Resurgence of Radio
Radio has touched sentiments of vast section of Indian society. Many who are in their middle age can remember the days in the early 80′s when in many homes the day started with familiar voice of Ameen Sayani in his program Binaka Geetmala on Radio Ceylon. It was much before the advent of television, that the Radio had become an integral part of an average Indian Middle Class family. The dependence on radio had gone to such an extent that families used to rely on timings of radio programs to do their activities. Many would relate starting of a particular radio program as timing to leave to their offices, sending kids to schools etc.
It was the All India Radio’s main entertainment channel, Vividh Bharati, which was started in 1960′s that first catered to the taste of Indian audiences. It ran programs like situational comedies, film music based programs, dramas, news, discussions and commentaries on various issues like health, cooking etc. With very less other mediums of entertainment besides films and radio offering easy and affordable mode of entertainment, it soon gained popularity among masses. Its flexibility, adaptability, extensive reach of Radio made it popular among every household in India and even attracted advertisers. It was the Vividh Bharati, which was going to set the precursor to the future of radio stations in India.
However, with the advent of Television in the mid 1980′s, the radio began to loose its sheen as a potent entertainment media. Due to natural advantages of Television and its Audio-Visual nature, a large section of society shifted to television. The restrictive broadcasting and license policies of government also hampered the growth of radio in country. Even after having a good reach, the radio could not expand its penetration.
The Radio received a new lease of life when in July 1999 the government allowed private operators to enter the FM radio broadcasting sector. The first private FM radio station Radio City began its operation in Bangalore, Karnataka in October 2001. Soon licenses were issued to other private operators and now a range of private radio stations can be seen offering a quality programming content.
The new face radio in the form of FM radio stations does give the same sense of personal touch to listeners as it gave during the years of its inception. Radio stations now offers programs on variety of themes. The Radio Jockeys or RJs have become household names and much popular among teenagers for their effective interaction and humour. The introduction of mobile phones with FM receiver was a significant leap that popularized the radio. Now everyone could listen to radio while going to work, in traffic, in homes etc. The FM stations besides giving a new face to radio also played a role in popularizing the local culture and highlighting the spirit of the people. Like many radio stations in Hyderabad makes one feel connected with the culture of city. The emergence of satellite radio has further expanded the horizons of radio broadcasting. As digital radio signal is transmitted through communications satellite one can listen to the same radio programs over a very large region. Due to its digital nature, the sound quality is sharp and the quality of programming is high. This resurgence of radio can be contributed to the entry of the private players in radio broadcasting sector, which completely transformed the way we listen to the radio.
What Are VSAT Satellites And How Are They Useful?
VSAT or Very Small Aperture Terminal is basically a two-way satellite ground station that has a dish antenna, smaller than 3 meters. The commonly used VSAT antennas vary from 75 cm to 1.2 m. This two way satellite internet is for both the consumers and the private networks for any organization.
The VSATs used nowadays run in Ku band whereas C band is mainly confined to the less populated regions of the world. Also, the antennas of C band VSATs can be as large as 4.0m. There are various advantages of using the Antenna VSAT:-
* Easy deployment These VSAT antennas can be easily installed anywhere.
* Range of wireless links VSATs ensure a disaster recovery service by providing a wireless link which is free from the local terrestrial wires.
* Easy installation VSAT services can be easily installed in just a few hours or minutes. It has auto-acquisition antennas.
* Same speed every where VSATs provide the same speed and service level agreements at every location in the entire network.
* Acceleration Some of the modern VSATs used these days provide high quality Internet performance because of the use of onboard acceleration of protocols such as TCP and HTTP.
* Multicast The VSATs used nowadays can distribute the same content to several places at the same time without any additional cost by using a broadcast download scheme like the DVB-S.
* Security The VSATs used in the corporate sectors ensures high security as these VSATs are private layer-2 networks over the air.
The various disadvantages of the VSATs are:- * Installation problems Though the VSATs can be easily installed but the antennas have to be installed when the sky is clear. That means that there should not be any atmospheric disturbances. Also, the installation in the tall, skyscraper buildings becomes difficult as people do not have roof rights.
* Signal distortion The signals of these VSATs get easily distorted due to bad weather conditions such as rain, hail storms etc.
Scope of Mass Communication Today in India
The Indian education system in 21st century is a basket full of professional courses and Media is one of those specialized courses popularly growing in India. The canvas of the mass communication course is larger enough to accommodate one’s imgination into it. Media is one of the most booming sectors which is expected to reach USD 1.8 trillion by 2015 globally and Asian countries are expected to contribute greatly into it.
The size of Indian media and entertainment industry in 2006 was recorded approx Rs 43,700 crore. According to a recent report given by FICCI, the industry is projected to grow at an annual rate of 19 per cent and cross the estimated size of Rs 83, 740 crore of industry by 2010. The faster growth and wider scope in the industry is the reason behind growing immense popularity of mass communication courses in India. Students willing to make career in media or entertainment industry should look out to join mass communication courses they are suitable for. The sector has truly stored immense potential in it.
Mass communication is an area ofstudy that is institutionalized in various names like communication studies, communication science, communication arts, media studies, speech communication, media ecology or mass communication at various universities of many countries including India. This type of study deals with the process of communication that encompasses a broad range of contexts ranging from newspapers, journals, magazines, television or radio broadcasting to face to face converstation. Mass communication is a discipline that tells us about the way information interpreted by the audience and how do they take political, social, economic and cultural view in their context.
Mass communication is often recognized as a backbone of our society. It is believed and said that it would be hard to construct a modern society without its active involvement. These days a number ofprivate and government institutes offering mass communication courses to the young aspirations and help them to make their career in any of the media fields like journalism, advertising, radio, public relations etc. Some of the renowned universities and colleges in India that offer courses in Mass Communication are Indian Instiute of Mass COmmunication, New Delhi, Delhi University, Symbiosis Pune, Jamia Milia Islamia, New Delhi, Chitkara School of Mass Communication, Editworks School of Mass Communication, Noida, etc.
Mass communication course opens much scope for a mass comm student who can make a bright career in any of the sectors such as advertising, films, newspapers, magazines, websites, TV channels, radio, corporate communications, press information bureau, central information service or any other. Doing a course in mass communication requires a lot of skills such as creativity, imagination, spontaniety, innovation and flexibility. Mass Media and Communication is a field interesting to be in and to make successful career in.