Recommendations:

Based on the discussions on various issues referred above, the following recommendations may be made.
a)      Print media will stay in India inspite of suggestions like paperless environment. Convergence of media is leading to disappearance of division between paper and electronic media. The policy makers should evolve plans by considering electronic & print media as complementary to each other. These cannot be considered in watertight compartments anymore.

b)      Telecom infrastructure needs to be substantially improved. The Following specific recommendations may be listed.

1. All out efforts should be made to create competition. This would require change of mind set in the Dept. of Telecom, Govt. of India and formulation of policies that would make privatization possible in the real sense of the word.
2. There is need to get out of the attitudes and concepts of the Telegraph Act of 1880's. Facilities made available by the technological developments should not be blocked through administrative regulations/restrictions.
3. It is necessary to revise the role of the regulator and to give more powers to TRAI. Authority enjoyed by agencies like Comptroller and Auditor General of India should also be given to TRAI.
4. A downward revision of tariff was necessary. Slab system of the tariff should be turned upside down i.e. greater utilization of service should result in lower rates unlike presently.
5. Planning process of telecom services on national level was required to be augmented.
6. It was necessary to develop a hybrid telecom network, which should provide world class services economically taking into account the possible future expansion of demand.

1. There was a need to create awareness about the quality of the contents being put out on different links/channels like web sites, TV channels etc.
2. Organization to ensure content authentication should be set up.
3. Channels of communication like TV Channels, Internet etc should not be allowed to operate unfettered. A mature and balanced policing of media is required.
4. Fast changing technologies operating in a market-controlled economy has resulted in wastage of huge resources. A large and developing country like India can ill afford to fritter away precious resources. At the same time reverting to controlled economy was unthinkable. It is in this context that professional bodies like IETE have a role to play in advising the policy makers as well as the entrepreneurs.

e)      The potential of electronic media in education, information dissemination, national integration, rural development etc has been exploited only marginally. Some weak-kneed efforts were made, but much more can be achieved. A policy making and implementing body with adequate funds, pooling the expertise of all the various agencies needs to be set up.

f)       Professionals in different fields need to be trained for generating software suitable for use on electronic media for education, integration and development.

g)      DTH has been introduced only in a few countries. It is an elitist system. Cable and DTH co-exist even in countries where DTH has become operational. This experiment could result in investment of large resources in a facility which may prove uneconomical due to poor ultimate response. Professional bodies like IETE need to be consulted by policy makers to get a balanced professional advice.

h)      Organization for frequency spectrum management is required to be re-examined. On one hand many agencies block frequencies without using these and on the other many users suffer due to non-availability of adequate bandwidth. Suitable penalties need to be introduced for allotted frequencies not being used.

i)      Adequate policing of frequency spectrum to ensure interference free environment is needed.

j)      Hardware industry, especially in the field of computers and communications needs to be encouraged. India should aim to develop as a regional supplier of ICT systems.

k)      Digitization needs to be introduced at a much faster pace

l)       Suitable machinery should be set up to review price structure, taxes, duties for new technology facilities like satellite telephones, CD-ROMS etc. Prices need to be kept low till volumes of trade automatically bring down the prices. Simultaneously strict policing should be introduced to eliminate piracy.

m)      Robotics is a new field, which could be of use to media on a long-term basis.