- Why in news
- On 23 September 2026, PIB published a explainer on Prasar Bharati's WAVES OTT and MyWAVES, giving user numbers, content scale and the Gems of India Challenge pilot.
- What it is
- WAVES OTT is Prasar Bharati's public-service streaming platform. It puts Doordarshan and Akashvani content, archives, education and publications on one app. MyWAVES is a section inside it where citizens upload original content.
- Launch of WAVES OTT
- Launched by Prasar Bharati on 20 November 2024 at the 55th International Film Festival of India in Goa.
- Live channels
- Over 140 television channels and 220 radio services are streamed live.
- MyWAVES
- Launched 23 March 2026 inside WAVES OTT; supports short, vertical and episodic content from citizens.
Don’t confuse with WAVES OTT vs WAVES Summit: WAVES OTT is Prasar Bharati's streaming platform; the WAVES Summit is the global media and entertainment event held in Mumbai in May 2025.
Don’t confuse with WAVES OTT vs MyWAVES: MyWAVES is a creator-upload section within WAVES OTT, not a separate platform.
Schemes: 52 Prelims questions since 2013, 10 in Prelims 2026 alone. They test features, the period and who funds it. In Mains, 33 news-triggered questions, mostly GS3.
Why it matters
- Gives Doordarshan and Akashvani archives a digital life and reaches youth and diaspora.
- Supports the creator economy and regional languages by giving local creators a national platform.
Problems
- Competing with commercial OTT platforms for audience attention and content rights.
- Ensuring quality and moderation of citizen-created content, and digital access gaps.
Way forward
- Expand regional content partnerships and subtitling to deepen language reach.
- Build clear content moderation and creator-support systems as Gems of India scales nationwide.
- 2020Mains GS1 · Q20How digital initiatives have contributed to India's education system functioning
- 2014Mains GS2 · Q7Pros and cons of raising FDI limit in news media
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: Public broadcaster's digital platform is a lasting topic, but it is mostly user numbers and UPSC rarely asks such platform items.
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.