Prasar Bharati’s OTT platform WAVES has crossed over 84 lakh registered users since its launch, the government informed the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, underlining the growing adoption of digital platforms for public broadcasting content.

According to a PTI report, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L. Murugan, in a written reply, said the WAVES OTT platform was launched in November 2024 as a digital streaming service aimed at disseminating a wide range of content. The platform offers radio, TV shows, web series, films, live events and archival material from the public broadcaster.

The development highlights the government’s push to expand the reach of public service content through digital mediums, catering to evolving consumption patterns among audiences across the country. WAVES has been positioned as a comprehensive platform to bring together diverse programming under one umbrella, making it accessible on demand.

Murugan also informed the House about another key initiative by Prasar Bharati — the Prasar Bharati-Shared Audio-Visuals for Broadcast and Dissemination platform, known as PB-SHABD. Launched in March 2024, the platform is designed to facilitate the distribution of news content across the country.

PB-SHABD currently supports dissemination in 15 Indian languages, including Assamese, Bengali, English, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Dogri and Urdu, enabling wider access to regional and national news.

The growth of WAVES and the rollout of PB-SHABD reflect a broader effort by the public broadcaster to strengthen its digital footprint and ensure that content reaches audiences across geographies and languages in an increasingly digital-first environment.