Clearly, the lack of broadcasting regulations, the forces of technological change and the tough economic conditions are having their impact as all the players in television chase that elusive advertising and subscription rupee. The ad and subscription rupee is not growing larger to any great extent, hence, the scramble to get a piece is extremely fierce.

ATN, Vatsa Music (did it ever have much of a chance?), PunjabiWorld (is it still around?) and now TVi have got their names added to the list of extinct or near extinct channels. Sahara TV, The Movie Channel and The Comedy Channel are amongthose which have been saying that they will launch but have yet to see the light of day.

At the top of the heap to recreate itself is DD which is being directed by the government to become less autonomous and become more of a government mouthpiece. Its parent company, the Prasar Bharati, is in danger of becoming history as an information and broadcasting minister insists there is no need for a holding firm for DD and AIR and there is no need for the two to chase commercial revenues like private satellite channels.

Zee TV, Channel V, STAR Plus, Zee News, MTV, Sony are some of the channels which are going through nerve-wrecking changes with new shows, new executives and new promotions making their appearance.

STAR and Zee have put themselves through the wringer the most. While STAR TV has restructured itself into news, entertainment and DTH divisions, and even whittled down the chief executive's powers, Zee is just about beginning the process of reorganisation.

It is fast racing its way into the digitalera by launching a direct-to-operator package directed at reducing satellite costs, increasing subscription revenues and offering consumers choice.

It has in the past few months sacked its programming head and has now transferred its CEO, hired a new one for its print publishing division and is looking to recruit many more for its other ambitious projects. Its goal: Try and fully exploit the potential in the converged Indian world.

Channel V, under severe pressure from the runaway success of MTV, the inroads being made by Music Asia and the quickly catching up and recently introduced ETN, is being reborn. Veejays have been trashcanned, programming is being replaced with spanking new stuff, and new management being brought in. For pay TV channels it is getting even more difficult to extract carriage fees from cable operators who are in turn getting pinched by their inability to hike subscription rates they charge Indian viewers. The former, however, cannot stop acquiring expensive events, shows andsoftware. If they do so, they will lose their audiences and hence their revenues from advertisers.

Despite such tough times, the wannabe media barons with the television gleam in their eyes are continuing to pour in. Lashkara TV, Gurjari, Nila TV, ETN, Kermit and Hallmark, are some of the new players who are taking a shot.The buzz phrases in the industry today are: The only thing constant about television is change; you have to keep running to stay put in the same spot. And as they say in showbiz: The show must go on.

The Kargil cause

Is the Indian advertising world doing enough for the armed forces in Kargil? The answer is no. The members of the Indian Newspaper Society have committed to distribute newspaper to soldiers fighting the Pakistan-backed intruders. Newspapers have started fund-collection drives. Consumer organisations have started signature-collection campaigns. Schools are garnering much-needed money from their students to be given to Army welfare programmes. Indian associations andorganisations abroad have got together for advertising campaigns to present the true picture on Kashmir and Pakistan's intrusions.

But what about the Indian advertising world? Almost nothing comes to mind. The 3A of I and the Ad Club's can do their mite: Organise fund raising events, auction story and picture boards of classic ad campaigns, get art directors to paint canvases and then have an auction, or donate 0.1 per cent of the 15 per cent commission for only a month they earn to jawans who are giving up their lives for the country.

The advertising gurus who are also theatre wizards can organise plays, the proceeds of which can be directed towards jawans. Indian advertising has many more creative minds than this writer who can come up with better ways to raise money. Hopefully, they will zoom their sights on the right cause and show that they too care.

(The writer is the editor of The Indian Cab&Sat Reporter. Feel free to email with your comments to television@vsnl.com ortelevision@hotmail.com)