The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Monday released the draft Telecommunication (Broadcasting and Cable) Services Interconnection (Addressable Systems) (Seventh Amendment) Regulations, 2025, proposing changes to audit and compliance norms for broadcasters and distribution platform operators (DPOs).

According to a TRAI press release, the draft follows a consultation process that began last year: the Authority had issued a consultation paper on audit-related provisions on 9 August 2024 and has now framed the proposed amendments based on stakeholder responses and internal review. The draft has been published to invite further comments from all affected parties.

The amendment package is intended to update and clarify the audit framework contained in the Interconnection Regulations, 2017 — including provisions related to infrastructure sharing and the Digital Addressable Systems (DAS) Audit Manual — and to make compliance timelines and reporting clearer for distributors and broadcasters.

TRAI has made the full text of the draft regulation available on its website and is inviting written comments from stakeholders by 6 October 2025.

The draft introduces several concrete changes: distributors will be required to get their addressable systems (subscriber management system, conditional access system, DRM and related systems) audited once every year for the preceding financial year, and to share the audit report with broadcasters with whom they have interconnection agreements by 30 September each year.

The draft also revises provisions on financial disincentives for audit defaults, clarifies auditor empanelment and data-segregation requirements in cases of infrastructure sharing, and updates corresponding schedules and the DAS Audit Manual.

TRAI has proposed that these Seventh Amendment Regulations would come into force from 1 April 2026, giving stakeholders a transition window to align their systems and processes if the rules are finalised in their present form.

The explanatory memorandum that accompanies the draft traces the need for change to issues flagged by industry participants and to new infrastructure-sharing guidelines issued by the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting.

The Authority has also attempted to balance regulatory oversight with ease of business: the draft and its accompanying notes discuss differential treatment for smaller DPOs (including considerations for reducing compliance burden on operators below a specific subscriber threshold), while aiming to strengthen audit rigour and transparency for larger distributors. Industry bodies, broadcasters and DPOs will be watching closely and are expected to submit detailed comments during the consultation window.

Stakeholders who wish to review the draft regulation and associated documents can download them from TRAI’s consultation page. TRAI has invited reasoned submissions — with supporting data and justification — by 06 October 2025; all comments will be posted on TRAI’s website as part of the consultation record.