New Delhi: The Broadcast Audience Research Council India is set to roll out its revised landing page protocols from Week 22, ushering in a major methodological shift in television audience measurement.
Under the revised framework, viewership impressions generated through landing pages will be excluded from television ratings calculations. The new rules will apply to audience data collected between May 30 and June 5, 2026, with the updated ratings scheduled for release on June 11.
In a communication to subscribers, BARC said the implementation aligns with the Television Ratings Policy 2026.
“BARC India shall be implementing the new Landing Page protocols as per the TV Ratings Policy 2026, from Week 22, which is data from the week 30th May 2026 to 5th June 2026, to be released on 11th June 2026,” the communication stated.
Landing pages refer to channels that automatically appear when viewers switch on their set-top boxes, often resulting in inflated impressions without deliberate audience selection. The exclusion of such impressions is expected to significantly alter audience measurement patterns, particularly in the television news genre where concerns over landing-page-driven ratings have persisted for years.
The revised methodology follows the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting’s broader overhaul of the TV ratings ecosystem, which also includes proposals for cross-screen measurement and expansion of panel sizes to improve transparency and representation in audience data.
However, despite the rollout of the new landing page protocols, weekly ratings for news television channels are not set to resume immediately. Industry sources indicated that news genre ratings are likely to remain suspended until the ongoing war-related escalation in the Persian Gulf eases, unless the government makes specific exceptions.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting had earlier directed BARC to withhold publication of news channel Television Rating Points (TRPs) amid concerns over sensational and speculative coverage linked to the Iran conflict. The suspension, initially imposed for four weeks, was subsequently extended as authorities reviewed the ratings framework and monitored developments in West Asia.
BARC has asked subscribers to prepare for the transition and said it will conduct webinars to explain operational processes and declaration requirements under the revised framework. The ratings body also plans to organise personalised handholding sessions for subscriber teams to help them navigate the BARC India portal and complete the necessary declarations.
