growth of cable television has enhanced the element of competition among the television channels. Consequently, local and state-owned television channels are following the production patterns of foreign channels, particularly Star Plus owned by Star TV Network. Star plus is projecting and promoting the Indian traditions, values and culture in Hindi language. In Pakistan, no other technology has been accepted and ever made a so sudden impact on minds of peoples as the cable television network has made. With emergence of private satellite channels, the whole broadcasting industry has been commercialized. The expansion of commercial broadcasting has created a consumer-oriented market which further expanded the marketing and advertising infrastructure of Pakistans economy. This was required for the success of the governments liberal media policy. One of the important and clear trends observed in Pakistani broadcasting industry is the shifting of senior, famous and creative directors, producers and broadcasters from Ptv to the new private television channels. There might be the following reasons for this act: Private television channels are paying heavily to the media professionals i.e. producers, directors, editors, etc. Media professionals are enjoying more freedom to work in private channels as compared to state-owned media i.e. Ptv and PBC Another important result of the media expansion is the fragmentation of audience. These channels provide diversity in content and theme targeting a specific group. There are separate dedicated channels for sports, movies, music, drama, news, religion etc. Similarly, there are separate channels for different languages i.e. national, international and regional. Many indigenous programmes are just replicas of the western and Indian programmes. Most of the channels show clichs of similar programmes having a few innovative ideas. This shows that a variety of programmes are available but the content is almost the same.